I Am Divine

The actor/singing/pop phenomenon Divine is the subject of this terrific new biographical film--but it's also NOT a film for everyone. After all, Divine's persona was offensive and on the fringe--and deliberately so. And so, if you can handle it, this documentary will be a treat.

Glen Milstead was a seemingly unremarkable kid. After all, he grew up in the rather unglamorous city of Baltimore and there was little about his early years that would indicate he'd be world famous by his incredibly premature death at age 42. But, from this humble beginning somehow sprang one of the most outrageous stars of the 1970s and 80s...and this film is his story.

Not surprisingly, the film begins with a lengthy discussion of his childhood and early adulthood. Much of this was provided by his mother, Frances, but many friends contributed as well. However, in his late teens, the sorts of friends he began associating with changed dramatically. Up until then, he'd been a rather nerdy, chunky kid with a long-time girlfriend who was also secretly gay---and with few other friends. However, when he met up with John Waters and the rest of his bizarre group of friends, Glen soon transformed himself. Some of the transformation involved drugs and parties, but the most outrageous change was his creation of a character Waters christened 'Divine'. And Divine began appearing in a lot of super-cheap, offensive and weird underground films by Waters. At first, no one noticed because no one was ready for such strangeness. But, slowly, the character's impact began to grow. How it went from playing in super 8mm films to a world- wide star is the subject of the rest of the film. I could say more, but frankly it's better if you just see the film.

The documentary, fortunately, is not just a list of his screen credits and discussion of his films, but talks about his stage and music career as well. Additionally, it shows a lot of genuine affection for Glen from all his friends, co-workers and mother. And, about the part of him that was sad--the part that ate compulsively to fill some unfilled void. This portion was actually quite touching--and let you know that off-screen and off-stage, he was very little like his insane persona, Divine.

So, why is this a film that I recommend that most of you don't see? Well, first it's so incredibly offensive--mostly because Divine was a deliberately offensive character. She curses, make a lot of crude remarks about sex and is a walking horror show in the film. If you got the joke--it is great. But many will simply be offended--especially when they talk about what he did at the end of the film "Pink Flamingos"! As a fan of Divine who has seen him/her in just about everything (including most of the old 8mm films), I adored I Am Divine and was thrilled to hear about Glen and Divine's successes...and oddness. I also have very thick skin and a love of weird films--and Divine's are a very strange assortment of movies--to put it mildly! If you are already a fan, this film is for you!! It's better than the other biographical documentary, "Divine Trash"--mostly because it just seems a lot more complete. Plus, it's so well made and informative--and it's exactly what his fans will love. If you are not, watch at your own risk!! In fact, I recommend in this case you do some film watching BEFORE you watch this bio. Start with his LAST film (the original "Hairspray") and work your way backwards!! Then, after you've become thoroughly indoctrinated (if you can make it that far because they get weirder and more offensive the farther you go), then try seeing "I Am Divine"! Seriously. Otherwise a lot of the character and folks' love of him/her just might make a lot of sense as you see this documentary and its weirdness might not make any sense. Don't say I didn't warn you!!

This film is currently available streaming through Netflix as well as for sale from many sources including Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Now, I would never, ever say that Harris Glenn Milstead (aka. Divine) was my kind of people - But after watching this bio-documentary, I was relieved to find out that there was more to this particular character besides being an outrageous, 350 lb., drag queen who once actually ate a real dog turd (on screen) as an obvious ploy to gain worldwide, cult-status recognition.

In "I Am Divine" - It sure seemed to me that just about everyone (and their dog) who ever met Divine came out of the closet to gush over him and paint an almost unrealistic picture of this entertainer who (though he had a real foul mouth) was, in reality, as adorable (and harmless) as a Care Bear.

To say that Milstead (born 1945) played the Divine character to the absolute hilt would be a total understatement. But one could easily tell that as he matured into his 30's, the thrill of constantly reinventing this in-your-face persona clearly began to wane.

I think it's the ultimate irony-of-ironies that, as an actor, Glenn really only played the role of a man once in his lifetime (as Hilly Blue in 1985's Trouble In Mind). And when he finally did achieve respectability as an actor, he up and died, at 42, from a massive heart attack.

All-in-all - I'd say that under all of that mascara and over-the-top behaviour, Glenn Milstead was probably an alright guy with irritating idiosyncrasies just like everyone else.

Pure curiosity lead me to this one and it was really worth the watch. Maybe I am incredibly stupid, but I never knew that John Waters wrote Hairspray and had Divine play the original Edna Turnblad! This is like any other bio-documentary; lots of interviews, some old footage; a journey through the life of someone meaningful. I enjoyed it, but this is one for a more specific audience. After seeing this, I will be adding quite a few films to my watchlist...

I learned so much more about Divine through this documentary. I was aware of him and his cult following but didn't know much about him. This documentary showed me the profound impact Divine had on pop culture despite being a cult figure. I'm happy Harris got his wish of being a movie star granted. This documentary did a great job of exploring his early life, how he was always more feminine ever since he was a child and although it was obvious that he was gay from a young age, his family and those around him were in denial of it since this wasn't accepted at the time. Knowing this makes it more satisfying to see him succeed doing what he always wanted to do. The documentary shows how Divine was a trendsetter in so many ways, from the makeup to his music career, Divine truly is a cultural icon. They show interviews of Harris speaking for himself, so it's not just one big "he said, she said" project. This documentary truly gave me a new appreciation for Divine. I already found her interesting but now I love her and I'm happy that despite how short her time in the limelight was, her dream came true. She sure showed those bullies and her star is still shining to this day. Definitely worth a watch.

This documentary seems to be more about how John Waters supposedly shaped the career of Divine, than about Divine herself. We see lots of talking heads from the Waters camp and their anecdotes about working and living with Divine. Waters himself comes across as a bit envious, taking digs at Divine, with that glib smug smirk of his. I don't think he ever got over the fact that Divine, made his career, and not vice versa. Surprisingly, Ricki Lake comes across as rather unpleasant when talking about Divine, too. Mink Stole expresses genuine kindness for Divine on a personal level (she's adorable). For good, or for bad, their interviews make it all the more obvious that the only true film star / pop icon amongst them was Divine.

The film has a bit of television show feel about it. For my personal liking, there are too many clips from the Waters films, that Divine fans have probably seen a hundred times over. It takes up precious time that could have been dedicated to revealing something so far not seen or known about Divine. Everything is of course spiralling towards the "eat dog poo on camera" landmark moment. And of course, all credit for this "master stroke of genius" goes towards Waters (biased very much).

I was very much expecting the singing career part of Divine to be elaborated upon, as to me it was her natural progression from her film work, where her Drag persona was further polished. But that part of her life is severely neglected in this documentary. In Europe, Divine is more so known for her music than her films. Her television performances on pop chart shows were on a par with some of the best of 80s music videos (dare I say far superior to the Waters movies). But there is not much evidence of that in this documentary.

Probably there was only enough money to pay for the Waters camp to have a natter about the film years, and it's a wrap. Ready for the LGBT film festival circuit, and ready to be applauded by all the gullible fools who merely need an easy saccharine nostalgia fix. That's the unsatisfied feeling I was left with after watching it.