The Breaking Glass Pictures February 13, 2018 biopic "Thirsty" provides fabulous camp fun by channeling (no pun intended) both the "issues-oriented "Afterschool Specials" of the '70s and '80s and Lifetime Movies of the '80s to the present. This relates to shifting the narrative between the '70s childhood of Scott Townsend and his adult life as drag queen Thirsty Burlington.
The spirit of "Thirsty" is clear from the opening scenes of a very passable cross-dressing young Scott putting a teenage bully in his place on arriving home from elementary school. This public-housing residence in Cambridge, Massachusetts is the source of the "Afterschool" aspect of "Thirsty."
The father of Scott is an abusive alcoholic who makes The Great Santini look like Ward Cleaver. Mrs. Townsend (a.k.a. Doris) also heavily drinks and is equally dependent on prescription medication.
The camp moments from this portion of the film include a "Mommie Dearest" scene in which young Scott dumps out the vodka and flushes the pills; this prompts a response from Doris that is equally angry and frantic.
The bully later forcing his way into the Townsend home in search of money and drugs provides additional "Afterschool" style drama; his brutal treatment of young Scott is as melodramatic as his threat to make this boy watch the bully rape Doris when she returns home.
This period of the life of Scott also involves his starting his singing career that extends beyond entertaining his family and neighbors. His lounge-lizard uncle has the boy join the band in gigs that include a high-profile performance. A scene in which the family discusses the song that Scott will sing provides an early warning about the dangers of him presenting a feminine image.
The conception of Thirsty (whom Townsend portrays) aptly occurs on a dark city street when Scott spontaneously imitates Cher for a friend who suggests that he take his act to a Provincetown (a.k.a. P-Town) drag show. That leads to a tricky labor in a dressing room and the birth of Thirsty on stage where she is a big hit. No, she does not work pro bono or demonstrate any chastity.
Much of the Lifetime-style drama relates to the textbook rocky relationship with boyfriend Christopher. This man who loves the boy in the dress but not the dress has the second best line in the film in essentially stating that he would have sex with the real thing if he wanted to be with a woman. (The first best line occurs during the aforementioned home invasion.) This line comes during an awesomely melodramatic scene in which Christopher is the brute traumatizing his significant other.
The personal drama in the life of Thirsty adversely affects her career; her decision to evolve from portraying Cher to being her own woman creates further trauma.
The best scenes occur during a "Priscilla Queen of the Desert" road trip in which Townsend and two fellow performers visit the father of Townsend on the way to a gig. The acceptance of the boys by this not-so-enlightened man is terrific.
Other fun comes when Townsend Senior makes the arguably questionable decision to bring these "girly-boys" to a gun range. Hilarity does ensue.
There are many reasons that "Thirsty" works; the tale of someone who grows up rough and is subject to intense bullying remaining true to himself and achieving relative stardom always is good fodder for a docudrama. We also get solid insight into the psyche of drag queens and the practical aspects of their professional lives.
A personal experience provides the cautionary tale of NEVER mistaking a "Cher" for a "Fran Drescher" even if the performer looks EXACTLY like the latter.
Anyone with questions or comments regarding "Thirsty" is encouraged to email me; you alternatively can connect on Twitter via @tvdvdguy.
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