The original release of Showgirls

Does anyone remember it? How big of a deal was it? Does anyone own the soundtrack?

I did buy the soundtrack actually, but only for the Siouxsie & the Banshees song.
I liked a few of the songs in the movie. Especially that song she gives zack the aggressive lap dance to...wasted time I think.
I love how Nomi dances in right angles the entire time.
I loved the movie...pantheon of great bad movies. The soundtrack had that amzing early morning track by Vegas: Walk into the Wind.
Rated NC17, kiss of death.
[quote]Rated NC17, kiss of death. Yes, the rating killed the film, not the ludicrous script and laugh-out-loud overacting.
Doggie%20Chow
I remember the release, and the insane pre-release buzz. The movie was supposed to dominate the box office, sweep awards season, and usher in a whole new era of adult filmmaking. And then people actually saw it...
[quote]Rated NC17, kiss of death. [quote]Yes, the rating killed the film, not the ludicrous script and laugh-out-loud overacting. Now now, you're not that good at snark. Being rated NC-17 limited it, as most newspapers won't advertise them, mall multiplex won't play them. So they limited themselves out of the play dates from the beginning. More people could have experienced the ludicrous script and laugh-out-loud overacting.
I don't think it did very well in its cinematic release. I believe critics said it was bad and tasteless. It was only later, once it was released on DVD that minority audiences (the gays) started to appreciate its camp value. I know when it airs on television in the UK, it always trends on Twitter. It's a real cult favourite over here.
Different places!
In today's Reality TV World it would probably do fine, with all the awkward dialogue, jacked-up drama, and craven idiocy/whoring of the characters. Back then such fare did not go down as smoothly. I guess Showgirls was ahead of its time. I used to make fun of the pop tarts of the 90s but they are T.S. Eliot and Virginia Woolf by today's standards.
That weekend, across America, theatergoers raced from the cineplex to the nearest Denny's, HoJo's or like eatery so they could tear their teeth into burgers with thespian-like violence and abuse ketchup bottles.
Surely there must be more love for Showgirls on Dl.
I went with a bunch of friends to the opening Friday night at the plex on West 23rd Street in Chelsea. We screamed with laughter throughout.
It was not a big deal at all. Although there was a not infrequent discussion of whether it was simply a bad movie or a movie that was so bad it was good. Most found it to be the former.
I'm so excited! I'm so excited! I'm so....scared!!!
Jessie%20Spano
I saw it opening night in Baltimore at the historic Senator theater. On opening nights the Senator would show a short film before the feature, something somehow associated with the feature. So for Showgirls, it was some film from the 40s about dancers or something. Also, the owner of the theater came out to thank us for being there before the show started. Me and my two straight female friends sat near the front. We overheard the teenage boys behind us make some crack about splooging all over the people in the row in front of them. Never happened, unfortunately. That would be a story worth telling. I remember my friends and I commenting that while the movie was not of high quality, it was very colorful. Like a 90 minute music video. I like the Prince songs which were released on his Gold Experience album.
Love the Siouxsie and the Banshees track (it was their last released song before they officially split). I also like David Bowie track. Showgirls is high camp with Naomi doing those circular grinding motions in the bathtub. And then going berserk on the guy who (the bartender/pimp from Dr. Quinn Medicine Women) brutally raped her friend. Starship Troopers was quickly released in order to make people forget about the disaster that was Showgirls.
Showgirls is by far my favorite bad movie. Gina Gershon really elevates it to a different level of camp/high comedy. The rape at the end just destroys the fun though - until Nomi paints her nips and kicks some ass.
The movie was thought to be the one to usher in the trend of semi-porno to the mainstream. In LA, they even gave away a video cassette of the preview at video stores, which was a pretty big deal at the time. It wasn't sexy enough (lots of complaints that there was no pink) and sadly for Elizabeth Berkeley, many thought the women were too ugly to be sexy. Strange that the one realistic moment in the movie is the rape but then the director always puts a rape scene in his movies. An ugly, realistic rape scene and then an Emma Peel revenge moment.
Probably the funniest movie I've ever seen.
I could have done without the brutal rape scene.
one of my most favorite guilty pleasures. No one could ever seriously consider making a movie using a scene like this, yet here is one parody:
http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DaZmeC8UwwAc
The way I remember it, Showgirls was a huge flop in theaters and had scathing reviews. Then when it was released on video (no DVD's then) and shown on cable, word-of-mouth (not many people were on the Internet yet) made it into a cult movie.
It was a bit "controversial" at the time--obviously cooked up--maybe some theater chains in red states wouldn't carry it or something? Anyway, there was some "free speech" chatter about it when it opened and sheeple lined up to see it, claiming they were supporting free speech by seeing it. I remember scathing reviews, disappointed audiences, etc. It didn't really start to live as a camp classic til it came out on home vid. And likewise, r22. Rape kind of ruins the fun for me, too.
There was quite a lot of buzz iirc. I was 14 and had been a huge Saved by the Bell fan when that show was on, so I was tuned in to all the media press around it. To this day, every time I pass through the Santa Monica/La Brea cross section, I still remember the bus shelter covered with the suggestive Showgirls poster. It was supposed to be Elizabeth's movie star making role. Everyone in the media had already dubbed her as such. In hindsight, her agents should've booked her more lead roles in the midst of that buzz. Anyway, it's still the highest grossing NC-17 film ever released - it made about $20 million domestically. Adjusted for inflation, it's $37.5 million, so it was not the huge financial flop that people make it out to be.
[quote]It was supposed to be Elizabeth's movie star making role. Everyone in the media had already dubbed her as such. In hindsight, her agents should've booked her more lead roles in the midst of that buzz. After Showgirls wrapped production, she was up for the lead in several big movies, but she refused to audition or even meet with directors. She thought they should just give her the role. Meanwhile, Gina Gershon had (smartly) lined up Bound...
I remember the big to-do was about how risque and scandalous it was supposed to be, with rampant sex and nudity. I remember I couldn't believe that JESSIE SPANO was going to be doing all of this. When I saw the film, I liked it, despite the bad acting. Glen Plummer was just as bad as Elizabeth was (and, to me, Elizabeth isn't exactly the worse actress out there).
In a party dance scene there's a gay couple dancing and one of them is wearing some baby blue suit. For some reason I always remember that when Showgirls gets mentioned.
I think it opened opposite "Seven" that weekend and I knew someone that was working a multiplex at the time. He said from the first day it was packed and once the word got out that it was a Howling hot mess, the attendence begin to shrink. "seven" began to start to pack audiences in while "Showgirls" just had the gays...
Delicious guilty pleasure. And probably solidified my budding lady gayness with Gina Gershon. Damn.
%2790s%20babydyke
A local critic said that he was glad that the director had had an affair with Berkeley during the filming, because that meant at least one person had enjoyed something about the film.
Meow!