Jeffrey Weinstock,
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (Cultographies).
London: Wallflower Press, 2007.
ISBN: 978-1-905674-50-3
US$15.00 (pb)
144pp
(Review copy supplied by Wallflower Press)

Some might say that a film like The Rocky Horror Picture Show (UK/USA 1975) is not worthy of serious criticism. Jeffrey Weinstock is not one of them. In The Rocky Horror Picture Show (Cultographies), Weinstock offers a deep look into the film that has helped to define cult cinema as we know it. Though the book’s purpose (to discuss the “social, historical and cinematic significance” [p. 11] of the film) seems a large undertaking for a scant one hundred and fifteen pages, Weinstock manages to condense both fact and continuously new and interesting ideas into an essay that is ultimately well worth the read.

I can’t say exactly at what point in my life I became aware of The Rocky Horror Picture Show; as with most people in my generation, it feels as though I’ve known of it, at least peripherally, from birth. Of course I’ve seen it a few times. I even tried to dance the Time Warp at a party once. Everyone has heard of the infamous midnight showings, where die-hard fans watch the film dressed as their favorite characters, yelling and throwing things at the screen. Rocky Horror is not as in vogue today as it once was; its influence, however, is still strong. So how could Weinstock even try to wholly discuss the film’s ‘social, historical and cinematic significance’ in the manner it deserves? Herein lies the book’s one significant failing – it is too short. To fully examine what he sets out to examine, Weinstock needs to write a longer book than what he already has. As it is, the book reads almost like an outline. It is full of interesting concepts, which are relatively detailed and supported, but not to the extent they need.

The point where Weinstock falls shortest of his ambition is in the first chapter, entitled ‘The Many Histories of Rocky Horror’, where he discusses the film’s historical context. He provides a short “production history” (p. 16), from Rocky Horror’s original stage incarnation, to its production as a film, to its eventual marketing as a midnight movie. He then moves on to more interesting waters, describing the various links to history one can find in Rocky Horror. He introduces connections to Richard Nixon’s resignation speech, the art of tattooing, and Nazi Germany, among others, in what he refers to as “micro-histories” (p. 11). It is in these micro-histories that my biggest problem with the book lies – here it is almost as if Weinstock is taunting his readers, holding a carrot in front of our noses. He throws out extremely interesting ideas, especially concerning the film’s stance on anti-Semitism, only to cut his discussion of them short before they are entirely realized. But, as Weinstock says, now the ideas are out there for “someone else to develop more fully” (p. 26).

The second chapter, ‘The Church of Nothing’s Sacred: Glorious Incoherence and the Rocky Cult’, discusses the film’s social impact. It focuses on the cult-like following The Rocky Horror Picture Show has accumulated over the years – why it exists, what it is, and what it tells us about ourselves. Weinstock makes a large claim in this chapter, suggesting that it is both the audience’s desire to control the film and their inability to do so that keeps them coming back. Though I tend to disagree with Weinstock’s implied claim that the Rocky Horror experience is ultimately more an alienating than a communal one, his position is intriguing and well thought out. I particularly appreciated his discussion concerning the connection between the audience’s disparaging comments at the film and their ultimate failure “both to be the film and to master the film” (p. 50). Again, I only wish his discussion were longer.

By chapters three and four, ‘Out of the Closet and into the Pool: Rocky Horror’s Sexual Politics’ and ‘‘Brico-Logics,’ Serious Camp and Rocky Horror’s Queering of Cinematic History’, Weinstock has hit his stride. Chapter three deals with, as it says in the title, the film’s sexual politics and the historical context surrounding them. In doing so, it touches on both the women’s and the gay liberation movements, before moving on to the influence of “porn chic” (p. 67) and glam rock, as well as the musicals Hair and Jesus Christ Superstar. The good news is that the chapter’s as interesting as it sounds. He ends it with a discussion concerning whether Rocky Horror’s depressing ending is meant to be conservative or radical; he sides with radical, and after reading his argument, I am inclined to agree with him. Chapter four analyzes Rocky Horror in relation to the history of cinema. Here Weinstock makes the assertion that The Rocky Horror Picture Show draws on countless other movies and countless genres, all the while ‘queering’ them, or flipping them slightly in order to reveal the subtext underneath. When looked at in this way, Rocky Horror is no longer just a cult flick but an illuminating critique of cinematic history.

Weinstock’s arguments are persuasive and logical. More importantly, however, they embody what makes this book work – Weinstock’s devotion to the film. Only a labor of love could produce the intensity of thought this book contains. For those of you who never thought there was anything deeper to see in The Rocky Horror Picture Show, I’d suggest giving this book a try. And even, or rather, especially for those who know the film by heart – this book might make you see it in a fresh, revealing light.

Megan O’Donnell,
Drexel University, USA.

Created on: Wednesday, 17 September 2008