Review – Pecker

John Waters serves us up a semi-autobiographical account of a young man who photographs his white trash world in Baltimore and ends up becoming the darling of the New York art scene. Now obviously this isn’t exactly the Waters saga; for openers, the protagonist is heterosexual. But longtime fans won’t be disappointed by this most recent parade of oddballs, pure Waters though toned down a bit since the days of Pink Flamingos, Desperate Living and the like. In fact, it’s almost odd to hear Hollywood types like Edward Furlong, Christina Ricci and Mary Kay Place deliver that distinctive Waters dialogue that used to issue forth from the likes of Divine and David Lochary. Of course longtime troupe members Mink Stole and Channing Wilroy play small parts, but otherwise the torch appears to have passed to a new, better-paid generation. Furthermore, Waters seems to be mellowing in his old age; the plot here is a lot more upbeat and sentimental than his earlier work. But he hasn’t lost his affection for offbeat characters and the occasional gross-out. Worth seeing