I remember when "Showgirls" was released in 1995 with all the hoopla. With its glitz and promised sexuality in Las Vegas, it was a movie I had to see. I vaguely remember a feeling of disappoinment as the movie was not what I hoped it would be. Still it was not a sharp reaction.
I also remember being aware of the reactions to "Showgirls" over the years. The film was a critical and box-office flop. It continued to hang around and made a good deal of money from home viewing, The movie attained what is called a "cult" or "camp" status and garnered some positive reviews together with the strong criticism. I often thought of watching the film again and finally did so when it became available on Amazon Prime.
With a movie like "Showgirls" with the strong reactions it provoked including many awards in the "worst" categories, it is difficult to decide whether to focus on the flim itself or on the various ratings and interpretations it has received over the years. The film tells the story of Nomi Malone (in a roundly criticized performance by Elizabeth Berkley) a woman of uncertain backgound who hitchhikes to Las Vegas with dreams of becoming a star. The film becomes the vehicle for a look at Las Vegas show life, with its almost total crassness and vulgarity, materialism, shallowness,, and frequent viciousness and violence. The music blares, the dancing is constant, and, as became notorious, flesh is on full display throughout.
I have never been to Las Vegas but wanted to see this movie for its portrayal of glitz, gambling, and sexuality. The portrayal of all this and more in "Showgirls" is entirely negative and off-putting. This together with the film's length, bad acting, and unconvincing script, has led to many sharp and deserved criticisms. Some viewers, though, see the negative portrayal of Las Vegas and of its characters as the point of the movie and as a condemnation of the shallow character of the place and of American life. The movie still may fail due to its weaknesses in acting and script. The totally crass, negative portrayal, especially of sex and sexuality, may be as one-sided and as ideologically driven as any other characterization which shrieks, in a book or on the screen.
I was troubled by "Showgirls" which is awkwardly done and often boring. but I don't find it as bad as its early reputation would suggest. On the other hand, the movie doesn't deserve critical rehabilitation. It is interesting that the film has been around and still provokes controversy after many years. Without overdoing the point, the controversy and the differing opinons are valuable. The film and its aftermath stayed with me over the years and I was grateful for the opportunity to see it again at last.
Robin Friedman
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Showgirls
Nomi’s dreams and desires to make it big in Vegas are as sharp as a stiletto heel. When she catches the eye of Cristal, the Stardust’s sexy headliner, Nomi is on the brink of living her dream. But she soon realizes that there is only room for one starlet on the marquee… and that either she or Cristal will have to take the fall!
First off, let me be clear - the four star rating isn't so much for the film as it is the 15th Anniversary Blu-Ray release. I'm a fan of select films of Paul Verhoeven (Robocop, Total Recall, Basic Instinct, Starship Troopers), the hilarious podcast, How Did This Get Made hosted by Paul Sheer, Jason Mantzoukas, and June June Diane Raphael and what can be considered "trash cinema" like The Room, Troll 2, Samurai Cop, etc. So, when this film kept appearing on podcasts, YouTube reviews, and even a several page spread in the "Bad Movie Bible", I thought it was time to revisit Showgirls. I didn't particularly like the film when I saw it many years ago and after revisiting it, I'm still not impressed though I did appreciate the sheer over-the-top delivery in almost each and every scene. However, I am intrigued! Some possess the view that this is a misunderstood masterpiece. Verhoeven has made biting satires in the past, perhaps this was meant to be one of them? I suspect this theory is apparent in the upcoming documentary on the film and it's critical reaction, "You Don't Nomi", which I anticipate embracing the open-minded challenge, "convince me."The Blu-ray release itself has a few special features that tip the scales favorably for a moderately priced purchase. The most entertaining of which is the firmly tongue-in-cheek audio commentary by David Schumader called, "The Greatest Movie Ever Made".
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AddieTude
Showgirls: Camp Classic -21 Years later.
Reviewed in Canada on May 29, 2016
