Filmmaker John Waters and drag queen extraordinaire Divine are the undisputed king and queen of filth. Divine tore up the screen in Waters’ cult classics Mondo Trasho, Pink Flamingos and Hairspray.
Divine was a trendsetter and a rule breaker. He was counter culture pin up, partied at Studio 54 and achieved global success as a disco diva.
Divine is the remarkable subject of Jeffrey Schwarz’s documentary I Am Divine, currently screening at the Sydney Film Festival. Although he passed away over 20 years ago, Divine’s incredible lust for life is evoked through archival footage, photographs and interviews.
In the film, Divine is described as “the most beautiful woman in the world”. And rightly so. With a figure hugging dress, fairy floss wig and eyebrows that stretch towards the heavens, Divine is absolutely fabulous.
Schwarz strips back the layers and layers of makeup and introduces us to Harris Glenn Milstead, the Baltimore boy behind the drag persona.
Growing up, Glenn was the punching bag for schoolyard bullies who did not share his love of dress-ups and Elizabeth Taylor. But six doors down the road lived John Waters, a misfit teen who befriended Glenn and christened him ‘Divine’.
The film dips into the debauched catalogue of Divine’s early work and collaborations with Waters. In the 1968 short film Eat Your Makeup, Divine squeezed into a pink suit and pillbox hat to play Jackie Kennedy. Divine boasts an impressive resume – the man who captured the grace of Jackie Kennedy also devoured dog excrement in Pink Flamingos.
Schwarz rounds up interviews with Divine’s friends and co-stars including Ricki-Lake, Tab Hunter, Bruce Vilanch and members of the San Francisco drag troupe The Cockettes. Divine’s friends gush about his generosity and kindness, contrary to his anarchic “fuck you very much” stage persona.
Divine’s mother Frances Milstead (who was interviewed in 2009 before her death) speaks candidly about the pain of her son’s estrangement from the family. “I used to always say to Glenn, don’t ever do anything to embarrass us,” Frances says, juxtaposed with footage of Divine being raped by a giant lobster.
The beauty of Schwarz’s documentary is its ability to balance moments of wicked debauchery with pathos. Like the lady herself, I Am Divine is a sure-fire crowd pleaser and a must see at the film festival this year.
Sat 15 June 15 9.30pm; Sun 16 June 9.15pm
