Product Description

CAR TROUBLE STRANDS THREE DRAG QUEENS IN A CONSERVATIVE MIDWESTERN TOWN.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2220 in DVD
• Brand: UNI DIST CORP. (MCA)
• Released on: 2003-01-07
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .25 pounds
• Running time: 109 minutes

Amazon.com
This clunky road movie about three drag queens (Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes, and John Leguziamo) who get stranded in a sleepy Nebraska town on their way to a beauty contest, is too uplifting for its own good. Released during drag's mid-'90s heyday when RuPaul and the Wigstock documentary were all the rage, To Wong Foo aimed straight for the mainstream with its inoffensive camp and "can't we all get along" moralism. While gay-activist groups howled about straights getting the lead roles in To Wong Foo, in the end the filmmakers really couldn't have done better than this trio of actors. John Leguziamo provides real sass and bite as a Latino (or should we saw Latina?) drag queen, and Wesley Snipes is surprisingly fierce as the imposing leader of the pack. Saddled with a cloying Southern accent and off-kilter wig, Patrick Swayze barely holds his own with his costars, though. To Wong Foo is best viewed as a cultural artifact of a time when it seemed as though drag could rule all tomorrow's parties. --Ethan Brown

From The New Yorker
Hollywood has long toyed with cross-dressing but hasn't dived head first into the drag scene until now. It may be a surprise to watch Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes, and John Leguizamo dress up in glowing silks, but it's nothing more than a surprise, and it doesn't last-the director, Beeban Kidron, has a tough time trying to mold candy floss into a dramatic shape. The bitchy threesome set off on a cross-country trip and pitch camp in a small Midwestern town, where for the rest of the movie they urge the locals to go a little wild. It's a pity that no one worked the same magic on the movie. Everything about it feels so safe, sedentary, and sexless that the leads might as well have worn gray suits. With Stockard Channing wasted as a battered wife. -Anthony Lane
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

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Customer Reviews

"It comes down to that age-old decision: style or substance"
One year after the success of the 1994 Australian film "The Adventures Priscilla, Queen of the Desert", Amblin Entertainment and Universal Pictures joined to produce the 1995 American version, "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar". Like the Australian film, which featured a trio of drag queens traveling across the rugged Australian outback from Sydney to the isolated resort of Alice Springs in a pink bus, the American version featured its own drag queen trio traveling from NYC to Los Angeles in an aging yellow Cadillac convertible; but the similarities end there. The drag queen trio featured in the American version was Miss Noxeema Jackson (Wesley Snipes), Miss Vida Boheme (Patrick Swayze) and Miss Chi-Chi Rodriguez (John Leguizamo). After Noxeema and Vida share the title of a drag queen contest, they invite (with Noxeema's reluctance) Chi-Chi to join them to participate in a national contest in Los Angeles. Not having enough money for all three to fly to Los Angeles from NYC, Vida convinces them to instead use their winnings to purchase a car that all three could travel in. The film's title comes from an autographed picture of Julie Newmar that Vida steals from a restaurant and places in the used yellow Cadillac convertible that the trio purchases. Similar to the Australian version, the car breaks down along the way, forcing the trio to stay a few days in a small, languishing town. There, they meet the town's assorted residents that include hotel owner Carol Ann (Stockard Channing), her abusive husband Virgil (Arliss Howard), Beatrice (Blythe Danner), the polite Bobby Ray (Jason London), Merna (Melinda Dillon), Loretta (Beth Grant), the aging Clara (Alice Drummond) and restaurant owner Jimmy Joe (Mike Hodge) to name a few. They also meet law enforcement officer Sheriff Dollard (Chris Penn) who wants to arrest them.

Though arguably not as well made as "The Adventures Priscilla, Queen of the Desert", "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar" is still a very entertaining and engaging film that is sufficiently different from the former to not be redundant. Cameo appearances in the film include Julie Newmar, Robin Williams (as John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt), RuPaul (as Miss Rachel Tensions) and Naomi Campbell. Memorable scenes in the film include the restaurant, the used car lot, Vida seeing her mother (Margaret H. Flynn), Chi-Chi earning rites of passage, Sheriff Dollard, Noxeema's interactions with townsfolk, the clothing store, the beauty parlor and the closing scenes. Patrick Swawye received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Comedy/Musical, and John Leguizamo received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor in the Comedy/Musical. Sadly, Wesley Snipes did not receive a nomination for his excellent performance. Overall, I rate the film with 4 out of 5 stars. After watching the deleted scenes on the DVD, I concluded that they were best left deleted.

To "Good" To Wong Foo
This was one of the most uplifting movies I've ever seen. After seeing the movie Seven, I went to see To Wong Foo and laugh from the beginning to the end. The outfits were just wonderful. I especially loved Patrick Swayze's clothes. John Leguziamo was just sassy as Miss Chi Chi. Wesley Snipps had it going on as Noxema Jackson. I've seen this movie so many times I can recite the whole script. Director Beeban Kidron did an excellent job. Stockard Channing's performance was excellent as Caroline. This is the perfect movie for depression. Im still hoping for a sequel. If it doesn't happen, I will never get tired of re-watching To Wong Foo Thanks for everything Julie Newmar.

A Fine, Fun and Snazzy Film, anything but a Drag!
This movie is one of those rare perfect films. Casting is brilliant (especially Stockard Channing, who only gets better and better as the years go by--and she was always totally incapable of less than a fantastic performance). The general plot line of the movie is a congenial road trip, as three drag queens drive from New York City to California to compete in a contest, and the themes are fulfilling.

In essence, the movie deals with the healing of "broken people." (For other such films, see such gems as "Batteries Not Included" and "Fried Green Tomatoes.") The unlikely angels? The three drag queens. The situation? Their car breaks down in a red-neck hamlet. Unlikely hijinks and dangerous confrontations lead to a satisfying conclusion.

And Julie Newmar was never better!