Movies

Queens of Drama: The Queer Pop Musical That’s a Gorgeous, Glitzy Trainwreck You Can’t Look Away From

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In April 2024, Chappell Roan skyrocketed to fame almost instantly with her Coachella performance and smash hit single “Good Luck, Babe.” Her style was a blend of glamour, camp, and extravagance, perfectly encapsulating the essence of queer pop. It might seem unusual, but as I watched this movie, Roan’s rise to stardom kept crossing my mind in relation to the film’s central themes.

In a somewhat unusual manner, the movie “Queens of Drama” opens with an intriguing introduction of Steevy Shady, portrayed by Eurovision sensation Bilal Hassani. This character is a devoted fan of the fictional lesbian pop star Mimi Madamour (played by Louiza Aura). As the narrator, Steevy guides us through the story, starting with Mimi’s ascent to fame in the early 2000s and her tumultuous relationship with fellow artist Billie Kohler (Gio Ventura). The movie then unfolds into a grand musical saga that encompasses a span of five decades, ultimately concluding in the future year of 2055.

First appearing at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2024, Alexis Langlois’ directorial debut, Queens of Drama, wasn’t specifically made to address the Roan fandom. Instead, it resonates with her and the growing recognition of queer pop culture, offering a glamorous and cinematic exploration into a subculture that revolves around identity and self-discovery.

While visually appealing and an intriguing journey into chaos, the film’s outcomes are sometimes unpredictable.

The Campy Aesthetics Of Queens Of Drama Shine

Langlois Draws Upon A Wide Variety Of Influences

In the initial scenes of “Queens of Drama,” I wasn’t quite sure where this movie was headed. Steevy’s 2055 YouTube-like setup has a nearly overpowering vibrancy, creating an immediate feeling of artificiality as he is presented as a die-hard Mimi Madamour fan and the film’s narrator. The 2005 past that Langlois steps into is also heavily stylized, though less flamboyantly so at first glance.

Throughout the 50-year journey of Billie and Mimi’s love story, the visual style adapts beautifully to reflect their changing phases, a detail I greatly admire in Langlois’ work. The intense color scheme and lighting are consistently maintained with great dedication, as seen from the stage lights to the specific hues of trash bags during a pivotal argument between Billie and Mimi in the movie’s second act. This visual narrative seamlessly moves through different periods such as 2005 and 2015, capturing the fashion trends and aesthetics of each era with precision and respect.

In the course of moving forward, Queens of Drama transforms into a vibrant, queer vision of a flamboyant, ostentatious future where Mimi Madamour serves as an alter ego of sorts for Chappell Roan in another reality. Langlois appears to be drawing from multiple sources with this production, possibly more than can be fully grasped in a single viewing. From what I managed to catch, the director seems to be merging the cheap yet glamorous aesthetic of John Waters with the vividly colored cinematography of Douglas Sirk’s melodramas, all while crafting something unique in its fusion of styles for this imagined future. The visual aspects are particularly captivating and stand out as the most compelling aspect of the film.

The Film Struggles To Find Its Tonal Blend

It Is Hard To Take Any Drama Seriously

The distinctive blends of style are so consistently harmonious that they steer clear of appearing haphazard, instead weaving together with a mysterious smoothness. However, I must admit, the film’s mood doesn’t share this consistency. Marketed as a musical romantic comedy, it straddles genres more than one might expect. At times, it skillfully balances this act, finding humor in absurd song lyrics and over-the-top character situations.

In the realm of its dramatic elements, the Queens of Drama falls short. Despite the playful, camp-style presentation suggesting a lighter, less intense approach, I found myself disappointed by the more serious scenes. The tumultuous bond between Mimi and Billie is captivatingly toxic, yet their genuine relationship highs and lows seem to demand a deeper emotional resonance. The frequent transitions to Steevy’s narration and the juxtaposition of contrasting scenes left me perplexed about how to interpret these heavier sequences.

Queens Of Drama Is At Its Best When It Is The Most Over-the-Top

And It Should Have Stayed In That Place More

The weak points in the dramatic scenes of the movie made it clear to me that Queens of Drama shines brightest when it’s most extravagant, and it should have maintained this style more frequently. For instance, the decision to make obsessive fan Steevy, who forms a parasocial bond with Mimi, the film’s narrator is an innovative structural choice. However, in the long run, the character isn’t used effectively enough, which lessens the potential impact in the climactic scenes.

In essence, “Queens of Drama” is a movie that’s either overly dramatic in its tone or lacks the necessary intensity. The song with sexually explicit lyrics such as “you fisted me to the heart,” titled “Fisting,” adds an exhilarating, wild aspect to it. Despite its numerous shortcomings, it offers an engaging tribute to queer pop culture and intense fanbases. In conclusion, “Queens of Drama” is a delightfully chaotic and entertaining spectacle, a hot mess that’s hard to resist.

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2025-04-18 20:30

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