Priscilla, folle du désert (1994)

Two drag performers and a transgender woman travel across the desert to perform their unique style of cabaret.

Director:

Stephan Elliott

Writer:

Stephan Elliott

Stars:

Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce, Terence Stamp

Won 1 Oscar. Another 12 wins & 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Hugo Weaving	...	Tick / Mitzi
Guy Pearce	...	Adam / Felicia
Terence Stamp	...	Bernadette
Rebel Penfold-Russell	...	Logowoman (as Rebel Russell)
John Casey	...	Bartender
June Marie Bennett	...	Shirley
Murray Davies	...	Miner
Frank Cornelius	...	Piano Player
Bob Boyce	...	Petrol Station Attendant
Leighton Picken	...	Young Adam
Maria Kmet	...	Ma
Joseph Kmet	...	Pa
Alan Dargin	...	Aboriginal Man
Bill Hunter	...	Robert 'Bob' Spart
Julia Cortez	...	Cynthia Campos

Storyline

Two drag-queens (Anthony/Mitzi and Adam/Felicia) and a transgender woman contract to perform a drag show at a resort in Alice Springs, a resort town in the remote Australian desert. They head west from Sydney aboard their lavender bus, Priscilla. En route, it is discovered that the woman they've contracted with is Anthony's wife. Their bus breaks down, and is repaired by Bob, who travels on with them.

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Plot Keywords:

road trip | drag | bus | desert | drag queen | 

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Taglines:

It's the Australian film that blitzed overseas box offices. It caused a near riot at the Cannes Film Festival. It won an Academy Award®. It's fun, daring, over-the-top and unforgettable. It's a road movie with attitude and the occasional frock.

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Genres:

Comedy | Music

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Certificate:

Tous publics

Did You Know?

Trivia

Due to a heavy filming schedule, lots of filming was done while the entire crew was on the road. But because the bus was such a small set, there was no room for the crew. As such in many scenes, they are actually in shot, hiding under clothes and other props.

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Goofs

At 1:31:31 when Benji stands up while throwing stones in the river, the camera pans up so his face fills the foreground, and a boom microphone - with pole and cable wound round it - which should have been raised with the camera P.O.V. stays in shot, top left of screen. Luckily it's obscured by the blur resulting from the depth of field of the lens and blends into the background scenery quite well.

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Quotes

Felicia: [to Bernadette] Come on, Bernice. It's so funny you'll laugh so hard your lashes will curl all by themselves.

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Crazy Credits

Filmed in Dragarama

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Alternate Versions

The film was "Shown in Dragarama" at select theatres at the time of release. This involved some theatres using a mirror-ball and colored lighting during the "Finally" dance number.

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Connections

Edited into Picnic at Wolf Creek (2006)

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Soundtracks

Finally
Written by R.K. Jackson (as Rodney K Jackson), Ce Ce Peniston, Felipe Delgado and Elbert Lee Linnear (as E.L. Linnear)
Performed by Ce Ce Peniston
Published by Blue Zephyr Music, Ce Ce Pen Music, Main Lot Music, Leethal Musik, Urban Tracks Music and Wax Museum Music
Courtesy A&M Records Inc.

User Reviews

Best Aussie movie

This is my favourite Aussie movie of all times - a classic hilarious comedy in Australian tradition.

There are 3 aspects of the movie which make it such an outstanding entertainer.

Firstly, it's the brilliant screenplay by writer-director Stephan Elliott about 3 drag queens - a gay, a bisexual and a trans-sexual - from Sydney going on a bus to Alice Springs, a distance of over 2000 Kms to the centre of Australia, for a public performance. It's a road movie unlike any I have seen before, outrageously funny in one moment and poignant and touching the next.

Second, the performances by the 3 lead actors are outstanding. It's hard to pick one which has outshone the others. My personal favourite, like a lot of others, is Terence Stamp as the trans-sexual.

Third, the stunning costumes are worth watching just for themselves. Some of the scenes in the movie where we see the characters in their wildly colourful costumes against the background of an outlandish landscape are breathtakingly beautiful and memorable.

It's a movie one can see many times, and enjoy it every time.

Details

Country:

Australia

Language:

English Filipino

Release Date:

4 January 1995 (France)

Also Known As:

Priscilla, folle du désert

Filming Locations:

The Breakaways, Coober Pedy, South Australia, Australia

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$219,433, 14 August 1994

Gross USA:

$11,220,670

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$11,224,491

Company Credits

Production Co:

PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, Australian Film Finance Corporation (AFFC), Latent Image Productions Pty. Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1