37. Pink Flamingos
I genuinely don’t remember where I first heard of Pink Flamingos. All I know is that when I heard about it (possibly from my mom) it was that it was (a) disgusting (b) crude and (c) someone ate dog shit. If I force myself to search my memory banks I think it would tell me that what happened was I saw a picture of Divine while looking through a magazine of “rare movies” you could purchase. A few weeks later I saw it at the local mom and pops shop with a giant sign on it that said “Absolutely no one under 17 may rent”.
This most likely lead to me asking my mom about it. She openly stated she had never seen it but knew that it contained lots of gross stuff and that I was forbidden from seeing it. I followed through with her wish until my freshmen year of college. While living at my grandmother’s house I signed up for Netflix and this was one of hte first things I put on my queue. Years of curiousity had gotten the best of me.
I remember watching it in bewilderment, moments of the film (Specifically the singing asshole) genuinely made me sick. I could not look away from the screen though. You see the plot to Pink Flamingos is paper thin. Two families battle for being the Filthiest person alive. In their constant battle for this title you have incest, people sitting in boxes and a sequence in which two people fuck while killing a chicken (yes a Chicken is genuinely killed on screen).
The film ends with Divine bending down and picking up a fresh piece of dog shit and chewing on it while giving a “shit-eating grin” to the camera.
Immediately when this film ended I ejected it from my DVD player, put it in the Netflix Envelope, sealed it and put it in my mailbox. I was DISGUSTED and angry. How could I waste my time on something so stupid and disturbing. Then something weird happened... I started to chuckle to myself. I’d find myself thinking about moments in the movie and laughing... suddenly I was angry that i had sealed that DVD so quickly... because I wanted to watch it again. I did the only logical thing. I went on Amazon and immediately bought it on DVD
The second it arrived I showed it to my friend Dan. He went out and bought a copy and we watched it at a party. The movie just kept getting handed down. We found ourselves yelling things like “Someone has sent me a bowel movement” while wandering the hallway.
It’s strange that a movie so depraved and demented could become a bonding film for a group of us. Sadly I rarely speak to the original crowd that loved this movie, but whenever I watch it I’m immediately reminded of them.
This film is not for the weak-stomached but if you want to see what is considered one of the greatest cult films ever made, this is worth tracking down.
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