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From Amazon.co.uk
When prissy, prickly Sylvia Stickles (Tracey Ullman) suffers a head injury during a traffic altercation, she's, er, revived by self-appointed sexual missionary Ray-Ray Perkins (Johnny Knoxville) and is transformed into an insatiable, take-no-prisoners sex maniac. Yes, it's a John Waters film. Yes, it's filthy. No, it's not as hilarious and sustained as you'd like it to be. It works for a while, though: Ullman, never a stingy comedienne, does everything Waters dares her to do without hesitation; words cannot describe the perversely sporting delight with which she mounts a water bottle during a round of "The Hokey Pokey" at an old folks' home. And there's some fun to be had when Sylvia's emancipation leads her Baltimore 'burb to new heights of ecstasy, freeing her large-breasted daughter Caprice (Selma Blair) while horrifying husband Vaughn (Chris Isaak) and her hardline mother Big Ethel (Suzanne Shepherd, hysterical) in the process. It's also packed with the standard cameos, the most satisfying of which is good old Patty Hearst at a Sex Addicts Anonymous encounter. But, for all the nasty, necessary glee, the movie feels inescapably been-there-done-that, and you can't help but wish this was 1972 and Divine was on hand to prowl for dog droppings. The most shocking thing about A Dirty Shame is how desperate and tiresome its anarchy becomes. --Steve Wiecking, Amazon.com
Product Description
Over-the-top comedy starring Tracey Ullman as Sylvia Stickles, a wife and mother living in Baltimore who, along with her husband Vaughn (Chris Isaak) and mother Big Ethel (Suzanne Shepherd), operates a local convenience store. One day, Sylvia receives a sharp blow to the head, which leaves her with a concussion. However, the concussion comes with an unexpected side effect - Sylvia has suddenly become a sex addict, and is soon attended to by the perverse and lascivious sexual evangelist Ray-Ray (Johnny Knoxville). When it becomes evident that Vaughn can't keep up with her sensual appetites, Sylvia throws herself into the strange netherworld of Baltimore's community of erotic overachievers, which includes her daughter Caprice (Selma Blair), who is living a double life as uber-buxom exotic entertainer Ursula Udders.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
By wayne
Format:DVD
Ok - so this is typical John Waters circa 1975 had he won the (then) equivalent of the lottery. Bigger budget version of "Polyester" complete with all the usual JW trappings (late 1950's - early 1960's songs, unlikely castings etc.) Storyline a little weak and distinct lack of iconic lines, but some worthwhile cinema moments (Tracey Ullman dancing under newly-acquired sexual prowerness in old folks home is excellent ) - I am sorely missing a cameo by the late-Divine and the late (r) Cookie Mueller would have been superbly cast as Ray Ray's PR, but a decent array of modern-day "also-rans'" make for an appropriate JW movie. I will watch this again and again and it is well worth adding to your collection if you are that way inclined. My only other gripe is that Chris Isaac fails to get his kit off but perhaps the budget didn't stretch that far !
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By rickwill47
Format:DVD
this film is a satire on american values ,and sadly just comes across as a load of daft and unfathonable spliced shorts. thank the powers that be for tracey ullman and the other main players without whom this film would be for the bin!
rickwill
rickwill
By Olly M
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
This film is gleefully naughty, and pleasantly warped, reflecting its director, John Waters. Unlike some of Waters' early films, the acting is consistently good, and in places brilliant. Tracey Ullman is fine as the central character, but Suzanne Shepherd's performance was worth the price of the DVD, and more. The handbag scene had me laughing helplessly, as tears streamed down my face. I'm even laughing as I type this. It deserves 5 stars for the acting, the laughter it causes, and the delightfully warped quality at its heart.
By movie maniac
Format:DVD
A Dirty Shame starts of like it could be somthing great in a tasteless kind of way but by the time your half way thorough it you will no doubt have the feeling that someone has repeated a joke to you over and over again.
I would say stick to John Waters ealyer work.
I would say stick to John Waters ealyer work.
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Whilst I found this movie to some extent enjoyable and I bust a little chuckle now and again, here John came a long way from pulling off, I mean pulling this movie off... Ultimately, the big concept that the film is built around - that people who get hit on the head become sex addicts - doesn't hold together and what plot there is seems to dissolve about half way through into something incoherent. What you are left with is a bunch of skits filled with references to unusual sexual practices done in a way that will still allow it to be shown at your local multiplex cinema. Its also let down by its casting, not by the Walters' regulars who deliver the expected on cue but by the b-list celebrities who blunder their way through this movie.
I ummed and ahhed over whether to give this 2 or 3 stars, it gets 3 stars because the documentary with John and characters explaining the feature is much more satisfying.
I ummed and ahhed over whether to give this 2 or 3 stars, it gets 3 stars because the documentary with John and characters explaining the feature is much more satisfying.
By Ernie
Format:DVD
I'm a big fan of John Waters, but this really isn't up to his past efforts. 'A Dirty Shame' is basically a tale of sexual perversions brought on by head injuries in a small, suburban town.
Instead on creating great characters and a fun story, Waters seems simply out to offend as many people as humanly possible. On one level 'A Dirty Shame' tries to be a commentary on the current state of sexuality in America, but for the most part it's just a tiresome parade of perverse gags that drowns out any statement it tries to make. The problem for me is that the script was too juvenile, the jokes weren't funny, it relied too heavily on shock factor, and towards the end it was really running out of steam.
Overall the film is not that bad, it's just that it falls far short of Waters usual high standard.
Instead on creating great characters and a fun story, Waters seems simply out to offend as many people as humanly possible. On one level 'A Dirty Shame' tries to be a commentary on the current state of sexuality in America, but for the most part it's just a tiresome parade of perverse gags that drowns out any statement it tries to make. The problem for me is that the script was too juvenile, the jokes weren't funny, it relied too heavily on shock factor, and towards the end it was really running out of steam.
Overall the film is not that bad, it's just that it falls far short of Waters usual high standard.
By Kenematic
Format:DVD
John Waters came to fame (or is that notoriety) as a terrorist film-maker, making the 'big time' with his offbeat study of sixties Baltimore - Hairspray. There is always a particular feel to his films but they have softened since those early days. This film recalls that sense of the renegade. In Europe people will see this as an outrageous but very funny romp, and a clear swipe at Bible Belt America's moral dogmatism. To homely Americans it must have been a complete travesty.
The film wastes no time in drawing you into the indivuals and the subject matter in JW's offbeat, almost cuddly approach. Once you've seen Selma Blair's unfeasibly large breasts the film has you in it's grip. A few minutes on and you have been introduced to many strange deviations that normally stay hidden behind closed doors. Then the head banging begins (and I mean that in the literal sense). Every time a head is hit we are treated to a montage of clips from those odd little back street films the States made so many of. They are a delight, along with the film score, all taken from the same period. The film then continues to gather pace getting ever more surreal and funny until it's very American ending. The final shot leaves you thinking 'I don't believe he had the gall to put that in'.
Belief is stretched to breaking point; it abounds with sexual references, inuendos and euphemisms that are an education, but however far out it gets the comedy holds you. And all that with nothing more explicit than a few brief nude shots, tame compared with most modern romances.
Certainly not one for prudes or those with a traditional outlook on life. But if you like the unusual and films that push the boundaries then I highly recommend it.... Read more ›
The film wastes no time in drawing you into the indivuals and the subject matter in JW's offbeat, almost cuddly approach. Once you've seen Selma Blair's unfeasibly large breasts the film has you in it's grip. A few minutes on and you have been introduced to many strange deviations that normally stay hidden behind closed doors. Then the head banging begins (and I mean that in the literal sense). Every time a head is hit we are treated to a montage of clips from those odd little back street films the States made so many of. They are a delight, along with the film score, all taken from the same period. The film then continues to gather pace getting ever more surreal and funny until it's very American ending. The final shot leaves you thinking 'I don't believe he had the gall to put that in'.
Belief is stretched to breaking point; it abounds with sexual references, inuendos and euphemisms that are an education, but however far out it gets the comedy holds you. And all that with nothing more explicit than a few brief nude shots, tame compared with most modern romances.
Certainly not one for prudes or those with a traditional outlook on life. But if you like the unusual and films that push the boundaries then I highly recommend it.... Read more ›
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