Titillating
(originally posted on IMDb 29 August 2018)

Of course, technically, "Showgirls" is a bad movie. It's sexploitation that shamelessly objectifies the, frequently nude, female body. It's entirely unsubtle in its analogy of dance as sex. It treats its protagonist's rise from prostitute, to stripper, to Las Vegas showgirl with dramatic faux-prestige as though it were "A Star is Born." It's full of over-the-top catty backstage melodramatics, and every man in it is a sexual predator. It contains frequent and lengthy musical sequences of the dancing spectacles, as though they were interesting for anything beyond titillation. And Elizabeth Berkley is demonstrably from the emphatic over-acting school of the "Saved by the Bell" TV series. But, for some, it's in that sweet spot of so bad it's good, so hilariously inept in every way that one cannot help but have a good time laughing at its expense.

I was hooked once I saw Berkley attack her fast food with a force formerly unbeknownst to me, and I was, twice again, rewarded when she turned her energies with gusto to the most intense thrashing I've ever witnessed in a lap dance or for sex in a pool. Moreover, just about every major character in this one seems to suffer from a clinically-diagnosable behavioral disorder, except for maybe Molly, but she invites Nomi to live with her after witnessing the senseless act of violence she inflicts on her french fries, as well as Molly's car, so, actually, she might be the craziest one of all. Of all the actors, Gina Gershon seems as though she may be the only one who knows exactly what kind of movie she's agreed to be in, and that's trash. How appropriate, then, that her character is also the queen-bee of the glamorized strippers and whose bisexuality allows her to play both sides of the movie's continual cat-and-mouse sex games. Meanwhile, Gina Ravera's expression immediately after the french fries incident is priceless; I felt I could see the "what did I sign onto" expression written on her face. And Kyle MacLachlan has worked with David Lynch, so I'm sure he was used to weird.

The only thing that ruined the fun was the gangrape scene, although the entire movie is rather violent, and like all of the rest of the movie's sexual exploitation and abuse, it propels the narrative forward, as Nomi continually fails to contain her outbursts and seeks revenge. Roger Ebert was onto something in his review when describing writer Joe Eszterhas's strange psycho-sexual fear of women, especially women wielding knives. Well, if it worked in "Basic Instinct" (1992), then I say it works here (although I'm not sure it works in either). And, I've seen enough of Paul Verhoeven's oeuvre to know a camp director when I see one--"RoboCop," "Total Recall," "Basic Instinct," freaking "Starship Troopers." This is camp. He may not know it, and others may not, too, but it is.

And quite expensive camp and exploitation, too. It's quite a treat for a big Hollywood studio to pony up for NC-17 trash. "Showgirls" is going down in the history books for its financial records, down-and-out as a box-office bomb upon its theatrical release--failing to market its MPAA rating controversy, like Nomi slinging her body on the streets to all comers--only to miraculously rise like a Phoenix in all of the stripper glitz and glamour, realizing the potential of the home-media market--that nobody wants to be seen in public attending this show. They want private lap dances. That's where the money is.