Shuggy

Lovers of Rocky Horror, whether slvts or virgins, will love this movie. Made by Rocky creator Richard O'Brien's son Linus, it lovingly traces the creation of Rocky, both stage show and movie, the cult that has grown around them, and Richard's own gender journey. Many facts about both will surprise you. I didn't know what a flop the movie first was before its audience found it, or that hostility between LA and NY contributed to that. Linus interviews the main movie cast members, who have aged at very different rates since 1975, and significant others who either have useful comments on the movie, such as a gender studies professor, or whose own gender journeys were affected by it, such as Trixie Mattel and (surprise) Jack Black. But the heart of the movie is O'Brien Sr, whose own commentary 50 years on is insightful, and who plays and sings some of the songs as he originally wrote them.

This is a historical fiction based on Roy Cohn's role in Tr*mp's life, from their meeting until Cohn's death. There are some foreshadowings based on hindsight, but for the most part it is entirely plausible. Some things are explicit that might in fact have been unsaid, notably Cohn's tutelage of Tr*mp: he actually gives numbered rules: Attack, attack, attack; always claim victory, and so on. It does not show two total monsters, both have a human side, Tr*mp especially in his relationship with his older brother Freddie.

The acting of the two leads is spot on; we have no trouble accepting Sebastian Stan as Tr*mp once was, and. Jeremy Strong has Cohn to a T. His hooded, dead eyes especially are Cohn's, but the scar down his nose, from a botched childhood operation his mother forced on him is, missing. I couldn't fault the period detail. Mary Anne Tr*mp's Scottish accent sounded more middle European.

As a key to what has made Tr*mp who he is today, this film is excellent, though it misses out how his childhood made him the person who met Cohn. I recommend it for anyone still on the fence, to see before the election.