The Queen

Jun 17, 1968

1h 8m

★ 6.4

A vibrant piece of queer history.

Overview

In 1967, New York City is host to the Miss All-American Camp Beauty Pageant. This documentary takes a look behind the scenes, transporting the viewer into rehearsals and dressing rooms as the drag queen subculture prepares for this big national beauty contest. Jack/Sabrina is the mistress of ceremonies, and their protégé, Miss Harlow, is in the competition. But, as the pageant approaches, the glamorous contestants veer from camaraderie to tension.

Genres

Documentary

Production Companies

Vineyard Film

MDH

Si Litvinoff Film Production

The Queen Trailers

Cast

Flawless Sabrina

Jack Doroshow

Interviewer

Bernard Giquel

Self - Singer

Mario Montez

Self - Competitor

Crystal LaBeija

Self - Competitor

Rachel Harlow

Self - Jury Member

Andy Warhol

Self - Jury Member

Edie Sedgwick

Self - Jury Member

Jim Dine

Self - Jury Member

Bruce Jay Friedman

Self - Jury Member

Larry Rivers

Self - Jury Member

Terry Southern

Self - Jury Member

Jerry Leiber

Three men embark on a journey in search of meaning and happiness in the autumn of their lives: Bob swaps his safe home for a camper van and tries to find himself in the barren Californian desert; Steve, drag queen and stand-up comedian, is fed up of England and makes amends with his past in Benidorm; Yamada rediscovers his smile by reading stories to children in Tokyo.

0.0

Sultana's Reign

Aug 29, 2023

Sultana of New York is a Palestinian drag queen, performer, and artist. "Sultana’s Rein" opens with a conversation with Sultana, as she is being painted by Jordanian artist, RIDIKKULUZ. Reflecting on her journey from Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, to then New York, Sultana tells of the challenges of performing drag in conservative societies, her nostalgia for the glory days and the glamour of Egyptian cinema icons, and her struggle to prove her existence and her self-expression as a performer and artist. She also shares her love of celebration and her everlasting commitment to be true to herself.

5.6

Served Like a Girl

Nov 8, 2017

Five women veterans who have endured unimaginable trauma in service create a shared sisterhood to help the rising number of stranded homeless women veterans by entering a competition that unexpectedly catalyzes moving events in their own lives.

5.0

Queer Japan

Dec 11, 2020

Trailblazing artists, activists, and everyday people from across the spectrum of gender and sexuality defy social norms and dare to live unconventional lives in this kaleidoscopic view of LGBTQ+ culture in contemporary Japan.

7.2

The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson

Jul 27, 2017

Describing herself as a 'street queen,' Johnson was a legendary fixture in New York City’s gay ghetto and a tireless voice for LGBT pride since the days of Stonewall, who along with fellow trans icon Sylvia Rivera, founded Street Transvestites Action Revolutionaries (S.T.A.R.), a trans activist group based in the heart of NYC’s Greenwich Village. Her death in 1992 was declared a suicide by the NYPD, but friends never accepted that version of events. Structured as a whodunit, with activist Victoria Cruz cast as detective and audience surrogate, The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson celebrates the lasting political legacy of Johnson, while seeking to finally solve the mystery of her unexplained death.

7.4

The Queens

Sep 13, 2019

This documentary chronicles over two years in the heels of four of the world’s most famous drag queens including former RuPaul’s Drag Race winners Jinkx Monsoon and Sharon Needles, former All Stars champion Alaska Thunderf*ck and season 7 and All Stars 2 contestant Katya Zamolodchikova. From performing across world stages to winning (and losing) Drag Race or dealing with major tragedies, The Queens lifts the lace front, giving an insight into one of the most fascinating and quickly ascending entertainment artforms.

0.0

Boys Will Be Girls

Mar 3, 2003

For these lipstick Cinderella's, balls are a real drag. With their duct tape D-Cups, these torch songbirds crown the drag queen within. From dudes to divas, these boys will be girls.

5.9

Wigstock: The Movie

Jun 9, 1995

The three-decade-old annual Manhattan gathering of drag queens and their fans is portrayed in this colorful documentary. The film concentrates on the spectacle of the event, providing abundant examples of the elaborate costumes, flamboyant wigs, and campy musical performances that characterize the event.

5.0

Escape to Life: The Erika and Klaus Mann Story

Apr 5, 2001

This documentary contains dramatized episodes about the lives of Erika and Klaus Mann, the brilliant children of German writer Thomas Mann.

0.0

Access All Areas: The AAA Girls Tour

Aug 4, 2022

A documentary about The AAA Girls (comprised of Alaska Thunderf*ck 5000, Courtney Act, and Willam), from the writing of their album "Access All Areas" to their tour across the US.

6.0

F

Dec 22, 2023

F, an 18-year-old boy, immerses himself in the world of the Drag Queen where he begins to build his identity despite family and social mandates, which impose on him to be afraid and ashamed of being who he is.

7.8

This Filthy World

Nov 24, 2006

In this filmed version of cult film director John Waters' popular one-man show, the Pink Flamingos and A Dirty Shame director takes the stage to discuss everything from his early influences, fondest career memories, and notorious struggles against the MPAA rating system. Part endearing memoir and part hilarious lecture, This Filthy World touches on everything from the insanity of contemporary pop culture to the director's unforgettable early collaborations with inimitable Pink Flamingos star Divine.

7.0

Old Lesbians

Nov 11, 2023

For the last quarter century, Houston native Arden Eversmeyer journeyed across the country to record hundreds of oral "herstories" with a mostly invisible population that is rapidly disappearing. Old Lesbians honors Arden's legacy by animating the resilient, joyful voices she preserved in the Old Lesbian Oral Herstory Project, from first crush to first love, from the closet to coming out, and finally from loss to connection.

5.3

Playback

Oct 11, 2019

In Córdoba, far from the Argentine capital, the end of a military regime promises a spring that is all too brief. “La Delpi” is the only survivor of a group of friends who are transgender women and drag-queens, who began to die of aids in the late 80s. In a Catholic and conservative city, the Grupo Kalas made their weapons and trenches out of improvised dresses and lip-syncing. Today the images of unique and unknown footage are not only a farewell letter, but a manifesto to friendship.

8.0

Paris Is Burning

Mar 13, 1991

Where does voguing come from, and what, exactly, is throwing shade? This landmark documentary provides a vibrant snapshot of the 1980s through the eyes of New York City's African American and Latinx Harlem drag-ball scene. Made over seven years, PARIS IS BURNING offers an intimate portrait of rival fashion "houses," from fierce contests for trophies to house mothers offering sustenance in a world rampant with homophobia, transphobia, racism, AIDS, and poverty. Featuring legendary voguers, drag queens, and trans women — including Willi Ninja, Pepper LaBeija, Dorian Corey, and Venus Xtravaganza.

7.2

Avant-Drag!

May 23, 2024

Avant-Drag! paints portraits of ten drag artists of varying gender expressions and sexualities who take to the streets of Athens to query, problematise and (yes, please!) undermine social strictures. Employing wildly imagined personas – like riot housewives and Albanian turbo-folk girls – who perform acts as revolutionary as praising abortion and as charming as drawing childish pictures, these artists call for social justice by taking aim at conservatism, patriarchy, patriotism, racism and sexism.

6.0

Steelers: The World's First Gay Rugby Club

Mar 22, 2020

Told through the eyes of an Australian news reporter, Eammon Ashton-Atkinson, who moved to the UK to escape depression, the documentary, follows 3 characters on their journey to overcome their struggles as the club competes against 60 other gay clubs in the Bingham Cup in Amsterdam – the World Cup of gay rugby.

1.0

Georgie Girl

Feb 16, 2001

In 1999, the largely conservative Wairarapa district in New Zealand elected a former cabaret performer/actress named Georgina Beyer to the country's House of Parliament -- a seemingly unremarkable event in that country's history except for the fact that Beyer is a transsexual and may very well be the first transsexual in the world to be elected to a national office. In their 2002 biographical documentary Georgie Girl, co-directors Peter Wells and Annie Goldson highlight the popular Member of Parliament's rapid rise through local government to prominence in the New Zealand national government.

4.8

The Gospel of Eureka

Mar 11, 2018

Faith, love and civil rights collide on voting day in a small Southern town that hosts a famous performance of the last days of Christ and an infamous gospel drag show.

8.0

I'm Not Everything I Want to Be

Oct 3, 2024

After the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968, Libuše Jarcovjáková, a young female photographer, strives to break free from the constraints of Czechoslovak normalization and embarks on a wild journey towards freedom, capturing her experiences on thousands of subjective photographs.