Upon his demise on August 17 on the age of 87, Terence Stamp left behind a legacy few different actors can match. The British thespian lent his classical chops and his simple gravitas to any variety of roles in his six-decade profession, feeling equally at house in status fare and tacky B-movies. Lots of his most memorable roles discovered him twisting his magnetism in additional sinister instructions, and there have been few actors who might make a villain as compelling as Stamp.
One among his most iconic antagonist roles got here because the imperious, commanding Normal Zod in 1980’s Superman II, the embattled sequel to the Christopher Reeve-starring smash-hit first movie. However it’s one in every of his gentler, extra lighthearted movies that will stand as his finest work: 1994’s The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. The top of the (fairly small) drag queen highway journey style, the movie has turn into a cult traditional within the 30 years since its launch, with Stamp’s efficiency as its most soulful.
‘Priscilla’s Epic Australian Street Journey
Priscilla issues a gaggle of drag performers primarily based in Sydney, Australia: Mitzi Del Bra (Hugo Weaving), Felicia Jollygoodfellow (Man Pearce), and Bernadette Bassenger (Stamp), who pile right into a rundown bus to drive throughout the continent for a collection of performances at a on line casino within the small city of Alice Springs. Naming the bus Priscilla, they embark on a traditional fish-out-of-water journey by small Australian cities which have by no means seen something fairly like them. Whereas they encounter quite a lot of homophobic abuse alongside the way in which, in addition they cross paths with some surprisingly open-minded individuals, together with a mechanic named Bob (Invoice Hunter) who accompanies them for the remainder of the journey.
Bernadette is a trans lady and elder queen mourning the lack of her accomplice. In response to director Stephan Elliott in a current tribute, whereas Stamp was his first option to play the position, he by no means thought the dashing actor would conform to it, and as a substitute they pursued different actors like Tony Curtis earlier than lastly providing him the half. Stamp was terrified by the prospect, significantly in an period the place there was nonetheless a variety of stigma round LGBTQ people within the wake of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. However he was additionally an actor who incessantly took dangers and would go on to contemplate Priscilla a excessive level in his profession.
Stamp performs Bernadette with a bruised however palpable dignity; she’s somebody who’s seen a variety of the worst that life has to supply however has discovered methods to hold on. His efficiency is a grounding drive within the movie, permitting his co-stars Weaving and Pearce to go greater and broader. Bernadette’s grief clouds her each step, however she nonetheless manages to be a clever counsel to her youthful associates, consoling her frenemy Felicia after a vicious assault. Priscilla would not draw back from the actual risks queer individuals face, however it’s removed from a heavy watch. It is a joyous, humorous, triumphant story that reaffirms the reality that love and acceptance are selections anybody could make.
Why ‘Priscilla’ Will All the time Matter
As our understanding of LGBTQ+ illustration within the media has advanced, it is tempting to take a look at films like Priscilla as relics of an older time, the place sure practices in casting or character really feel outdated. Having a cisgender actor like Stamp play a transgender character is one thing that is turn into extra severely questioned lately, and the movie has come below hearth in modern occasions, significantly for its depiction of Cynthia (Julia Cortez), a Filipina lady. Regardless of this, The Adventures of Priscilla stays a landmark of queer cinema, one which takes its lead characters and their difficult lives severely.
Depictions of queer pleasure on display screen had been vanishingly uncommon at the moment, and are nonetheless removed from the place they need to be. Nevertheless, Priscilla’s success helped crack open the door for future tales like Pose and Tangerine. Different creators have taken up the movie’s torch of drag performers altering the hearts and minds of the heartland, from the direct affect on 1995’s To Wong Foo, Thanks for All the pieces! Julie Newmar to more moderen tales just like the RuPaul-starring AJ and the Queen and the truth collection We’re Right here. Sadly, we’re within the midst of what is shaping as much as be one other regressive interval in our tradition, each at house and overseas, which solely makes films like Priscilla that rather more impactful.
Stamp could have had reservations about taking up the position of Bernadette, however his work helped make Priscilla one of the crucial memorable films of its period, beloved by anybody who sees it to this present day. His efficiency offers the film its soul, serving as a reminder that these are individuals who love, lose, and maintain transferring ahead. Stamp will seemingly be remembered for his many contributions to cinema, however few roles in his filmography are prone to stand the check of time fairly as a lot as The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.