Wig

Wigstock was the annual NYC drag event that ran for aprox. 20 years from the 80's to mid 2000's. Much of this doc follows many of the performers as they prepare for the 2018 revival.

The film gives much of its time following Lady Bunny, who was there in the beginning and is co-hosting the revival. It also contains vintage clips of early Wigstock events and performers. However, the film feels like a poorly edited hodgepodge of these clips without a clear focus or direction. I felt like I was watching someone's home movies at times, which I'm sure was the point but felt lost without any narration of what was going on at the time. The doc culminates in about 20 minutes (of the over 6 hour festival) filmed at the 2018 event, which was the most interesting and I wish had been the entire movie (and I wish I had been there).

I enjoyed some of the up close interviews, with a few feeling almost voyeuristic. Ultimately, though, the whole thing, from the title to the editing, feels thrown together and unimaginative (imagine that, some of the most imaginative people on this earth in a film that isn't). The hard-to-find original documentary "Wigstock" is a much better depiction of the early days of the festival.

A fun and campy documentary about the drag festival Wigstock and its founder, Lady Bunny. Many appearances by drag icons of NYC.

I thought this movie was a great idea. Catching up with Wigstock as it was making a come back after all this time. Such a good idea.

The clips at the beginning were really great showing the drag scene in new York in the 80s. It made you want to be there you could feel the electric energy from the amazing clips.

Then it kinda starts to go of the tracks. This doc has so much going on that it spreads it's self very thin. It has the vintage clips, planing wigstock, random interviews and more and it doesn't really focus in on Wigstock which is what I wanted I guess.

However I will say it was interesting seeing how the bar scene/non drag race queens have been affected by RuPaul's Drag Race. But this was only mentioned briefly as it was fighting against everything else.

The actual Wigstock performances are only in the last 20 minutes and a lot of them are relegated to montages. I wish it had took more notes from Wigstock: The Movie. The performances are fabulous and it would have been great to see more.

Definitely watch it. It's interesting and has great performances. I would watch Wigstock: The Movie first so you can see the change in time for your self.

Loved the parallels between Lady Bunny and Charlene. This doc shows how drag's original focus is still alive and centers those who are continuing to create the type of drag that futhers creativity and activism. It's also really, really pretty.

Queens with real talent beyond shopping/sourcing/renting/borrowing outfits and serving face. In an Instagram/Kim K/Paris Hilton/Famous with no real talent world, every single one of these ladies turn it. This document is thoughtful and inclusive. My vote for surprise breakout star was Charlene Incarnate, probably because I'm a gulf-coaster, and our scene is dominated by pageant drag. And the herstory is so amazing and critical. I really hope that someone tackles Drag on a ken burns level (think jazz or baseball), but until then, this is one of the best nonfiction works I've seen on the evolution of modern drag. They had to make a choice on what to show in this format and around the rebirth of wigstock. I hope someone in the future does an massive scope docu series from late 1800's drag to Paris is Burning era ballroom to RuPaul's breakout to modern day.