GLEN OR GLENDA. Finally Saw It!
Posted: August 25th, 2012, 3:02 pm
Why put this bizarre Edward G. Wood cult favorite under Sci-Fi/Horror? Well...why not? How do you categorize this, one of the strangest, most talked about B features ever made? I had never rented the video. Never attended a midnight showing at The Music Box. But last night, it turned up on an unbelievably weird and unpredictable TV channel. I don't even know what it's called. And you know what? I liked it!
At its worst, this mind trip falls into the "so bad it's good" bracket. But I give it more credit than that. I'll go with "so whacked out, out of this world CRAZY" it's enthralling! The technical quality is raw. Production values atrocious. The acting, thank Heaven, is laughable. Competent players would have ruined this project. Presented more as documentary (instructional film?) than drama, the story tells of men who enjoy wearing women's clothes. As the narration sensitively points out, many of these men suffer at the hand of misunderstanding and prejudice. This is NOT a meaningless movie!
Glen is one such man. Engaged to Wood regular Dolores Fuller, he must either share his secret with her or live a lie. Which will it be? GLEN OR GLENDA? With lapses into the surreal, appearances by The Devil, and effective commentary by Bela Lugosi, the drama/psychology/nightmare unfolds with more substance than style. More guts than grace. It's not something I'll forget anytime soon.
At its worst, this mind trip falls into the "so bad it's good" bracket. But I give it more credit than that. I'll go with "so whacked out, out of this world CRAZY" it's enthralling! The technical quality is raw. Production values atrocious. The acting, thank Heaven, is laughable. Competent players would have ruined this project. Presented more as documentary (instructional film?) than drama, the story tells of men who enjoy wearing women's clothes. As the narration sensitively points out, many of these men suffer at the hand of misunderstanding and prejudice. This is NOT a meaningless movie!
Glen is one such man. Engaged to Wood regular Dolores Fuller, he must either share his secret with her or live a lie. Which will it be? GLEN OR GLENDA? With lapses into the surreal, appearances by The Devil, and effective commentary by Bela Lugosi, the drama/psychology/nightmare unfolds with more substance than style. More guts than grace. It's not something I'll forget anytime soon.