THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT

THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT has become such a beloved title that it is easy to forget how unusual it must have felt when it first appeared. On the surface it's a road movie about two drag performers and a transgender woman crossing the Australian desert in a battered bus, but what gives it its staying power is the cast and the way each of them plays the material completely straight. Terence Stamp brings real pathos and dignity, Hugo Weaving gives the film much of its emotional center, and Guy Pearce throws himself into the chaos with total comic fearlessness.

It's very funny, but not just because of the costumes, the lip-syncs, or the insults, though all of those deliver. What makes the film last is that beneath the camp spectacle there is something more human and more adult about it. It'S a comedy about performance, friendship, aging, prejudice, loneliness, and the effort it takes to keep inventing yourself in a world that does not always make that easy. That is why it plays as more than a crowd-pleaser. It has real feeling underneath the glamour and the mess.

From the outside it can look like a loud, flamboyant comedy built around drag and pop songs, and of course it's that, but it lands best when you accept it as more than just a novelty. It's warm, sharp, funny, and surprisingly tender, with three performances that keep it grounded even when the film becomes outrageous.