Touch-A, Touch-A, Touch Me

Cinephiles will take a jump to the left, followed by a step to the right tonight when Event Cinemas screen cult hit The Rocky Horror Picture Show as part of 35th Anniversary celebrations around the country. It has been 35-years since it graced the silver screen, but Event Cinemas spokesperson John Robinson said fans are more than willing to do the Time Warp again.
``We had one guy call up who had seen it 36 times all around the world and he wanted to bring a big group of people, as long as it was a special screening,'' he said.
``We've run test screenings of the print and we've absolutely tweaked it, it's going to be sensational.
``You'll never hear Rocky Horror like you will hear it on the night.''

Mr Robinson said staff will also be handing out goodie bags, full of props from the film such as water pistols, toast, confetti and newspaper umbrellas. Frank-N-Furter fan Kyle Mitchell said his favourite aspect of the film was its ``rebelliousness'.
``It's randomly funny and I can understand why it was such a huge cult hit,'' agrees Columbia fan Natasha Browne. Midnight screenings of the horror musical have been a phenomenon in America since the late seventies, with fans dressing up as their favourite characters from the film.(Above) Yes, that's me in the middle surrounded by a horde of lovely and dedicated Rocky Horror fans. I'm dressing up as Magenta tonight, so stay peeled for more pics ;o) Also, Movie Mazz readers might notice Riff Raff looks a lil' familiar. That's because he's upcoming actor Matt Scully, who I wrote here.

Bond University's Assistant Professor of Film and Television and cult film expert Scott Knight said the film's enduring popularity is due to its ``hyper-reality''.
``It's like the quintessential cult film,'' he said.
``It's hyper-real and everyone's having fun in the film and that translates off screen.
``It's a horror musical and has elements of melodrama, horror, comedy, musical, and it's a strange, outrageous combination of genres.
``It's pretty messy too, but with all those things thrown together it communicates this type of love that audiences for the last 35 years have latched on to.''

Knight said it’s also the technical aspects of the film, such as music and casting, that make it a classic.
“The music is one of the main reasons, it’s so memorable with Time Warp, Sweet Transvestite and Touch A Touch A Touch Me.
“And the just absolutely down on the on the money casting with Susan Sarandon and Barry Bostwick as the couple, which is a big deal for the director, and then to get those performances right for that melodramatic tone . . .
“It’s sort of non-threatening too. There’s alternate lifestyles represented in the film, with the queerness and all the drag, but straight audiences aren’t threatened by that.
“Whereas if you started talking about transsexuals and transvestites in other films, audiences might go `oh, that’s not for me.”

The Rocky Horror Picture Show screens at Event Cinemas everywhere tonight with pre-show entertainment starts at 8pm, with the film playing at 9.30pm. Tickets are $20 at eventcinemas.com.au