Last night Will and I planned to watch "The Rose" by Bette Midler, but finding it (or rather not finding it) missing from Family Video, we of course had to find something else with a campy feeling starring a big voiced dame.

The next best choice was a movie I'd been wanting to see for ages, starring my beloved Julie Andrews (who I don't believe is an official Dame, but most definitely should be who was made a Dame Commander of the British Empire in 2000).

I recently found it at GoodWill accompanied with the Rocky Horror Picture Show for $2. I'm pretty sure the two were only paired together due to the similarities of the covers.



Nevertheless, I thought it was a steal, so when Will reported there would be no Bette Midler, my mind instantly jumped to my recently acquired purchase.

Of course, what could be campier than a woman pretending to be a man pretending to be a woman? Well, we were wrong. As much as I love Ms. Andrews, watching her pretend to be a gay man dressing as a drag queen and sing and dance, was really just watching her dress as a woman (with sparklier outfits no doubt) and sing and dance, as she would in practically ever other role, haha.



I was sad to be dissapointed. The worst bit was the whole film was rather predictable, and that the songs weren't even that great. My favorite parts were seeing Dame Julie (I like that I can say that, and not feel like I'm making it up anymore) in a swanky tux or suit, and oddly even that got old quickly.



Will and I actually spent more time discussing who else could have been better, or would be great in a Broadway version. Some names that came up were Candice Bergen, Kathleen Turner (hello...she's made for this kinda stuff. Chandler's dad?), Cybill Shepherd, Cher, (my personal fave) Elaine Stritch, Bette Midler, Kathy Griffin (who alot of the time already looks and acts like a drag queen) and of course..Bea Arthur, haha.

Even so...my adoration for Julie Andrews is still as strong as ever. I love that she could be a gay icon, while grandmothers and parents still thought of her as the perfectly wholesome babysitter. Apparently there have even been some gender/cultural studies done on her parallel success in both worlds. Studying "The Sound of Music" through queer feminist theory!? Where were those books in my Women Studies classes?

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