Thanksgiving Edition - ADDAMS FAMILY VALUES

MAL-I-BU BAR-BIE!

Every homosexual who grows up in this world learns very early that it’s the conservatives who are truly creepy and cooky, and most of the people they tell you to be scared of are actually much better company.

Thankfully, The Addams Family has proven for decades, from comic strip to TV to film, that rejecting the normal world altogether is how you live your best life. Even if you didn’t know what being gay meant as a kid, the queer cinematic voice of this film was familiar in a way that resonates as strongly now as it did the day it came out in 1993.

Working without the hetero collaborators forced on him by the studios in the first film, gay screenwriter Paul Rudnik let his freak flag fly in the sequel ADDAMS FAMILY VALUES. And with that queer freedom, he created the most savage, hysterical satire of the decade; skewering the horrors of American culture, and so-called “traditional” family values, with a flaming red-hot poker that has never cooled since.

ADDAMS FAMILY VALUES explores the common realities of late-20th century growing-family dynamics that every parent and child have to deal with, through the Addams’ macabre Grand Guignol lens; the birth of a new baby, sibling rivalry, finding the right nanny, the frights of new romance for the young and old, puberty, kids going off to summer camp, balancing passion with domestic responsibility, dealing with in-laws, and last but certainly not least, the white American version of family-togetherness hell that is Thanksgiving, exposed as racist fairytale in legendary musical fashion.

The film is full of dirty jokes I didn’t fully understand until I was older, and a lot of amazing cameo appearances you might blink and miss. It also features one of the great comedy performances in film history, with Joan Cusack earning instant icon status as the one and only Debbie Jelinsky, a camp masterpiece all her own.

So join us to celebrate the month of Thanksgiving at Queer Classics the only proper way. By watching a film written by gay screenwriter that eviscerates the sanctimonious Americana family values crowd in gothic style, and mocks the straight world with a viciousness that Wednesday would admire!

Learn what real family is about with your fellow queers this November 8th at the New Parkway!

Happy Happy Turkey Day!