You Don't Nomi

Last night I got to see a screening of You Don't Nomi, a documentary by Jeffrey McHale about the 1995 movie Showgirls. I never saw it, mainly because it got terrible reviews and also just looked godawful. You Don't Nomi looks at it as a disaster, dissecting with precision the copious tone deaf and absurd elements. But it also analyzes Showgirls as a spectacular cult phenomenon, and a stunning piece of absurdity. It manages to explain it, mock it, and pay tribute to it all at once.

The documentary uses footage from the director's earlier and later films to great effect, juxtaposing images and thematic tropes that recur over his oevre. It covers all the reviews that exuberantly panned it. It shows it's life in camp culture from San Francisco drag scenes to off Broadway spoofs. It explores the career of the lead actress whose performance is generally recognized as bizarre.  It really does an amazing job of exploring the film. Even though I never saw it, I feel like I understand its life. The scenes from the movie were utterly fantastic. You Don't Nomi is a very funny and very fun movie.