Welcome to Queerty’s latest entry in our series, Queerantined: Daily Dose. Every weekday as long as the COVID-19 pandemic has us under quarantine, we’ll release a suggested bit of gloriously queer entertainment designed to keep you from getting stir crazy in the house. Each weekend, we will also suggest a binge-able title to keep you extra engaged.
The Bent: Victor/Victoria
Aspiring singers have it rough. Just ask Victoria (Julie Andrews), an out of work soprano so impoverished, she carries cockroaches to restaurants in hopes of getting free meals. Lucky for her, her path crosses with that of Todd (Robert Preston), an out-of-work gay cabaret performer. With both their employment options limited, the pair join forces to pass Victoria off as a drag queen, which means she must begin living as a man named Victor. All bodes well until Victoria becomes infatuated with King Marchand (James Garner), a handsome gangster, who can’t quite understand his attraction to the handsome Victor.
Victor/Victoria occupies the tail-end of the second phase of Hollywood’s musical infatuation; almost two decades would pass before movies like Dancer in the Dark and Moulin Rouge! would reinvigorate the genre. Lucky for us, then, the movie is terrific. Andrews, Preston and Leslie Ann Warren (as King’s floozy girlfriend) each scored Oscar nominations for their hilarious performances, and the story benefits from the kinetic direction of Blake Edwards, Andrews’ husband, the comic genius behind the Pink Panther movies. With rousing musical numbers by Henry Mancini and an ahead-of-its-time gay romance between two masculine men, Victor/Victoria doesn’t get enough credit as a jewel of queer cinema or a musical. Given our own silly mindset as month two of COVID lockdown begins, we need a few good laughs. Look no further than this whimsical screwball musical for a dose of joy.
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Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
Streams on Amazon, iTunes, YouTube & VUDU.
Jared MacBride
It’s a hilarious movie with an extraordinary cast, a perfect antidote for the doom and gloom that’s about
etheljkuiper28
Work From Comfort Of Your Home And Receive Your First Paycheck Within A Week. No Experience Needed, No Boss Over Your Shoulder… Say Goodbye To Your Old Job! Limited Number Of Spots Open…? 6.gp/a72TW
Daggerman
I must be honest and confess–the film is one of my favorites. So entertaining.
missvamp
this will always be one of my fave movies. it was very enlightening as a kid. so many talented people we’ve lost in that flick. julie andrews is still amazing!
inbama
I remember fighting off tears while calling my friends after seeing it in NYC on opening day.
“Mary Poppins has become the Patron Saint of Gay Rights!”
Man About Town
Great film, and Lesley Ann Warren stole every scene she was in!
Kangol2
She was fabulous in this movie, but truthfully, Julie Andrews turns out every screen role she takes. I do miss her singing though. She had an amazing voice.
LARodger
This hands down is one of my all time favorites. I enjoyed it when it came out, can’t believe it was way way back in 1982. Super talented cast, superb music with tender and hilarious moments throughout. It’s STILL a “Crazy World” isn’t it!
MHaumesser
This movie was made back when movies were great! I was 17 when I snuck into the theater to see this and I absolutely loved it then and now!
GregoryH
This is the only movie I saw at a theater twice in one day! I can’t believe it was 38 years ago! It never gets old, I still love it today!
Elysium
I really cannot understand the enthusiasm for this film from a gay audience. I remember being furious when it was first released and I watched it: I thought the film almost homophobic! Recapitulating, it ends as a straight audience will feel VERY comfortable with, straights paired with straights, gays with gays, exactly as Grandma would wish it, for the sake of wholesome morals… It’s a venue for the worst ideas of mainstream Hollywood. I strongly will never recommend it!