Drop Dead Gorgeous
Date viewed: July 31, 1999
Location: Loews 19th Street East, Manhattan
I had seen trailers for this movie since last November. It looked hilarious. Small town beauty pageants, rival teens from opposite sides of the tracks, stage mothers, fire bombings, Minnesota accent...what could be funnier?
Obviously the trailer. That's what could be funnier.
The movie is a mockumentary of a local teen beauty pageant in small town Minnesota. Kirstie Alley is the organizer and former winning contestant, pushing her own daughter (Denise Nichols) to wear the tiara. Kristen Dunst plays a poor girl with a heart of gold and tap-dancing feet. Her mother and their next door neighbor (Ellen Barkyn and Allison Janney) define the true meaning of trailer trash. Unfortunately, the stereotypes are as overdone as Miss Alley's Fargo-esque accent. We get it, Miss Alley is a pushy, manipulative stage mother. Miss Nichols is a bitch queen. Miss Barkin is such an alcoholic she grasps a beer can even when near death. Stop hitting me over the head with it. If you have to try that hard, it isn't funny.
I have to admit that several of the "middle of the country" jokes really made me laugh --- although I was the only one in the theater doing so. The second runner up in the contest receives a $100 scholarship to the VoTech of her choice. I thought I'd bust a gut on that one.
I wouldn't really recommend this movie, but I'd pay a fortune to see Allison Janney in anything she did. I've seen her shine on Broadway in A View From the Bridge and Present Laughter. She was fantastic in supporting roles in Object of My Affection (starring my personal favorite, Mr. Paul Rudd) and Six Days, Seven Nights. She has a role in this fall's drama West Wing on NBC. I highly suggest you check her out. She's a wonder.
Listen to me: It's a great premise that just doesn't deliver. Go see it only if you've really had your heart set on it. I did and ended up with a broken heart. Awww......
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