Watch The Adventures Of Priscilla Queen Of The Desert, FULL MOVIE on Internet Archive
The Adventures Of Priscilla Queen Of The Desert
The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert is a 1994 Australian road comedy film written and directed by Stephan Elliott. The plot follows two drag queens (played by Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce) and a transgender woman (Terence Stamp), as they journey across the Australian Outback on a tour bus named Priscilla, along the way encountering various groups and individuals. The film was based upon the lives of three actual drag queens—Cindy Pastel, Strykermyer and Lady Bump—who were to play themselves but later replaced with what the studio considered “bankable” actors.
Priscilla, Queen of the Desert premiered at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival, in the Un Certain Regard section. Upon its wide release, it became a surprise worldwide hit and its positive portrayal of LGBT individuals helped to introduce queer themes to a mainstream audience.[3] It received predominantly positive reviews and won Best Costume Design at the 67th Academy Awards. The film is one of only three films set in contemporary times to win the award for Best Costume Design. It became a cult classic both in Australia and abroad. The film provided the basis for a musical, Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, which opened in 2006 in Sydney.
Anthony “Tick” Belrose, using the drag pseudonym of Mitzi Del Bra, is a Sydney-based drag queen who accepts an offer to perform his drag act at Lasseters Hotel Casino Resort managed by his estranged wife Marion in Alice Springs, a remote town in central Australia. After persuading his friends and fellow performers, Bernadette Bassenger, a recently bereaved transgender woman, and Adam Whitely, a flamboyant and obnoxious younger drag queen who goes under the drag name Felicia Jollygoodfellow, to join him, the three set out for a four-week run at the casino in a large tour bus, which Adam christens “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert”.
The trio proceed on their long journey through remote lands bordering the Simpson Desert meeting a variety of characters. Early in their journey, Tick reveals that Marion is actually his wife, as they never divorced, and that they are going there as a favor to her. They stop in Broken Hill, where they are subjected to homophobic abuse and violence, including having their bus vandalized with homophobic graffiti. Leaving the main roadway to try and save time, their bus breaks down in the middle of the desert. Adam spends the whole day repainting the bus in lavender to cover up the vandalism. After a homophobic couple come to their rescue but ultimately leave them stranded, a group of friendly Aboriginal Australians with whom they perform at a corroboree help them get Priscilla to a mechanic. There, they meet Bob, a middle-aged mechanic from a small outback town. Bob is delighted to see drag performers in his small town and ultimately joins them for the remainder of the journey after his Filipina wife Cynthia leaves him.
Continuing their journey, they stop for repairs at the remote opal-mining town of Coober Pedy, where Adam is attacked by a homophobic gang before Bob and Bernadette save him. Adam is shaken and Bernadette comforts him, allowing them to reach an understanding. As they near Alice Springs, the others come to terms with the secret of Tick’s marriage and resolve their differences.
Upon arrival at the hotel, it is revealed that Tick and Marion also have an eight-year-old son, Benji, whom Tick has not seen for many years. Tick is nervous about exposing his son to his drag profession and anxious about revealing his homosexuality. He is surprised to discover that Benji already knows and is fully supportive of his father’s sexuality and lifestyle. While Benji is playing with Adam, he reveals that Marion has previously been in a lesbian relationship of her own.
When their contract at the resort is over, Tick and Adam head back to Sydney, taking Benji back with them so that Tick can get to know his son. Bernadette decides to remain at the resort for a while with Bob, who has decided to work at the hotel after the two of them have become close. Before parting ways, the three of them fulfill a long-held dream of Adam’s, which, in the original plan, is to climb Kings Canyon (Watarrka) in full drag regalia.
The film ends with Tick and Adam performing in the same club featured in the opening credits, with the crowd (including Benji working spotlight) cheering on encouragingly.
In a post-credits scene, the dummy attached to a kite that was released earlier in the film is revealed to have travelled to Tibet and landed in a temple where a monk recovers it.
Terence Stamp as Bernadette Bassenger
Hugo Weaving as Anthony “Tick” Belrose/Mitzi Del Bra
Guy Pearce as Adam Whitely/Felicia Jollygoodfellow
Bill Hunter as Robert “Bob” Spart
Sarah Chadwick as Marion Barber
Mark Holmes as Benjamin “Benji” Barber
Julia Cortez as Cynthia Campos
Alan Dargin as Alan
Ken Radley as Frank
Daniel Kellie as Young Bernadette
Leighton Picken as Young Adam
Margaret Pomeranz (uncredited) as Adam’s mother
Stephan Elliott (uncredited) as Doorman