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The Cockettes (2002)
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Reviews Counted:38
Fresh:34
Rotten:4
Average Rating:7.7/10
Consensus: The Cockettes provides a colorful, eye-opening view of the counterculture 1960s.
Runtime: 90 mins
Genre: Education/General Interest
Synopsis: In 1969 San Francisco, a group of hippies were assembled by a charismatic free spirit known as Hibiscus to create an act to go on before a midnight film festival. They dressed in outlandish and... In 1969 San Francisco, a group of hippies were assembled by a charismatic free spirit known as Hibiscus to create an act to go on before a midnight film festival. They dressed in outlandish and skimpy costumes, danced and sang along to records, and called themselves The Cockettes. They became an overnight sensation that would last several years, even making a stop on Broadway. Filmmakers Bill Weber and David Weissman have lovingly assembled this film--composed of interviews and fascinating footage from the 1960s and 70s--which examines this groundbreaking troupe that bridged the hippie and gay/lesbian communities in order to celebrate all kinds of sexuality, and create an outrageous, memorable, and entertaining spectacle while doing it. [More]
Starring: Sylvia Miles, John Waters, Holly Woodlawn
Starring: Sylvia Miles, John Waters, Holly Woodlawn
Director: David Weissman, Bill Weber
Director: David Weissman, Bill Weber
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Reviews for The Cockettes
This is one of those rare docs that paints a grand picture of an era and makes the journey feel like a party.
Much has been written about those years when the psychedelic '60s grooved over into the gay '70s, but words don't really do the era justice. You have to see it.
Cockettes has the glorious, gaudy benefit of much stock footage of Those Days, featuring all manner of drag queen, bearded lady and lactating hippie.
As Weber and Weissman demonstrate with such insight and celebratory verve, the Cockettes weren't as much about gender, sexual preference or political agitprop as they were simply a triumph of the indomitable human will to rebel, connect and create.
This expert, heartfelt movie establishes them as being as much a part of swingin' San Francisco as the Grateful Dead or the Beats.
Manages to transcend the sex, drugs and show-tunes plot into something far richer.
It's a warm, vibrant visit with a flock of freaky creative people and proves that being a total weirdo is a very good thing indeed.
It celebrates the group's playful spark of nonconformity, glancing vividly back at what Hibiscus grandly called his 'angels of light.'
An irresistible documentary look at the ensemble of the moment in the hippie kingdom of San Francisco, this comprehensive and charming film not only recalls those days exactly, it also manages the wonderful trick of taking us back there along with it.
An occasionally interesting but mostly repetitive look at a slice of counterculture that might be best forgotten.
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