Review of Drop Dead Gorgeous (1991) by John P — 20 Aug 2009

You either love or hate a movie like "Drop Dead Gorgeous". It's a stupid movie, that's for sure, but it has a biting, wicked sense of humour, and an assortment of memorable characters.

Mount Rose, Minnesota is the setting. It's a blink-or-you'll-miss-it town outside of Minneapolis/St. Paul, similar to many small towns in America. The townsfolk talk like they just stepped out of the Coen's "Fargo", and are God-fearing Lutheran folk. The town is abuzz when the Sarah Rose Cosmetics Pageant decides to come to town to hold auditions for the state beauty pageant. Meanwhile, a documentary crew comes to town to film the reactions of the townsfolk.

The race is on, with the two main competitors in the pageant being Amber Atkins (Kirsten Dunst), an adorable teenager living in a trailer park with her trashy, hairdresser mom (Ellen Barkin); and Rebecca Lehmann (Denise Richards), a cold, bitchy vixen. Of course, Rebecca is the daughter of the town's wealthiest family, whose mother (Kirstie Alley) helps run the pageant. Things start going awry when a series of mishaps start occurring, leading us to believe that someone really wants Rebecca to win, and may even resort to murder to make sure she does.

The movie is filmed like a mock-documentary, which helps add to its appeal. All the performances are good but it's Allison Janney who steals the show as Barkin's trashier, foul-mouthed best friend who becomes a surrogate to Amber.

Warning: the humour here is very politically incorrect, sometimes borderline offensive, but even when it is I laughed my ass off. Jokes are aimed at the mentally challenged, pedophiles, Asians, white trash, anorexics... you name it. Highly recommended for those who are in need of a good laugh, even if you feel bad for laughing.