User reviews

The main reason I liked this movie is because of the trios' performance. I think they did an excellent job. How could a man that did "Roadhouse" be in this movie? That's what makes it so appealing. And not only be in it, but do an amazing job. Snipes made me laugh my heart out, and Leguizamo had a dark undertone to his performance that reflects the hopes and dreams of many Latinas living in poverty. I also admire the intentions of this movie. It wants to bring a message without offending or turn off the audience it intends to deliver it to. Not an easy task, but at least it's an admirable attempt. I think some of the reviewers on this site are a bit too harsh on this film. It is a fun bubble gum of a movie. Watch it and enjoy it, and in the process if you come away from it with a little more of an open mind, I think it has done its job.

Every one should watch this. Absolutely amazing movie. Patrick Swayze is so beautiful. Some of the best and most quotable lines! WILDLY underrated and not talked about enough. Love love love.

"I don't think of you as a man. And I don't think of you as a woman. I think of you as an angel."

'To Wong Foo' offers you the chance to see Swayze, Snipes, and Leguizamo like you've never seen them before - especially macho Snipes! And dare I say, they look gorgeous!!

'To Wong Foo' is a flamboyant, outrageous and somewhat daring comedy drama with fantastic performances by the lead actors. The film features stunning costumes and make-up. We follow the adventures of three drag queens on a road trip to Los Angeles. Choosing style over substance soon proves to be a big mistake for our three heroes (or should I say heroins). When they find themselves stranded in a conservative small town called Snydersville, they decide to make the most of a dire situation - and never anticipated changing the lives of everyone around them in the process.

'To Wong Foo' is predominantly a comedy, but delivers some fine dramatic moments as well. This is a wonderful, uplifting comedy drama with a positive message. I enjoyed the musical elements thrown in the mix, and good dialogue, as well. I love this film!

I think Patrick Swayze was incredible in this movie. For a male actor to make you believe he really is a female in mind and body is a large undertaking and he did this for the entire length of the movie. I was entertained from beginning to end, and I also saw Priscilla and liked this just as much. Robin Williams has a little cameo at the beginning that is hilarious, and Stockard Channing does a great job as a small town abused wife. Great movie to watch on a weekend afternoon when you just want to escape and laugh!

Fun, harmless entertaining. Nothing to get excited about, but it is amusing thanks to it's strange casting choices. Any movie with Stockard Channing has to have some merit! Swayze and Snipes are fun and Rosie Perez (oops!) is hysterical. Leguizamo deserves a lot more recognition for his body of work.

Sincerily I think this is one of the best "drag queen movie" they have ever made! Yes, I admit it could be considered VERY VERY similar to the most famous Australian movie "Priscilla The Queen of the desert" but it surely cut a good figure!!! Never boring, it also includes some nice cameos played by famous persons, such as Robin Williams, Naomi Campbell and July Newmar herself. It's nice, wit, joyful and very well played, above all by the 3 main actors, men you would never imagine as transvestites,thanking also to their bodies, usually, so much masculine!!! They accepted a challenge and, in my opinion, they won!! WELL DONE BOYS!!!

In a position where I've never watched an overwhelmingly camp film in my life, it was time to change that. As you know, I like to tackle each sub-genre with an open mind, alas I remained sceptical that this might just be too much for me. Turns out, it was highly enjoyable. Three drag queens embark on a road trip from New York to California where they encounter a small rural hamlet that is stuck in an archaic environment. Firstly, credit to my partner for persuading me to watch this. Secondly, if you haven't watched it already, do so now. A 90s road trip more flamboyant than RuPaul himself, it's a story primarily focused on acceptance. The drag lifestyle is one that seemingly felt foreign to many, so to retain the drag style for the three lead characters throughout its entire runtime naturally suited the message. Snipes, Swayze and Leguizamo, three heterosexual actors, literally gave transformative performances to the point where I didn't even recognise them. The costumes, the makeup, the accentuated body movements, they embraced their roles acknowledging that these were risky career decisions. Enjoyable cameos from the likes of Robin Williams and RuPaul also. Beane's screenplay had me laugh on several occasions, most notably for Noxeema Jackson who is unquestionably the sassiest character in the film. It's light, fun and lifted by gay buoyancy. The narrative does mostly consist of smaller underdeveloped sub-plots stringed together, such as an obvious domestic abuse situation, a sheriff who is homophobic, racist and sexist and a romance between two local teenagers. The main plot becomes lost, you forget why they are on this road trip. Unfortunately, due to the timing of its release, it is extremely similar to 'Priscilla, Queen of the Desert'. However, I'm more than happy for two identical films to inject LGBT culture into mainstream audiences. So I must say 'To Beeban Kidron, Thanks for Directing a Solid Road Trip Film!'. Hold up, who even is Wong Foo? An unsolved mystery it seems...

This movie was HILARIOUS. Every time I'm sad or down in the dumps, I pop in this film to cheer me up. I thought Ru Paul and even Julie Newmar made excellent cameos. Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes, and John Leguizamo played believable drag queens, and they all did great jobs trying not to trip in their stiletto heels. Stockhard Channing was great too, as the abused wife who never gets to have any fun. The movie has a happy ending, and after the movie you find yourself accepting others for who they are.

I watched this movie, probably about 9 or 10 years ago. At the time I remember being amazed at how absolutely feminine and lady-like Patrick Swayze was. I also remember that it was a "nice" story the wouldn't offend anyone.

I watched To Wong Foo....again and once again I watched while Patrick Swayze turned himself into Ms. Vida Boheme and then throughout the rest of the movie I kept studying this character in all of the different outfits - complete with matching hats, shoes and gloves - that she wore and kept asking myself, "How can that possibly be Patrick Swayze?" The three stars; Swayze, Wesley Snipes (Ms. Noxeema Jackson) and John Leguizamo (Chi-Chi Rodriquez) we just terrific as drag queens who head out for Hollywood and end up in a small town when their car breaks down. he town is old and appears almost as if it were shot in black and white until the "queens" find some old "60's" clothes in the dry goods store and then the town is transformed into a decorated masterpiece.

The movie is fun and has a do-good message that is up-lifting. There are a lot of other actors with little "important" roles that make the movie. Stockard Channing has an excellent role and Robin Williams has a cameo that was great.

Noxeema Jackson and Chi-Chi are really typical "RuPaul" drag queens in this movie but Swayze's character is such a "lady" that is difficult for me to even relate other movie images of Patrick Swayze (Dirty Dancing (Johnny), City of Joy (Max), Father Hood (Jack) and others) to this character. Perhaps if a Wesley Snipes fan or a John Leguizamo fan watched this movie they would have the same reaction to these actors' characters as I have had to Patrick Swayze's character - amazement and discomfort.

This movie about three drag queens, two of whom win a trip to Hollywood, is kind of the ultimate road picture. But the three male stars look better in drag than Bing and Bob ever did. I've seen it a couple of times, and never fail to wonder at the transformation of Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes and John Leguizamo into...well, drag queens. One of the best shots in this movie is at the beginning, when Wesley Snipes' character is walking AWAY from the camera. I wish *I* looked that good.

I suppose there was a kind of freedom in making this movie, for them, because they were not playing a character that looks like them in *real life*. I started out watching because if the novelty, ended up being invested in the characters and liking the movie.

And Blythe Danner is always good, in anything she does.

This movie was funny in spots, had a nice, happy ending, and starred some of my favorite people, including Michael Vartan, John Leguizamo, Beth Grant, Blythe Danner, etc. I especially liked the "awakening" of the small town engineered by the "Fairy Godmothers" (I always like stories where someone builds something or makes something work--it's a surefire way to make me like a movie). But for a story about drag queens unleashed in Middle America, this is about as un-outrageous as you can get. It says something about the wide variety of people in the USA that some people think this movie is "wild and crazy." These three "champion" drag queens aren't portrayed as having even a hint of sexuality. Even their drag personas onstage don't seem to have anything going on downstairs. Patrick Swayze seems to be playing Pat Nixon instead of a flamboyant star. The widespread acceptance they experience in the small town and the sunny ending are pure fairy tale--it's a shame they couldn't find any real fairies to star in it.

After the unexpected success of the Australian film "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert," someone decided what movie audiences really needed was a much blander and more sanitized American version of the same thing, and "To Wong Foo," etc. is the result.

Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes and John Leguizamo are the less talented actors playing gentlemen in drag this time around, the story is much less involving, and the whole thing is pretty much less of everything that made "Priscilla" good. A crucial difference between the two films is that in the former, the actors didn't give self conscious performances; they weren't winking at the audience and saying, "isn't it funny that three recognizable actors are playing men in drag." But that's exactly how the three actors in the American film play it, and since we can't take the actors seriously in roles they're not taking seriously themselves, there's not much to invest your time or energy in.

Grade: C+

I live laugh love... 😋 just go to see the letterboxd reviews, theyre absolute joy to my little ichy tiny campy heart, just as this film...

founding fathers had fabulous wigs.

Hehehe, i loved this movie! It made me laff soooo much! I couldn't believe the line up when i saw it!

All i have to say about this was that it is simply fantastic! I loved the story line and altho i'm sad to admit, it is all pure fantasy, but most people live in a fantasy world nowadays and well, this is one movie where i wish i could live in this fantasy! To be accepted like that with no problems? Wow, thats pretty good that is!

I've watched this movie something like 5 times in two weeks and i still think that its kewl 0=] I usually get tired of movies after a while, but this i haven't! It does help to be queer to watch this movie, but the girls will love it and the guys will think "whats the point?" But for me, the point is that its a kewl movie about acceptance and also the "four rules to becoming a drag queen" LOL

Check it out, if u like this stuff then u won't be disappointed!

"To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar" is a dramatic comedy that follows three drag queens to a small po-dunk town on the way to the Drag Queens of America contest. In the middle of nowhere, the cross-dressing beauties teach each of the townsfolk a little something about life. Not only will this movie make you laugh until you spit Pepsi out of your nose, but it will also make you cry...and think about how wonderful the world really is.

Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes and John Leguizamo perform well as the main characters of the film. The script is cute and quite well-written, and the costume design and make-up is fantastically off-the-wall! "To Wong Foo" is a movie that portrays a very meaningful message, and it should not be missed. See it today!

*Celt*

I LOVED this movie.We were at best buy,I saw it,and bought it on this simple premise-Patrick Swayze in drag.And it looked like a good movie. So I went home,popped it in,and literally laughed out loud.There's something in this drag queen movies,that makes it almost not offensive.I was afraid it would be bad,(We're Christian)but honestly,I wasn;t offended.

The movie was so good,so sweet,so down right hysterical at times,I almost forgot Patrick swayze was a man.He could have easily blended into our church.

The film starts out With PS and WS getting ready.That scene in itself is hysterical,because we see these rugged,masculine men-Putting on heels and stockings and makeup.WS,at one point,kicks his legs and squeals with delight.

They go to the Drag queen of the year award,WS and PS tie,and ge to go to Hollywood.But when the little"Latin boy in drag is crying"they decide to string him along,and they get stuck in podunk town.

There's a Cameo from Robin Williams thats excellent,And the townswomen are so sweet.and Noxeema(snipes)Befriends a little 4'9,80 pound elderly women.

Cant get any beter than that

From its original conception, this film must have started as a riot. The premise of having three macho actors take on the roles of drag queens to put together a very funny and insightful comedy of the sexes must have appeared as an impossible task. In the end, the film works because of its tight screenplay and its well defined characters. Swayze, Leguizamo, and Snipes hold nothing back, making each character real and multi dimensional. There are elements of farce, hilarity, outrageousness, and some very daring moves from its three leads. With the help of a strong supporting cast that includes Stockard Channing, as a battered woman, the film moves along quite nicely.

It's a fantasy with a firm hold in reality. The leads portray three human beings that must confront what society deals them, and in the film, they manage to make some of their dreams come true. Unlike other movies dealing with special types of love, such as "Beautiful Thing" and "Big Eden" where the ending perfectly matches the rest of the fantasy, this one faces reality and offers an interesting type of compromise. It's bittersweet, expertly interweaving both the possible and impossible.

Leguizamo shines as the very caliente latina persona who lives dangerously and tries to fit in, in her own special way. Swayze is the classy one, who is not allowed to forget her true nature. Wesley Snipes' role borders on caricature, but he keeps it from crossing the line between farcical and ridiculous. They all do very good work with this very risqué and difficult material. It works out.

The film is embellished as an American version of THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT (1994) - which I think I watched more than 10 years ago and now my long-term memory fails me again) - however, certainly its lavish drag-queen attire exerts its utmost momentum to be both optically impressive and controversially sensationalistic as what PRISCILLA has managed to express.

The stale countryside housewives dress-up-and-shine concoction is rather self-consciously embarrassing than thematically entertaining while the correlations between various characters is somewhat the thing in its favor, which is completely attributed to a more-than-ordinary cast, particularly Stockard Channing and Patrick Swayze's part, which conspicuously is the corniest one but the punch is potent enough to sense an empathy for them, and Snipe and Leguizamo are incredibly diverting in their muscular and exotically Latin frames respectively.

The back story of our three drag-queens (or wait, two queens and one princess) are to a large extent sidelined so as not to hinder its over-optimistic comic vein, which for me could be a more arresting story than the feel-good edification of the inhabitants in a tiny rural town, nevertheless the antithesis is orchestrated with some heartwarming liveliness despite of the predictable turning point.

The film merely tells a conventionally orthodox story with an unconventionally mores-defying disadvantaged group. Against its hilarious ethos, my mawkish sentiment prevails as it's hard to accept that both Swayze and Penn have passed away already.

ps: this is the very last film I have watched in 2011, wish myself and all my friends and lovers an upbeat mood during the whole 2012 and forget the bucket list!

I saw this movie after I had seen Priscilla a few times. It's not nearly as good... I don't know if they were trying to rip off a better film or not, but it didn't work. To Wong Foo was so cheesy... and it seemed unfinished... Don't bother seeing this. Watch The Adventures of Priscilla instead.

I wish people wouldn't keep comparing this film to Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.. OK so two drag queen themed movies came out a year apart - get over it!!. Priscilla was great but thats not what this review is about To Wong Foo is unique. It stands well on its own and i was lucky enough to be at its World Premiere in London where Patrick gave a talk about the transformation and how he got into the role. I think it was a stroke of genius to use actors we perceive as really butch. All 3 of them worked so well together. Adding Chris Penn, Stockard Channing and even the cameos by Ru Paul and Robin Williams just sealed the deal.

At the time of writing (2008), 13 years on, it still makes me smile when friend quote lines from it. I hope one day this will be thought of as a classic of its time

i enjoyed this film because i am 14 and have a childish sense of humour and think its quite funny seeing men dressed up as women and I'm sure a lot of people do, (i only think this when people are doing it for a laugh so no offence) especially if those men are very big stars that have played Jonny Castle in dirty dancing! but there you go.

I love all the characteristics the men have when they become women like the change of voices and the movement etc... i think its hilarious and i think many other people will to! so if you see it in a rental shop i'd pick it up and give it a go!

no-one will hate it i don't think!

So if you want to see Wesley Snipes and Patrick Swayze in a dress GO 4 IT!

On the plus side, this film has a wonderful cameo by Robin Williams and Patrick Swayze proves he could successfully step into the lead role of any regional production of "Auntie Mame." After that, one can pick this film apart piece by piece.

But here are a few of the film's major problems: 1) Drag queens do not dress in drag 24/7. And certainly they do not sleep in drag. Drag is a costume, something worn as part of a show, an alternate identity. In fact the film would have been more interesting if we had got to know the characters in their everyday life as a contrast to their drag identities. But placing the guys in drag and keeping them there keeps them safely in the realm of a sight gag. The characters are not people, they are extented jokes.

2) This is a film about how gay men make the world nice for heterosexual lovers. This would have been truly ground-breaking if it had been about the romantic lives of this trio, not just portraying them, literally, as fairy godmothers who come to work romantic magic for straights. 3) The film is sexist. The trio come to this small town and teach men how to show respect by beating them up and solve all the women's problems by giving them self-esteem inducing makeovers. Men are villains and get violence; women are victims and get pampering. And, of course, gays earn the right to be "fabulous." Wouldn't it be interesting if someone made a film where women are taught to respect men and men were pampered their way to self-esteem? That'll never happen.

Sadly, "Wong Foo" truly thinks it is being bold and original, but every step of the way it falls back on clichés and tiresome stereotypes.