Cult Classics with Venus Mantrap: Who’s That Girl. Photo: NFSA.
M | 93 Mins | Cult Classics with Venus Mantrap | 1987 | DCP | US, UK | D: James Foley
Arc Cinema presents a series of irreverent Friday night filmic feasts, curated and hosted by drag artist and culture warrior Venus Mantrap.
Cult Classics with Venus Mantrap explores the archives to showcase cinema with bite: films that unnerve, push buttons, ask questions and just look good on the big screen! Gather your tribe of misfits and rowdy rebels and join Venus for edgy movies, fan favourites and hidden gems.
Chaos ensues when street-smart, wise-talking Nikki Finn (Madonna) is released from prison for a crime she didn’t commit. Embarking on a mission to catch the crooks who did her wrong, Nikki wreaks havoc on the streets of Manhattan, enlisting the help of strait-laced Loudon (Griffin Dunne) and Murray, a nearly extinct Patagonian cougar.
Ending our ‘(Retro) Flex and the City’ mini season, Cult Classics moves away from the mean streets of Walter Hill’s turf wars to enter the slapstick pandemonium of a character who plays by her own rules. This screwball comedy was a box-office flop in 1987, but were critics too harsh on the comedic sensibilities of Madonna, during the infancy of a career that is now 40 years strong? See what all the commotion is about as we revisit this fan favourite on the big screen.
“When Madonna’s no-nonsense pragmatism isn’t being twisted into poses of lovable eccentricity, the actress is sexy and funny and never for a minute sentimental. At times she looks amazingly like Marilyn Monroe, but the personality is her own, more resilient and more knowing.” – The New York Times
The details
What: Screening of Who’s that Girl with pre-screening introduction and live performance by Venus Mantrap.
When: Fri 23 May 8:00 PM
Where: Arc Cinema, NFSA Acton
Cost: $17-20. Tickets available via the NFSA website.
