Female Trouble
Glamour has never been more grotesque than in Female Trouble, which injects the Hollywood melodrama with anarchic decadence. Divine, director John Waters’ larger-than-life muse, engulfs the screen with charisma as Dawn Davenport, the living embodiment of the film’s lurid mantra, “Crime is beauty,” who progresses from a teenage nightmare hell-bent on getting cha-cha heels for Christmas to a fame monster whose egomaniacal impulses land her in the electric chair. Shot in Waters’ native Baltimore on 16 mm, with a cast drawn from his beloved troupe of regulars, the Dreamlanders (including Mink Stole, David Lochary, Mary Vivian Pearce, Edith Massey, and Cookie Mueller), this film—the director’s favorite of his work with Divine—comes to life through the tinsel-toned vision of production designer Vincent Peranio and costume designer/makeup artist Van Smith. An endlessly quotable fan favorite, Female Trouble offers up perverse pleasures that never fail to satisfy.
Director-Approved Special Edition Features
- New, restored 4K digital transfer, supervised by director John Waters, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray
- Audio commentary from 2004 featuring Waters
- New conversation between Waters and critic Dennis Lim
- New and archival interviews with cast and crew members Mink Stole, Pat Moran, Vincent Peranio, Susan Lowe, Mary Vivian Pearce, Hilary Taylor, and Van Smith
- Interview from 1975 featuring Waters and cast members Divine, Stole, and David Lochary
- Deleted scenes and alternate takes
- Rare on-set footage
- English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- PLUS: An essay by film critic Ed Halter
New cover design by Eric Skillman
Director-Approved Special Edition Features
- New, restored 4K digital transfer, supervised by director John Waters, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray
- Audio commentary from 2004 featuring Waters
- New conversation between Waters and critic Dennis Lim
- New and archival interviews with cast and crew members Mink Stole, Pat Moran, Vincent Peranio, Susan Lowe, Mary Vivian Pearce, Hilary Taylor, and Van Smith
- Interview from 1975 featuring Waters and cast members Divine, Stole, and David Lochary
- Deleted scenes and alternate takes
- Rare on-set footage
- English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- PLUS: An essay by film critic Ed Halter
New cover design by Eric Skillman
Cast
- Divine
- Dawn Davenport/Earl Peterson
- David Lochary
- Donald Dasher
- Mary Vivian Pearce
- Donna Dasher
- Mink Stole
- Taffy Davenport
- Edith Massey
- Aunt Ida
- Cookie Mueller
- Concetta
- Susan Walsh
- Chicklette
- Michael Potter
- Gater
- Ed Peranio
- Wink
- Paul Swift
- Butterfly
- George Figgs
- Dribbles
- Susan Lowe
- Vikki
- Channing Wilroy
- Prosecutor
- George Hulse
- Teacher
- Betty Woods
- Dawn’s mother
- Seymour Avigdor
- Defense lawyer
- Pat Moran
- Bitch prisoner
- Chris Mason
- Bailiff
- Mumme
- Bailiff
- Margie Skidmore
- School snitch
- Cindy Chosky
- Stripper
- Lynn Russo
- Girl who won’t pay
- Elizabeth Coffey
- Earnestine
- Roland Hertz
- Dawn’s father
- Hilary Taylor
- Taffy as a child
- Marina Melin
- Cheryll
- Al Strapelli
- Judge
- Berenica Cipcus
- Mean girl
- Laurel Douglas
- Telephone-company girl
- George Stover
- Chaplin
Credits
- Director
- John Waters
- Written and filmed by
- John Waters
- Sets by
- Vincent Peranio
- Costumes and makeup
- Van Smith
- Production chief
- Pat Moran
- Sound
- Bob Maier
- Lighting/Assistant cameraman
- Dave Insley
- Editors
- Charles Roggero
- Editors
- John Waters
- Production assistance
- Cinemen
- Production assistance
- Steve Yeager
- Stills
- Bruce Moore
- Stills
- Elaine Jankonus
- Stills
- Mink Stole
- Hairstyles
- Chris Mason
- Hairstyles
- David Lochary
- Special effects
- Ed Peranio
- Titles
- Randy Burman
- Titles
- Alan Rose
- Titles
- Dolores Deluxe
A scene from Female Trouble
