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18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
What can I say ? It's the amazing Ed Wood !, January 24, 2000
By A Customer
If you like well-directed action scenes with plenty of sfx, maybe mixed with intelligent comedy and some drama, acted out by capable performers, then you won't want to see "Glen or Glenda". However; if you're one of those strange people who take joy in marvelling at just how bad it is possible to make movies, then this is for you.Let me tell you: This is weird. Almost worse than Wood's masterpiece, "Plan 9 from Outer Space", it had me actually gaping in amazement for close to 70 minutes. Originally Wood's attempt at social commentary, trying to open people's eyes to the plight of the closet transvestites of the world (of which he himself was one, and played one in the film), this film has it all: an almost incoherent and incomprehensible story within a story within a story, narrated on several levels. Stock footage galore, among other things, a buffalo herd having, well - nothing to do with the film, and a lot of sweaty soldiers loading shells into cannons and shooting them off for close to 5 minutes, to sorta symbolise WW2 ("And just as quickly as the war had started... it was over!"). Lousy lines, lousy cast (Probably just picked'em up in the bar on his way over to the studio), lousy props (VERY obviously pasted-together newspaper front pages), a positively ludicrous explanation as to why it's so nice to wear women's clothing, a close to 15-minutes long, totally unrelated, episodic dream sequence containing lots of women wearing lingerie while performing various acts (like one woman pouncing upon another woman, binding and gagging her), all to the tune of "Czardas", the most rushed piece of violin music ever, while Wood's dream ego looks horrifiedly at the proceedings. And all under the watchful eye of the overseer Bela Lugosi, sitting in his mad scientist-laboratory and spouting totally wigged-out lines. PULL THE SKRINKS ! If you think this review was incoherent, it is because the film itself is incoherent. And if what I've described is your idea of fun, then you'll enjoy it as much as I did. If it isn't, well... "Bevare!"
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
If you think you've seen bad movies.... Beware.... Beware..., November 25, 2003
As a connoisseur of cult/bizarre films, I've seen some bad movies. If they're interesting enough, bad movies can be incredibly entertaining (i.e. Mystery Science Theater 3000). Even being familiar with Edward D. Wood's work (Plan 9 From Outer Space, Bride of the Monster) did not prepare for the experience of viewing his debut film, Glen or Glenda. Partially based on Wood's own life, the film was a serious attempt to dramatize the lifestyle of a man who is compelled to wear women's clothing. A disclaimer at the beginning proclaims it a film of "stark realism". What follows is 80 minutes of cinematic ineptitude, the likes of which I have never seen. There are plenty of bad films, but this movie is in a class by itself! Even Ed Wood's "classic" Plan 9 From Outer Space, often called the worst movie of all time, looks great in comparison to Glen or Glenda.The film follows (occasionally) a man named Glen (Wood himself) who likes to wear women's clothing. He is engaged to a girl named Barbara (Dolores Fuller, Wood's girlfriend), but is distraught over whether to reveal his secret to her.
Wood's attempt at "stark realism" is destroyed immediately as soon as we see Bela Lugosi in a chair spouting incoherent nonsense ("Pull de string!", "Beware of the big green dragon that sits on your doorstep. He eats little boys, puppy-dog tails and big fat snails".) Half the film consists of random stock footage that has no relevance to the material whatsoever. No to mention the absurd dream sequence that, I think, is supposed to represent Glen's confused state of mind, but it really makes no sense at all. It features half-clothed women dancing around for no reason, a torture scene (!!) and even an appearance by the devil (!!!). By this point, the audience is scratching their heads and wondering what the heck is going on. It really must be seen to be believed. For fans of the director's work, Glen or Glenda is a must-see. Even though it's unbelievably terrible, the film is not without entertainment value. It has many laugh-out-loud moments, and the film overall is so bizarre that is should not be missed by cult movie fanatics.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Man On a Mission, June 15, 2005
I'll try not to repeat what Amazon reviewers have already said about this film. Were it a minute longer, it would be unbearable for even a single viewing. But as it stands, "Glen or Glenda" is worse than "Plan 9 From Outer Space" and consequently more enjoyable (it's also shorter). Three additional points about the film:
1. Ed Wood has the magnified "didactic" sensibility of a preacher or compulsive rhetorician. His primary mode of development is repetition. The story never gets under way because Ed keeps announcing the "premise" of his movie, postponing the impossible challenge of telling a story on film. In effect, we never get beyond the title. Not only his voice-over narration but his manipulation of stock footage and use of non-narrative montage mark him as the ultimate cinematic huckster or pitch man.
2. Ed's choice of scenes tells us virtually nothing about "Glen" but probably reveals a lot about Ed. From the World War II footage to strip-tease and B&D scenes (mild) Ed shows that he's a "slightly" deviant, cross-dressing heterosexual but sufficiently "alternative" to have empathy for transsexuals. He's also clearly an individual who has struggled with his share of desires and demons.
3. However bad, the film must be judged daring for a 1953 film, a time when the word "virgin" and even "sex" was taboo on the screen. (The film even discusses and represents homosexuality.) Moreover, apart from the treatment, Ed's choice of subject matter insures the film will be taken with more than a little seriousness by viewers who share Ed's urges and interests. In that respect, "Glen or Glenda?" is more "relevant" than ever, since I can't think of any other commercial movie that approaches the same subject as head-on as this one. In fact, most gender-bender movies, from "Some Like It Hot" to "The Bird Cage," are far more exploitive of their subject matter than is Ed Wood. Make no mistake: he's clearly a man on a mission.
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