CULT MOVIE:FLAMING CREATURES(1963)

Jack Smith (1932-1989) was a writer, photographer and filmmaker who soared to (underground) fame with this Baudelairean epic, made the same year that Warhol shot Blow Job. Like Warhol, Smith was surrounded by his own coterie of talent such as the astonishing Dolores Flores (aka Mario Montez), a transvestite who appears as a fandago dancer with a rose between his/her teeth. This eye blast of soft focus genitalia and transexual frolicking--all of which leads up to the notorious "earthquake orgy" section, where a group of Flaming Creatures grapple a scantily clad Delicious Dolores (Bick) to the ground and crawl all over her-- has been hailed as high art by those enchanted by Smith's deliriously original vision, and an obscenity by the authorities. John Waters was obviously influenced by Smith's masterpiece when he assembled his own cast of social misfits (Divine, Edith Massey and Mink Stole ) to make Pink Flamingos(1972).
Director: Jack Smith Cast: Sheila Blick, Joel Markman, Marian Zazeela, Mario Montez

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