Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #72456 in DVD
• Released on: 2003-01-21
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 100 minutes

From The New Yorker
A flamboyant piece of hippie history gets its due in Bill Weber and David Weissman's loving look at the San Francisco drugs-and-drag theatre troupe. The filmmakers capture the spirit of life in a late-sixties commune as well as the Cockettes' hallucinogenic romps-performances foisted on audiences who were in the mood for wigged-out frivolity. With its archival footage and hilariously frank interviews, the movie makes for a ragtag portrait of a cultural moment when free expression reigned supreme. -Bruce Diones
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

From the Back Cover
This exuberant comedy chronicles the lives of a zany troupe of daring performers from 1969-1972: from their early days in San Francisco to their bombastic Broadway engagement. Features interviews with the cast, John Waters, (Director of Hairspray) and many other colorful characters from that generation.

Customer Reviews

a moving view of an amazing period in US history
beautifully constructed of original 1960/70s footage and modern day reminiscences--great scenes and great, as well as realistic, view of hippie life and dreams--honestly showing the transformation that commercialization brought to a clearly doomed utopian experiment. If you were there, this is a great memory piece; if you weren't there, this might help you understand the power of that transforming time.

Capturing Magic!
I lived down the street from the Palace Theater in the early 70's and had a chance to see the Cockettes. They were, as the film shows vividly, fabulous! The clothes, the makeup, the in-your-face nonconformity! America has become so bland now in comparison. I love the music in the film, the silent movie quality, and the way they pop back and forth between the survivors and their remembrances. It's visually interesting and the characters draw you into their magical world. They may demonize welfare moms now, but, welfare did give the mentally disabled something creative to do with their time back in the 70's. This is proof positive. Much better than pushing a shopping cart and mumbling, I should say.

Go see the Cockettes
John Waters, Janis Joplin, David Bowie, Elton John, Bette Midler and many others got some of their style and attitude from this local San Francisco theatrical group. It was theater that literally scraped itself up off the streets and onto a stage at the Palace Theater -- and nothing has been the same since. You owe it to yourself to see something here that you will not see the likes of again. The film is beautifully made, historically accurate, and true blue. Don't miss this movie!