Paris Is Burning

Friday, August 3 - Saturday, August 4, 2012

Chosen by Bryce T. (manager)

35mm print “This 1990 documentary does for voguing what David LaChappelle’s Rize did for krumping: provides a fascinating portrait of a complex, materially disadvantaged subculture structured around intensely competitive aesthetic displays later plundered for a Madonna video. The predominantly black gay ball scene of late-’80s New York is the focus, with ‘upcoming legendary children’ from numerous ‘houses’, or gang-families, competing in dozens of ball categories. The House of Ninja pioneered the voguing that so appealed to Madge, but more categories were based on looks than moves, from student chic to formal eveningwear. Others – military, business executive, label-heavy high fashion – speak to the sincerely conformist aspirationalism that marked this scene as much as the decade’s mainstream pop culture. Rather than being alienated from ‘the great white way of living or looking’ that has made their lives so painful, these ‘children’ long for it: ‘I would like to be a spoiled, rich white girl,’ one smiles. It’s an attitude with aesthetic repercussions: as a house mother observes, it’s ‘not about what you can create, but what you can acquire’.” – Time Out

• Rating R
• Year 1990
• Running Time 80 minutes
• Director Jennie Livingston

IFC Center does not generally provide advisories about subject matter or potentially triggering content in films, as sensitivities vary from person to person. In addition to the synopses, trailers and other links on our website, further information about content and age-appropriateness for specific films can be found on Common Sense Media, IMDb and DoesTheDogDie.com as well as through general internet searches.