People all seem to have their own definition of campy. Any suggestions of other campy flicks that belong on a list including VOTD? Thanks.
I like waking up in the morning not knowing who I'll meet or where I'll end up: The Titanic
"Myra Breckinridge" comes to mind. Raquel Welch seems to be the only one in the film trying to give a good performance. Note I used the word "trying." Unfortunately for her, her director was stoned, her co-star Mae West was barely alive, and John Huston had contempt for everything going on around him. It's one huge cheeseball of a movie...and I loved every minute of it.
shareIf you want to see Mae West barely alive (and who doesn't?), try Sexette her final film. I wouldn't qualify it as camp because it's just bizarre and I don't think anyone was under the impression that they were doing anything remotely good.
Anyhow, I've always found I Want to Live! with Susan Hayward to be rather campy. Imitation of Life with Lana Turner is a good one too. A lot of Lana's later films were pretty campy really.
OMG you must see "Best of Everything" and Peyton Place right up there!
share'Can't Stop the Music', 'Zanadu', and one of my all time favorites 'Queen of Outerspace'. What could be more camp then astronauts crash landing on Venus and find a civilization inhabited only by women, ruled over by a woman wearing a mask and ZsaZsa Gabor as a scientist who wears floor length chiffon evening gowns even when in the lab and somehow, even though a Venusian, has a Hungarian accent.
shareThere are oodles of camp older horror/shock films, such as:
'Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?' (1962; Bette Davis & Joan Crawford -- oh, that Baby Jane Hudson!);
'Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte' (1964; Bette Davis, again, and some interesting flashblacks and hallucinations in this murder mystery set in the South, with some very good performances by the likes of Olivia De Havilland, Joseph Cotten, and a very young Bruce Dern);
'Homicidal' (VERY bizzare 1961 William Castle film set in Solvang, California, and with the infamous one-minute 'Fright Break' where viewers were given time to leave the theater if they wanted and before the final 'shocking' scenes);
and
'Strait-Jacket' (1964 / Joan Crawford again, with Diane Baker and a young George Kennedy, this time in an axe murder/released from the asylum camp thriller).
"I can't stand a naked light bulb, any more than..a rude remark or a vulgar action" Blanche DuBois
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I absolutely love the first two you mentioned so I'll have to check out the other two. If you like really old movies you may want to check out Rebecca (with Joan Fontaine) and Gaslight with (Ingrid Bergman).
shareThe Ten Commandments. Charlton Heston and company. Doesn't get any campier.
shareCan't believe it hasn't been mentioned yet: "Mommie Dearest"
Faye Dunaway uttered some of THE most classic lines in campy flick history in that film. Here's a sampling:
"Its not you I'm mad at. Its the dirt".
"Noooo wire hangers!!! EVEEEERRR!!!"
"Don't *beep* with me fellas! This ain't my first time at the rodeo".
"Tina! Bring me the axe!"
And of course if there were to be a top 10 ranking of classic campy film scenes, the scene where she chokes her daughter would easily make the list. A bravura performace by Ms Dunaway.
Even the title smells of classic Hollywood lol. Following celebrities must have been the cheapest of the cheap thrills in those days. Not that I'm being critical really, if you're in that environment, you're in that environment, ya know.
I like waking up in the morning not knowing who I'll meet or where I'll end up: The Titanic
You're so right. VOTD and Mommie Dearest are 2 peas in a pod.
Faye claims MD ruined her career but she was THE BEST!
Absolutely! I was worried upon reading the first page of this list that no one had mentioned it yet!
shareI'm embarrassed to admit, as a guy, even I like a few garbage movies. I'll save my reputation by mentioning that, A River Runs Though It had me running though the aisle and storming out the theatre door.
I like waking up in the morning not knowing who I'll meet or where I'll end up: The Titanic
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FordMadoxFordMadox^
<I never saw "The Best of Everything" as camp, perhaps it is. But it always seemed to be more of a basic classy soaper of the era. Though anything with an aging Joan Crawford scowling her way beneath the unibrow probably edges it closer to camp than soap.
Suzy's performance as the crazed stalker DOES perhaps push it into camp territory as she paws through the trash and takes her wide-eyed dive off the fire escape.
Okay. It's camp.>
So LOL :)
I love 'The Best of Everything' (another guilty pleasure of mine), and never thought to think of it as specifically camp, but after your very humorous post, I guess I too will have to admit tis CAMP :)
denise1234 :)
"I can't stand a naked light bulb, any more than..a rude remark or a vulgar action" Blanche DuBois
Oh you must include The Group -- http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060479/
Candice Bergen at her overacting best as a butch, but feminine, lesbian at the center of a group of Vassar alumni friends in the 1930's. Wonderful actresses stuck saying some of the worst movie lines I've ever heard. I have to pull this one out and watch it at least once a year.
I'll look for this but it seems like a chick flick in the worst kind of way....right along with cell block H
I like waking up in the morning not knowing who I'll meet or where I'll end up: The Titanic
janedd^
OMG! YESSSS!!! The Group :)
This film actually is able to pull off handling several characters in one movie in a way that some films, even of today, just cannot do.
But, yes:
Kay's attempts at social climbing and later plane-spotting obsession;
Dottie's (aka 'Boston') first love affair and the visit to obtain a not-legal-in-all-states birth control device.
Lakey's Germanic Baroness and revelations to Harold after the funeral.
The Gus and Polly affair.
Libby in all her scenes.
And, so much more....
DEFINITELY Camp!
denise1234 :)
"I can't stand a naked light bulb, any more than..a rude remark or a vulgar action" Blanche DuBois
COBRA WOMAN! Ohmigosh... an tropical island whose entire population consists of shapely women in heels and studio costumes? And twins, separated at birth, who both have the heaviest Mexican accent ever heard in a lead role in American films? And the Cobra dance? Maria Montez is to die for.
I could go on and on... but I happened to see it by myself one night and I desperately needed someone beside me to tell me that they were seeing the same thing I was. Like seeing a UFO, I guess.
Another one is "Johnny Guitar". Some take it seriously, but not nearly as seriously as those who are in it. A strange western with a quite over-the-top performance by Mercedes McCambridge.
Valley of the Dolls is the champ of camp, though. Showgirls and Myra Breckinridge were excellent recommendations as well. There are about 3 in Joan Crawford's later career that could also qualify as well.
"If it is not in the frame, it does not exist!"
Definitely a companion piece is "The Oscar" (1966) with Stephen Boyd and Elke Sommer (with the world's biggest Beehive hairdo). From the same era as VOTD and equally tacky, with some great campy dialogue. See it!
shareYou are so right... I'm embarassed that I forgot that one. So bad it's deliciously good. Stephen Boyd chews more scenery than the law should allow and though I love Tony Bennett, he should be reminded of this cinematic fiasco if he gets, as my grandmother would say, too big for his britches.
"If it is not in the frame, it does not exist!"
I loved The Oscar - and I loved The Group also - I think the Group is a respectable movie outside of the camp realm, but with all those catty actresses it's still a feast.
My picks:
Walk on the Wild Side (1962) - you won't regret it ! Jane Fonda is a major delight as a tough talkin' street hustler named Kitty Twist.
Live fast Die Young (1958) - the best '50's JD flick around, with nary a dry spot. Don't miss it !
And we must not forget Queen Bee (1955) or Beyond The Forest (1949) - Joan Crawford and Bette Davis proving their mettle as bitch goddesses supreme.