Hot on the heels of our first taste of the music of Fox’s remake, the first reviews of The Rocky Horror Picture Show hit the internet on Monday. Unfortunately, the 2016 take on the much-loved cult classic isn’t exactly drawing raves from critics.
While only a handful of outlets have published reviews of the new Rocky Horror thus far, those that have describe a sanitized, watered-down version of the transgressive, oddball original. “The 1975 film is not a great movie, but it is a film — with camerawork, lived-in sets, and a vision of awakening eroticism (tinged as it is by a plot that makes absolutely no sense). Fox’s production is a collection of stage numbers in a very unspooky soundstage, where the campy grit of the original is replaced with shiny costumes, and in the final scene, even CGI,” said Variety. The magazine’s final verdict dismissed the Fox remake as “flat and Disney-fied.” Ouch.
Meanwhile, The Toronto Star offered a somewhat more measured perspective, noting, “it’s hard to take what was thrilling and subversive four decades ago and reproduce it in 2016” and rightfully pointing out that “no broadcast network is going to show simulated male-on-male oral sex in prime time.”
Thus far, critics have also offered mixed opinions on Cox’s performance. Variety calls her “the only performer that seems comfortable in her role” in it’s otherwise negative review. Yet, The Toronto Star, despite taking a more generous view of the film as a whole, claims she “fails to convince in the role made famous by Tim Curry” and “her portrayal is missing the spark that made Curry’s so legendary.” ComingSoon.net notes while Cox “did a wonderful job in the role” of Dr. Frank-N-Furter, “having a woman play the sweet transvestite changes a lot of the gender dynamics… she is a woman, playing a woman, and it makes it less transgressive.”
The Rocky Horror Picture Show remake airs Thursday, Oct. 20 at 8 p.m. on Fox.
Will you be watching the Rocky Horror remake in spite of some lackluster reviews? What would you like to see in the revamped version of the 70s cult classic? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
