020 - Death Becomes Her

Do you know what they do to soft, bald, overweight Republicans in prison, Ernest? They don't let them listen to Cinema Very Gay, that's what. Grab your shovels and your shotguns, the time has finally come for us to cover one of our favorite gay camp classics, Robert Zemeckis' Death Becomes Her, starring the indelible Meryl Streep, Goldie Hawn, Isabella Rossellini, and Bruce Willis. Madeline Ashton (Streep) and Helen Sharp (Hawn) are bitter social rivals with their eyes on the heart of Dr. Ernest Menville (Willis), but also on their fading looks. A modern witch (Rossellini) offers a magical remedy to help, but is the cure worse than the disease? This movie has solidified its status as a cornerstone of queer cult camp and for excellent reason- it's endlessly quotable, hilariously over-acted, and pits two Oscar winners against each other in a battle of bitchiness. It might be easy to write this movie off as a feminist's nightmare, but that surface-level read might miss some of the nuance that makes this movie so fun to revisit. The morgue? She'll be furious!  Our journey through queer-coded Disney villain history continues as well with the gentle and greedy Prince John from Disney's Robin Hood (1973). Voiced hilariously by the esteemed dramatic actor Peter Ustinov, Prince John is a whiny brat of a Prince, a total mama's boy, and casually abusive to his sidekick Sir Hiss. Even though the movie doesn't have the staying power that other animated classics can boast, this languishing lion certainly makes a solid entry in this mini-series. Oo De Lally with Jake and Kevin on this week's episode and give us a follow on Twitter and Instagram @CinemaVeryGay !