It's hard to describe "Polyester". It's not a camp movie. It's different. It does have some funny moments. It does have some really funny ideas. And Divine is something else. Almost always watchable in this one. The only scene that he didn't really pull off was the ending. There is a lot of really funny stuff in this one. On the flip side, there's a lot cringe worthy stuff in it too. John Waters would later lose his way. I guess he couldn't work with a budget. John Waters was a unique filmmaker. There will never be another one like him. I'm saying I'm a fan of his movies but he is a director that I think should not be lost to younger generations. "Polyester", for better or worse, is one of a kind.

It's good that everything is done up in ridiculous fashion, otherwise the pranks would be too mean-spirited to sit through. Everyone comes in for their share of abuse, some funny, some not so. No doubt, the movie is strictly a matter of taste. Waters takes a shot at social mores, marriage especially. Poor wife Francine's life is in an ongoing crisis, from foot-stomping son to slutty daughter to philandering husband to abusive mother. Only gap-toothed Cuddles provides relief. That is, until handsome Tod (Hunter) cozies up. But is he too good to be true. This may be the most kinetic movie I've seen in a while. The performers are in constant motion such that dialogue gets delivered on the fly. It's like Waters doesn't want to risk a revealing pause. I'm sure Waters would hate it, but I suspect there's a moral at work here. Namely that true repulsiveness comes from within and not from without. Note that the repulsive looking Francine and Cuddles are the most sympathetic characters, while the other more normal looking or attractive are callous in some exaggerated way. I was curious to see a Waters film since this one and others were much ballyhooed at the time. Though well made, I frankly wasn't impressed much one way or the other. But I can see why it's attracted a cult following among fans of the outrageous.

Polyester was the very first John Water's film I saw, and I have to say that it was also the "worst" movie I had seen up to that point.Water's group of "talent" included several people who I am sure worked for food, and were willing to say the lines Waters wrote. Every thing about the movie is terrible, acting, camera, editing, and the story about a woman played by 300 lb transvestite Divine was purely absurd.That said, I have to recommend this film because it is very funny, and you won't believe the crap that happens to poor Francine. Her son huffs solvents and stomps unsuspecting women's feet at the grocery store. Her daughter is the sluttiest slut in town. Her husband is a cackling A-hole of a pornographer who does everything in his power to embarrass and humiliate poor Francine.Francine's only friend is played by Edith Massey, possibly the worst actress ever. Edith looks and sounds like she is reading the lines off a cue card and has never seen the script prior to filming.Despite all of Francine's travails, Waters cooks up a fabulous Hollywood ending and everyone (who survives) lives happily ever after.

I love John Waters movies. Whether it's his old or new films. He has his own strange sense of humor. In "Polyester" Devine plays down to earth overweight housewife Francine Fishpaw. Poor Francine, her husband who runs the local porn theater (pronounced thee-ater) is having an affair. Her own mother insults her constantly, her son is a glue sniffer with a foot stomping fetish and her daughter Lu-Lu is a teen rebel with an unwanted pregnancy. The only true friend Francine has is Cuddles, played by the always hilarious Edith Masey. Francine's soap opera like life spins out of control resulting in alcoholism and depression. This movie is filmed in oder-rama and the DVD comes with a scratch and sniff scent card. If you need a good laugh, you should definitely see "Polyester". And who could forget the words of young Lu-Lu? "I'm having an abortion, and I can't wait!" Don't wait .... to see this movie.