Paris brennt

to give folks an update on the individuals interviewed in "Paris Is Burning", Angie Xtravaganza, Dorian Corey & just last year(or early this year?), Pepper LaBeija all passed-away, unfortunately. ...they will all be missed.:(

Willi Ninja's still on the performing scene. ...as is Sade Pendavis(from my understanding). ..i'm not sure what has become of the rest of the cast, though.

to this day, i watch this film as if it's the first time seeing it....i, personally, would like Ms. Livingston to make a follow-up film, catching back-up with the surviving individuals....as i'm sure a good many of you would like to see as well.;)

I had just recently watched "Paris Is Burning" and I love it. I find it very interesting and artistic and creative the way they move and dance. It's like a whole different world. My friend received it as a gift and after watching it I am going to hunt a copy down for my own collection. The next day I found out from a friend that Willie Ninja had just passed away a couple of days before. At first I didn't want to believe him. So I went searching for anything that would confirm what he had said, he was right. Even though I didn't know him personally, there's no doubt in my mind that he will be missed, and I would consider it an honor to have been a friend of his. To anyone who knew him I am sorry.

R.I.P WILLIE NINJA - Angel Ray from San Bernardino, Ca

This is my favorite documentary... the subtle undertone of this movie that not everyone gets is the socio-economic commentary. Most people see this movie as an introduction to the world of drag queens or introduction to voguing and "balls". But if you dig deeper it is even sadder believe it or not. It's sad to think that most of these wonderful "larger than life" folks are dead, but it holds a very deep social commentary for anyone who is not a straight white well to do male. (by the way, despite my user name I'm a biological female ! ha ha... but I'm Hispanic so I am marginalized by sex as well as ethnicity...) Anyway the comments on being female... Pepper Labeija explaining why he would never get a sex change "women have it worse than anyone" or Octavia St. Laurent... "all men are dogs... sooner or later they all start barking" are comments u'd hear straight women say all the time. And what it means to be a black or Hispanic in the trickle down world of Reaganomics and beyond... before you even factor in homosexuality... please watch it again and really listen for the racial and economic commentary. Those from Pepper Labeija and Dorian Corey are particularly poignant... ("I emulated Deitrich and Monroe... it wasn't acceptable to emulate Lena Horne... even as a black"- Dorian Corey) I'm sorry to be "preachy" but I love this movie and it has a lot more to say than the "fad" it glorified. I am a straight Latina who grew up in the NYC club scene but for me the best thing about this movie besides the great dancers and "characters" is what it says about being a marginalized group in the dog eat dog 1980's, and what they did to hold on to a semblance of family and fame. Most of the house "mothers" died within a few years of the movie... Pepper Labeija (my very favorite) died recently... but before he died he sadly had his feet amputated because of diabetes... yet he, I should call Pepper SHE... appeared in a Ball, in full Egyptian regalia, carried by strapping shirtless men to the delight of all those in attendance. May we all enjoy love and acceptance, no matter what it is that makes us different.

While many unfortunately passed on, the ballroom scene is still very much alive and carrying on their legacy. Some are still very much alive and quite well, Octavia is more radiant and beautiful than ever, Willi Ninja is very accomplished and gives a great deal of support to the gay community as a whole, Pepper Labeija just passed on last year of natural cause, may she rest in peace. After Anji's passing Carmen became the mother of the house of Xtravaganza (she was in the beach scene) and she is looking more and more lovely as well. Some balls have categories dedicated to those who have passed, may they all rest in peace. There is currently another project underway known as "How Do I Look?", you can check out the website at www.howdoilooknyc.org.

In the beginning of this film, one of the commentators says that he was told that he has two strikes against him: he is black and male. But in addition to that, he has a third strike: he's gay. "You're going to have to be stronger than you ever imagined," he is told. "Paris is Burning" is a documentary about gay black and Hispanic men who are tranvestites or transsexuals.

The miracle of "Paris is Burning" is that director Jennie Livingston takes a subject that could have very easily become a freak show and allows the people in it their humanity. We learn their views of homosexuality, men, women, their hopes, their disappointments, their dreams. Some of these dreams are so unattainable it's tragic. Many of the people are seriously in denial;

This is not a film for everyone. There are shots in this movie of nude transsexuals. If you have a problem with homosexuality, then this movie isn't for you. But if you do see this movie you'll realise "Paris is Burning" isn't really about men wearing women's clothes, it's about a group of people who are routinely marginalised and put down by society at large, and what they do to get a sense of community in their lives.

I've watched this movie four times since it was released in 1991, because it says so many things: it's a commentary about materialism in our culture, about gender roles, about rich and poor people, about the media and what it celebrates, about fame and adulation. "Paris is Burning" is one of the most humane, and one of the saddest, movies I've ever seen.