Life Through a Queer Lens
Welcome to the Life Through a Queer Lens Podcast, where anyone with an open mind and heart can learn about the LGBTQIA+ Community from the people within it! We're your hosts, Jenene (she/her, they/them) and Kit (they/them).
Life Through a Queer Lens
EP55: The Harms of Horror: The "Man in a Dress" Trope
!!TRIGGER WARNING!!
This episode contains discussions of transphobic media and its impact on transgender people and society's view of queerness and gender nonconformance
Summary:
What if horror films are reinforcing harmful stereotypes that shape societal perceptions? In this Halloween-themed episode, we explore the damaging "man in a dress" trope in classics like Psycho and Silence of the Lambs, and its impact on trans representation. Join us as we critically examine these films while celebrating queer creativity in cinema.
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we see someone who is presented to us as a man, tucking their penis between their legs, wearing a wig made from a woman's scalp, swaying and dancing to music. Growing up, I remember many times hearing that this was one of the strangest and creepiest scenes in modern film. This action of putting on makeup and a wig, tucking and trying to look as beautiful and feminine as you can is something that a lot of us trans women can relate to. It's something that a lot of us trans women have done, and here it is being presented as the epitome of horror. Hey y'all, welcome back to the podcast Halloween edition, where, throughout the entire month of October, we are keeping all of our themes for our episodes centered around Halloween, which is fun, love that I don't know about y'all, but it's literally my favorite holiday. To start out, I just figured we would shoot the shit, for lack of a better way to put it. I have a couple housekeeping things I want to go through. Actually, I think it's just one For everyone out there who is looking for a really fun, really cute new stim toy that's like Halloween themed Spirit Halloween has.
Speaker 1:I'm literally holding one now. They have these tiny rats and they are really squishy and super satisfying to just squeeze and they have these little like beads in them that make a really nice sound when you're squeezing them and feel nice between your fingers. They don't have a sticky. That was. My biggest fear is I would get these and they'd end up being sticky. And they're not sticky, they're like, they're perfect. They're like literally the little white rats. They're about two inches in body, maybe a little smaller, and then tail together they're probably like three inches long and the they're just perfect, they're fantastic. So if you're at spirit around spooky season and you are looking for a new stim toy to carry around, that's like really cute and really fun but also incredibly satisfying. I cannot recommend these rats high enough. Shout out to my bestie bones for recommending them to me, because they ended up getting them last year and they were like you run the spirit, sprint and get these little rats, because not only are they precious and they make the cutest little companion to bring with you, but they make fantastic stim toys Literally. Couldn't recommend high enough. So if you're in the market for a new stim toy, I think like a bag of 10 of them was like $3. I plan on getting more this year, but I still have from last year. They haven't popped. I've had like four of them pop, I think, beyond that fun little Halloween thing that I wanted to share with y'all the housekeeping thing.
Speaker 1:So recently in our episode about Venus extravaganza, I ranted and raved and applauded the documentary Paris is Burning for its view into queer history and its respect for the queens that the documentary was focused upon and things of that nature. However, since recording and releasing that episode, I have recently learned that in the aftermath of the release of the documentary Paris is Burning, none of the queens in it were compensated, like not a one. They weren't paid for their work. And then they even, once the film came out and became critically acclaimed, they still never got paid. Critically acclaimed, they still never got paid.
Speaker 1:So that's important to keep in mind as we look back on these pieces of media. I'm not saying don't watch it, because it's important for those pieces of queer history to not be forgotten and unfortunately, sometimes the only documented instances of this history are documented in a way that's not ethical. But if it's the only documented history, it's the only documented history, or if it's one of few pieces of documented history, you know what I mean. We take what we can get. When it comes to being able to gather visual and physical and I'm sure y'all get it it's not like we learned this stuff in history class, and a lot of the times to learn about queer history, especially outside of Stonewall and outside of the names that even people outside of the queer community can name relatively easily or somewhat frequently, you start to find less and less information, and specifically footage and video and interviews especially. So I'm not saying we can't absorb. We should be learning from these sources of our past. They are primary sources because they are direct person-to-person interviews and stuff like that. But it's important to be compensated for the work they did for that film that made that film what it is, and they just weren't, and that is. That's not cool. So, yeah, I just wanted to let you all know that so you were also able to experience and watch this documentary if it's something that interests you with a broader lens of understanding of the problems behind it, the controversies I feel like that's even a light way of putting it, considering that it is really not okay what happened. But yeah, so, with that housekeeping bit aside, I just wanted to make sure everyone was aware of that because that was something that I had no idea about.
Speaker 1:Moving on to today's topic, which is going to be heavy, I'm going to put the trigger warning right here. If discussing media that is inherently transphobic is not something you feel like you can handle right now, is not something you feel like you are interested in, skip this one. We will see you next week with a really, really, really, really fun one. So make sure you come back next Monday. But this one's going to be a little more serious, because today we are discussing the harms of horror specifically surrounding the man in a dress trope.
Speaker 1:So to give a little background understanding as to why this trope is inherently harmful, according to Americans surveyed, 84% said they don't know a trans person in real life. On top of that, trans people only make up, on average, 2% to 3% of, specifically, the American population and again, this is a very loose average. I believe that average is from a couple of years ago, so the numbers are changing all the time. But either way, most people, most cis people, don't know a trans person, and many people's first introduction to any idea of gender non-conformance comes from the media they consume. Any idea of gender non-conformance comes from the media they consume. So, like you know, even thinking about my own queer journey and queer experience outside of my family members that were and are out as queer, movies like the Birdcage, movies like Rent, movies like Rocky Horror were some of my first introductions to queerness and gender nonconformance in general.
Speaker 1:And, oh God, there was another one with Patrick Swayze. I'm never going to remember the name of it for the life of me. My godmother showed it to me. I think my father was still alive, so I was probably around 10, but I can't remember. But hold on a second, guys. Now I have to figure out what this movie is. Thanks for Everything, julie Newmore. I think that's it. I don't even know I was probably. This was decades ago. I watched this, but I remember Patrick Swayze in drag punching a cop in the face. That's the only vivid memory I have from this film. Is Patrick Swayze in drag, just right, hooking a cop in the jaw and just being like so you know.
Speaker 1:But for many, many people, even queer adults, looking back at their own youth, their first introductions to gender nonconformity comes from the media we consume, and that's just like my own experience of the media. I personally have vague recollections of consuming and being shown at a very young age that kind of showed gender nonconformance and queerness. And, mind you, these films nowadays, I'd say aside from Rocky Horror. But I'm sure a few of those films nowadays would be looked at with a more critical eye, aside from like Rocky Horror and maybe Rent, but I have no idea though I haven't seen them in years. But we learn through what we see. And if we never meet a trans person or a queer person prior to whatever point in our life, we end up, if ever the media we consume around trans people matters, because that might be some or many a majority of people's only introduction to gender non-conformance and queerness Through horror, specifically, the message to fear a man in a dress is a long-standing and pervasive one throughout many different horror and slasher films.
Speaker 1:Many of the people who watch these movies, having never known a queer, trans, non-binary or gender non-conforming person, conflate the disturbed murderers they see on screen with real life people. That's just, it's unfortunate, but that's just the way it is. And yeah, again for this episode we are specifically looking at Harbour's man in a Dress trope because it's Halloween, it's spooky season. I don't know if you could tell by anything about the way I look today if we have these in video yet or we're working on getting video episodes going. I'm actually another real quick housekeeping thing. We're working on getting video episodes going. I'm going to be so real with y'all I whatever is going on with my body I am undiagnosed at this point with whatever is going on in here, but there's a lot of violent nerve pain, just all.
Speaker 1:I've been struggling physically recently. This is actually one of the first days in a hot minute that I didn't really need my cane to get out of bed. So that's hey. If these episodes do not get uploaded this month, they will be uploaded in November. I definitely want these October episodes to be on YouTube Because, especially for the Chucky one, I got a fun little visual gag going on in the background. I worked hard on that damn November. I definitely want these October episodes to be on YouTube Because, especially for the Chucky one, I got a fun little visual gag going on in the background. I worked hard on that damn it. I just have genuinely been physically struggling recently and I really appreciate you guys for being patient and for understanding. It really does mean a lot and I'll label them old episode, or you know, y'all get it, y'all, y'all, y'all understand I'm listen, it's not di giorno, it's struggle, okay, yeah.
Speaker 1:So, as I was saying, for many people never knowing a queer, trans, non-binary person in real life, or they themselves not being in the queer community, watching a lot of different horror can lead to extremely negative connotations and stereotypes about trans people that aren't meant to be. About. Trans people, maybe, but at the end of the day, very easily get conflated with. You know what I mean. Like, as I said earlier, many of the people watch these movies, having never known a queer, trans, non-binary or gender non-conforming person, conflate the disturbed murderers they see on screen with real life people Also, just so you guys know, these are direct quotes from myself.
Speaker 1:If there is a direct quote from someone else, I will always credit them. I never just I'm reading my own writing back. I'm reading my own writing back. I just have like four brain cells constantly fighting amongst each other and if you think I'm going to be able to remember any of this in the moment of recording, after researching, nah, so I usually like, if I have a way of putting something, I write it in so I don't have to remember it. Work smart, not hard, because gotta work smart, bro. Speaking of direct quotes. This direct. This is a direct quote coming from the article who's Afraid of the Big Bad Trans Woman from the website Autostraddle.
Speaker 1:It could be easily argued that Norman Bates and Buffalo Bill are two of the most famous trans characters in all of pop culture. It's dehumanizing to realize that when you tell someone that you're transgender, there's a good chance that the first people that will pop into their mind is the villain from a horror movie. I think that pretty much hits the nail on the head with that whole idea of that. And whether or not you are in the horror community or in the sphere of liking horror, these movies have impacted how society at large views queerness, with even Fox News commentators going so far as to call the violently anti-trans bathroom bill the Buffalo Bill, after the infamous Silence of the Lambs serial killer. Like these things have real-life, genuine, real life impact.
Speaker 1:And this is another quote from Bloody Disgusting's article Dressing Down the Killer Crossdresser Trope. Is it inherently problematic? By Harmony Colangelo I'm so sorry, I'm so, so sorry. I am so sorry. Colangelo, it's very Italian. You have a very Italian last name, ma'am, ten out of ten. But like I don't know how to say it, I'm so sorry. Uh, but this is a direct quote from that article and most of the quotes in this episode will be from the bloody, disgusting addressing down the killer cross dresser trope article, excuse me.
Speaker 1:So the quote is this means pop culture is the only firsthand experience many people, even tangentially, have with trans people through entertainment. They are being told time and time again to fear men in dresses and that these are people who will infiltrate their safe, straight spaces and they can range from damaged and misunderstood to deranged and extremely dangerous. Like the trope is harmful at its core, it just it is. So, yeah, whether or not you're into horror, it has infiltrated most of society. Most people, even if they're not a fan of horror, have at the very least heard of Silence of the Lambs and Buffalo Bill. That is just a fact of, of the, the society, society, the society we live in. I'm sorry, I had to, I had to. We live in a society.
Speaker 1:So pretty much the origins of the man-in-the-dress trope come with the birth of the slasher sub-genre and one of the most well-known directors and films of all time, alfred hitchcock's psycho from 1960. Many things about psycho make it a pillar of filmmaking, one of which is the twist ending in which in which it's revealed that norman bates's mother has been dead the entire film and he, in a total psychological break, believes he is her and has resumed her killing spree. This is in no way, shape or form, a representation of a transgender character, but rather someone ie Norman suffering from extreme trauma, mentally fracturing and killing others through that mental break. I know that a lot of people think that, but he thinks he's his mother. It's not that he wants to be a woman, it's that he legitimately believes he is his mother. It is a very poor representation of DID or multiple personality disorder. That's what psycho is. Id or multiple personality disorder that's what psycho is. I'm not saying it's a good representation of that, but that's what it's a representation of, not transness.
Speaker 1:However, it birthed the man in the dress trope within horror and slasher films. It basically laid out the blueprint for a successful slasher and connected humanity's innate fear of people or concepts they don't understand to the real terror of being hunted and killed, a theme that has continued to this very day through movies like Long Legs, in which Nicolas Cage plays a cross-dressing killer, and what is considered one of the most haunting moments of the film by many is simply him in a dress singing. I haven't personally seen Long Legs, but I've seen the meme going around. Y'all are overreacting. You're just transphobic. That's not scary. He is just sitting there in a dress singing a song very high-pitched and listfully. That's not horror. I need you to expand your horizons. That's not that You're, that's just. That's transphobia, my dude. I hate to say it. Like I said, I haven't seen the movie. I'm sure there are other aspects of the film that are actually horrifying. I'm not saying Long Legs itself isn't a horror film. Don't come for me. I'm saying that moment that everyone is like, oh my god, that horrified me. It's just transphobia, that's just some shit that you personally need to work through. Don't shoot the messenger.
Speaker 1:Unlike Norman Bates, the direct trans parallels with other horror characters are far more prevalent in the story, with some clearly having better intentions than other. There are some instances in which this quote-unquote not even quote-unquote this trope is, or has been, I would say, more in the past than presently, because, again, we've learned enough at this point to not be doing this anymore. For example, let me just give the example I, I personally, and this is my personal opinion you do not in any way, shape or form have to agree with this. Just maybe don't come for me, because we are all allowed to have our own opinions on things. I'm not saying that this film is good representation in any way, shape or form. I am saying that it's specifically for the time period it came out in. It is well-intentioned Okay, well-intentioned horrible execution.
Speaker 1:Sleepaway cam from 1983. Again, 1983. This is when the AIDS epidemic was just starting to really kick and people were starting to kind of like ooh, queerness, you know what I mean. It released in a very contentious time for the queer community and there seemed to be the intention of invoking sympathy for the queer community rather than just terror of the queer community. Yes, there was, of course, who be afraid, but there was also seemingly an intention of deriving sympathy for the community and this character specifically, rather than just fear and contempt.
Speaker 1:So for anyone who has not seen Sleepaway Camp, similarly to Psycho, it uses gender theming as part of the twist ending by revealing that a main character the character we've been following for most of the film that we believed to be a girl, was in fact a boy who had been killing other campers. Due to severe trauma, the child in focus was being forcefully raised as a girl after the death of their sister, with the brother who survived being the one labeled as deceased, the brother who survived being the one labeled as deceased. And again, the reason. I would say the trans theming is well-intentioned, at least in this film. It touches on the inner turmoil and despair the child in focus feels being raised with in a gender binary that does not match their soul and for 1983, it paints a rather compassionate picture. By today's standards it falls short, like it's not horrible execution, not good. But I can respect the intention. I can respect the fact that, especially for the time period it was released, which is important because that is the context around the film One of the major contexts around a film is the time period in which that film was released.
Speaker 1:This film was released in 1983. For that time period it seems very well-intentioned and like it at least attempts to paint a compassionate picture. Again, I'm just trying to make sure I get it across as clearly as possible. I am autistic and if there's one thing I physically cannot handle like, it feels like swallowing gravel it's the point that I'm trying to get across. Being misunderstood and contorted and turned into something that I did not mean at all that shit is like swallowing fucking rock salt for me, bro. So, yeah, I do my best to make sure that I expand on points and I am as clear as possible. Swallowing rock salt Not pleasant. So another horror film that I have seen. Some people give this film a similar benefit of the doubt that I have given Sleepaway Camp, but the reason I won't is because this film came out in 2013. Again, context when the film was released matters 1983 versus 2013,.
Speaker 1:I would have hoped that someone in the realm of this would have learned that we can do better, and the film that I'm speaking about here, that released in 2013, is Insidious Chapter 2, in which they flush out the backstory for the Bride in Black, who is a character that was featured in the first film as well. I believe I've only ever seen the first chapter. I saw it in theaters and there was a shithead sitting behind me that kept scaring me like two seconds before everyone else would scream and it was. I look back on it and laugh, but I was so mad. Anyway, the bride in black has given a much more flushed out backstory that is almost identical to the backstory from Sleepaway Camp, in which the bride in black was born a boy and was forced to cross dress as a female throughout their childhood, to the point where it turned them into a serial killer and then a vengeful spirit.
Speaker 1:And again I just I do not give this one the same benefit of the doubt, specifically around the filmmakers' intentions. This feels more like they were just going for shock value and going for, yeah, spooky, queer person than like an actually like compassionate trying to paint a. You know, good intentions, bad executions. This just feels like bad intentions and worse execution Because again, it is basically two decades of difference. I would hope that we would have done better in two fucking decades and it's pathetic that we didn't, so Insidious, do better, like it's not that hard. Maybe hire a queer writer, I don't know, might help and then listen.
Speaker 1:I wish I could just skip this whole section of my notes and jump down to like my last piece de resistance of this episode, but unfortunately y'all, we have to talk about Buffalo Bill. And again, if you have enjoyed the rest of this episode, if the discussions of transphobia have not been too much for the rest of this episode, I might recommend skipping this part. Maybe, janine, if you can add that into the description of the episode what part they could skip to. To just skip the entire Buffalo Bill section, because I know that for some trans people just hearing about this motherfucker can be too much. I hate to say this, trust me, I fucking hate to say this.
Speaker 1:Buffalo Bill has standing as a trans character, unlike characters such as Norman Bates, despite the film and the book trying to scapegoat that with one conversation between Hannibal and Clarice. So in the conversation between Hannibal and Clarice, clarice is discussing the metaphor of the moths and the butterflies and is stating that there is no correlation between transness and violence, and Hannibal Lecter responds that Bill is not trans. This is a quote from the Bloody Disgusting article from earlier. Yet they respond to that by shooting their own. Bill isn't transsexual. Clarice, argument in the foot by having a cis character written by a cis author, decide that a character isn't trans, just so they can exonerate themselves from actually villainizing the trans community whilst benefiting from trans panic and describing what a trans person is and common discriminations they face. Do not get me wrong. Buffalo Bill could not be further from a one-to-one example of a trans woman and I do not want to defend their actions. But the gall of this writing to End quote and yeah, throughout even the book, the film, bill discusses wanting to transition. Bill discusses wanting to transition. That's all it takes to be trans, despite what the cis author and Hannibal fucking Lecter decide to say otherwise. Jamie themself has said I'm trans. They have written it out in the best way they can with the terminology they had at the time For the gall of the nope. Not trans that's. That's fucked Like bro. And listen, don't get me wrong.
Speaker 1:I love Silence of the Lambs, I love Hannibal. I love the books, the films that I listen. I use Emesh for Mishka as a reference frequently, if you know. You know Emesh for Mishka is frequent throughout my thing. You know what I mean. I shipped Hanagram, if you know. You know the ice nine kill song, meet and greet is on my Halloween playlist as we are speaking right now and I listen to it pretty frequently, especially with spooky season here.
Speaker 1:But it's important to recognize that, while these characters like, while these films, while this franchise, I should say is deeply loved and deeply appreciated and respected as a piece of horror and a piece of culture, cultural icon, really, it has also been responsible for untold amounts of discrimination against the trans community, specifically trans femmes, like it's a fucking problem. We have to confront it head on by recognizing the intrinsic harm placed within the original media. Ignoring it is not going to fix this. It's not going to fix this. We have to face it and recognize that not only was Buffalo Bill written to be trans, that is fucked. And there is harm in that, harm in that real life, harm in that, again, fox correspondents are calling the trans bathroom bills buffalo bills. That's a fucking problem. And without looking these medias that we love in the face and recognizing the harm in them, we are part of the problem. We got to be able to recognize the harm in them and you can still appreciate them, while also recognizing the harm that they have caused. And you know it's important. We got to atone with that. You know what I mean. We've got to reconcile with that. We got to atone with that. You know what I mean. We've got to reconcile with that. Again, shipped Hanagram when I was like I mean, I kind of still do, I ain't even going front guys Every once in a while. I got some friends that sent me some Hanagram edits on TikTok and I just sit there like I thought I crawled out of this hole. No, so it is what it is. But, yeah, it's important to recognize the intrinsic harm within these franchises, even as we, especially as we enjoy them, specifically if we plan on enjoying them, in fact.
Speaker 1:Another quote from that bloody disgusting article regardless of what this exchange between lector and clarice might lead you to believe, if jame gum, our buffalo bill, feels they are a woman and they are trying to take steps to transition, they are trans, full stop. I fucking hate it too. Believe me. I wish we could Norman Bates this, because with Norman Bates there is a story-based, very easy explanation. With Buffalo Bill there just isn't. And it fucking blows. Trust me, I wish there was. I fucking hate the fact that one of the, if not the most famous and well-known trans character is fucking Buffalo Bill. I hate that, but that's just what it is, and to try to ignore that, to not face that and look at that and recognize that, isn't going to get us anywhere. We have to at least acknowledge it. We have to acknowledge it. This is another quote from who's Afraid of the Big Bad Trans Woman.
Speaker 1:From Autostraddle, we see someone who is presented to us as a man, tucking their penis between their legs, wearing a wig made from a woman's scalp, swaying and dancing to music. Growing up, I remember many times hearing that this was one of the strangest and creepiest scenes in modern film. This action of putting on makeup and a wig, tucking and trying to look as beautiful and feminine as you can is something that a lot of us trans women can relate to. It's something that a lot of us trans women have done, and here it is being presented as the epitome of horror. We have to confront that, we have to acknowledge that we can't just push past that, and especially based on one conversation between Hannibal Lecter and Clarice, two people who are not in Buffalo Bill's head. That's like trusting the unreliable narrator to a T. What? No, no, stop it. So yeah, during that same scene in which they're discussing whether or not Buffalo Bill is trans, clarice and Hannibal Ector are going back and forth about the metaphor of the moths and the butterflies and about how transness has no intrinsic link to violence.
Speaker 1:And while it was good that the film and the media in general took the time to say that, took the time to lay that out, it is almost like spit in a bucket. It means so little. You know what I mean. It's like spit in the ocean. Considering the fact that this one book and film has had a massive, massive impact on public view and opinion of trans people, it's so beyond not enough. It's like spitting into the ocean and being like it's good or not. Oh, like spitting on a wildfire. Like no, you lit this. That's not going to handle it, especially considering the film's release during the height of the hiv aids epidemic. Like this movie was released at probably the worst time it could have been when it comes to, like, public perceptions of queer people, and all it did was stoke the flames. It took a fan to that fire and just kept it going and then tried to spit on it to pretend that it did something to fix the fuck up. Like like no, let's cap this off. Uh, this is the moment where all y'all who's been skipping Buffalo Bill can tune back in. And also, I really hope I did good about using only they them pronouns for Buffalo Bill. I really tried my best, but I may have slipped up a couple of times. I feel like most of the time when I said he, I was referring only to Hannibal Lecter, but I am not 100% sure Most of the time when I said he, I was referring only to Hannibal Lecter, but I am not 100% sure. From here, we are going to cap off this man in a dress trope with what might just be the one and only example deeply cherished and embraced by the queer community at large.
Speaker 1:Dr Frankenfurter from Rocky Horror Picture Show. I told you they were coming back. I told you. I told y'all I was bringing them back. I fucking told y'all I was bringing them back. I fucking told y'all. Mind you, this is not to say this character is wholly unproblematic, with many criticizing his hedonism and murderous tendencies, but it's easy to forget under the glow that is Tim Curry. He's the villain, a sympathetic one, sure, but a villain nonetheless, like Fred Conferter's. Not the good guy, that's the bad guy. And also, they're releasing a rocky heart 8-bit video game and I'm so excited. You can play as either brad or janet and I can't wait. I want to play it so bad.
Speaker 1:Um, frankenfurter is not transgender. That's the first major point on his side, despite the lyrics of sweet transvestite in those. Many of those words were just fancier ways of saying the same thing. Cross-dressing, the Doctor simply loves women's fashion and clothing, not to say he isn't queer. His building of the perfect man and sleeping with both Brad and Janet prove that enough.
Speaker 1:But all the things that make him problematic, slash, a villain, are not related to his gender or sexuality. They're just who he is as a person. That's what makes Frank Converter For one. He's not trans, he's cross-dressing, he just loves women's fashion and appreciates women's clothing and women's makeup and women's jewelry. I say women's just to differentiate for this character specifically. I'm sure y'all know just by looking at me Wear whatever the fuck you want to wear, my mans, you know what I mean. My gals, my guys, my theys, my gays, wear whatever the fuck you wish. But I'm just saying, in more reference to Dr Frank-N-Werter specifically, all of the things like his hedonism, his murderous tendencies, those things that make him a villain or a problematic character from surface value, have nothing to do with him being queer. They're just him. That's just like who he is as a person. That's just Dr Frankenfurter. That's just his personality. His personality is hedonism, which, like that's a vibe. I don't know about y'all, that's a vibe. But his personality is hedonism, which, like that's a vibe, I don't know about y'all, that's a vibe. But his personality is hedon, which there, uh, every other film, another point in the rocky horror slash dr frankenfurter corner.
Speaker 1:Every other film with a cross-dressing killer uses the trope to add to the horror. Again, even looking at recent releases such as Long Legs, with that scene that everyone finds so horrifying of him just sitting in a dress singing, the filmmakers made that scene on purpose because they knew that most people, that cis people, would find it intrinsically horrifying because of the media they have been shown in the past. The media we have all consumed affects everyone differently and you know they knew that that moment from Longlegs would incite a certain response from people. So they did it on purpose. It was used to add to the horror. You know, in other films these scenes are all looked at with repulsion and fear. Not with Rocky Horror these scenes are all looked at with repulsion and fear. Not with Rocky Horror.
Speaker 1:Instead you see countless people showing up as the Doctor dressed up as Dr Frankenfurter himself Horset and red lips to match like whole nine yards, whole nine. It was something even my stepdad wanted to do. I'm sure I wouldn't be surprised at all if my stepdad thought about going to a showing of Rocky Horror dressed up as Dr Frankenfurter. When I was younger he was the one shout out to my stepdad. He was the one who taught me like all the different things that they would do in theater when we watched it together. Like he was like, oh, here we would all run up and we would spin the globe, and here you throw toilet paper and here you throw rice. And he taught me like all those different little things.
Speaker 1:I almost guarantee you, and like he pretty you know, he kind of a dude's dude. Mind you, he's definitely not like he's. I would describe him as definitely more effeminate than the average, more in touch with his feminine side than the average man of his age range. But you know, he's still. He's a cis, straight guy and he was ready, ready for that. His way of dressing is not used as a punchline or a fear tactic, but instead the stuffiness and by proxy fright from Brad and Janet become the punchline. You're laughing at them, they're not hurting you Breathe. They become the punchline, and in the best way, in very cute fun.
Speaker 1:Listen, if y'all haven't seen Rocky Horror, I don't know how, but I really recommend watching it. It is a great movie and the creator director I believe their name is Richard O'Brien they themselves are also queer. It's one of those pieces of media that is definitely considered a by queers for queers kind of love note, if you will, to our community, and I love that. So yeah, and now we move on to our interesting fact, in which I have a little confession to make, and I'm sorry about that. I told a wee bit of a fib. Psycho was not the first film to use cross-dressing as a trope when it comes to the horror-thriller genre. On top of that, it's not the only one directed by Alfred Hitchcock. In 1930, hitchcock directed Murder, a crime film based on a novel by the same name, in which character Handel Fane cross-dresses for theater and circus performances, which many understood as a coded reference to queerness. Both are Hitchcock. Hitchcock, what the fuck. Thank you.