Polyester

Saturday, May 9 - Tuesday, May 12, 2026

SHOWTIMES AT IFC CENTER

For his first studio picture, filth maestro Waters took advantage of his biggest budget yet to allow his muse Divine to sink his teeth into a role unlike any he had played before: Baltimore housewife Francine Fishpaw, a heroine worthy of a Douglas Sirk melodrama. Blessed with a keen sense of smell and cursed with a philandering pornographer husband (David Samson, caught in flagrante with secretary Mink Stole), a parasitic mother (Joni Ruth White), and a pair of delinquent children (Mary Garlington and Ken King), the long-suffering Francine turns to  best friend Cuddles (Waters stalwart Edith Massey) and then the bottle as her life falls apart—until deliverance appears in the form of a hunk named Todd Tomorrow (vintage heartthrob Tab Hunter). Originally released with all-too-real Odorama™ technology that enabled viewers to scratch and sniff along with Francine (“Smelling is believing,” boasted the posters), POLYESTER is one of Waters’ most hilarious inventions, replete with stomach-churning sights, sadistic nuns, AA meetings, and foot stomping galore..


Previously screened in for Sicks by John Waters and in September 2019 with in person introductions by John Waters

 

 

  • Country USA
  • Rating R
  • Year 1981
  • Running Time 86 minutes
  • Distributor Warner Brothers
  • Director John Waters
  • Writer John Waters
  • Editor Charles Roggero
  • Cinematographer Dave Insley
  • Cast Divine, Tab Hunter, Edith Massey, David Samson, Mary Garlington, Ken King
  • Accessibility Assistive Listening, T-Coil

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.