Review: Glen or Glenda?

The story of one man’s (Edward D. Wood Jr., under the pseudonym Daniel Davis) love for wearing women’s clothing, and his struggle to work up the courage to reveal his secret to the woman (Dolores Fuller) he loves. Meanwhile, a cop (Lyle Talbot) and psychiatrist (Timothy Farrell) discuss transvestitism, after the suicide death of a transvestite.

 

Another day, another smart arse collection of notes masquerading as a film review of an Edward D. Wood Jr. ‘classic’. This time it’s his 1953 directorial debut, that might just be the strangest semi-autobiographical film you’ll ever see. As for the review, this being my second one, it is unlikely to be as funny as my thoughts watching “Plan 9 From Outer Space”. So you’ve been duly warned, mediocre sophomoric effort to come. What? You didn’t find my take on “Plan 9” funny? Well, who asked you anyway?

 

- As much as this is Mr. Wood’s heartfelt plea for tolerance and acceptance of cross-dressers and transvestites, the brilliance of the film is that it also shows the valiant struggle by a filmmaker to overcome his own cinematic ineptitude. The fact that Wood fails spectacularly on both fronts isn’t the point. It’s all about the intent and the struggle. I mean, come on, people. It was his first film! Cut the guy some slack.

 

- Opening title information suggests that the film is factual, as it tells us ‘just the facts’. What’s brilliant is that Wood has eschewed conventional thought on documentary filmmaking by giving us a completely factual film that has been entirely made up. How innovative!

 

- Bela Lugosi’s scenes don’t seem to belong to the rest of the film in any coherent narrative sense. That’s because Edward D. Wood Jr. was the inventor of fan-fiction. He’s leaving it up to you to make sense of it! Unlike George Lucas, Wood was highly encouraging of his fans’ own creativity.

 

- It really was wonderful of Lyle Talbot, a legit character actor to risk credibility and lend a hand on this film by working with actors far less technically gifted than he. Sure, it mostly serves to show up everyone else’s complete ineptitude and Talbot’s career in films never really recovered, but it’s the thought that counts.

 

- Clearly made on the run, I really admire Wood’s concern with not wanting to waste everyone’s time. He’s made this thing up on the spot and shot it very quickly, so that everyone could move on to something else that might actually make money. What a guy!

 

- Most movies with a narrator only have one narrator, and it’s very clear who that is. Ed Wood, being an original, decides to give us several narrators at random. Never mind that some of their identities are difficult to ascertain, that’s not important. More is better, I say!

 

- I ask you, what filmmaker would dare make a film about cross-dressing and play the title character himself? It takes real guts to put your private life out there to be judged. And to think, Wood is wearing three hats, a blonde wig, women’s underwear, and an angora sweater! He’s both a ‘method’ actor and an auteur!

 

- It’s also nice that Wood points out the serious issue of hat-wearing baldness. Sure, not wearing a hat in the sun might give you skin cancer, but it’s important to look after your hair! Thank you for the warning, Mr. Wood. Thank you.

 

- You’ve heard of water cooler TV shows and movies, right? Edward D. Wood was such a forward-thinker in 1953 that in his own movie he has characters engage in a conversation in front of a water cooler! This is so the less intellectually gifted among you will know what a water cooler is so that when you get to work the next morning, you’ll know where to go to discuss this awesome cross-dressing movie you just saw!

 

- Is it just me or is this movie so damn crazy that it’s more difficult to make jokes about than “Plan 9”? I hope you appreciate the circumstances here, people. I’m trying!

 

- I for one applaud Mr. Wood in hiring Evelyn Wood. The woman is clearly lacking in any acting talent whatsoever, but Wood doesn’t discriminate against the performance-challenged community, and even gives the poor unfortunate lady a big role as his own character’s sister.

 

- ‘Glen is not a homosexual. He is a transvestite. He is NOT a homosexual!’- Edward D. Wood Jr. is so committed to getting his message across to the widest audience possible that he will even have dialogue repeated to a stupid degree, just for those of you out there who are a bit ‘special’. Ed Wood cares. Be like Ed. Well, maybe not the cross-dressing, that’s just for some of you (And that’s terrific, by the way. Keep being you! I’m a smart arse movie reviewer, not a judgemental bigot).

 

- Although Wood himself was happy to be out and proud about his cross-dressing (well, as proud as he could be when using a pseudonym in his acting role), he shows his sensitivity to those not yet able to profess their desire to wear women’s clothing to everyone and anyone, by shooting one guy in silhouette.

 

- Mr. Wood’s seemingly random inclusion of stock footage of a bison stampede is nothing random at all. He’s quite clearly referencing the slaughter of bison in the 19^th century, a terrible tragedy. Sure, it’s a stampede, not a slaughter shown, but c’mon it was 1953 where was Wood gonna get that kinda footage? I think he still gets the message across just fine. Ed Wood, friend of all creatures great and small (And yes, I did actually do some real research for a stupid, piddly joke).

 

- And just in case you don’t get the message that Glen is absolutely, positively, 100% NOT a ‘homosexual’, the film illustrates the point in an on-screen scenario where a guy comes on to Glen. It also serves to outline the little-known Civil War between the gay and transvestite community in the pre-LGBT era. There’s no rainbows in a B&W film, y’know!

 

- Wood doesn’t forget about the women here. The film acts as a cautionary tale about coming home early when your husband isn’t aware! You’ve been duly warned, ladies. Give him the head’s up before you come home!

 

- The subsequent scene of Glen/Glenda and his wife is footage from a rehearsal, between Wood and lead actress Dolores Fuller. Wood obviously realised that time is money and just shot the rehearsal and went with it. A really smart penny-pincher, that man.

 

- One long sequence towards the end is obviously Wood predating the LSD trip movie cycle by about a decade. Wood was hip to the scene long before Roger Corman, and he wore a wig and dress while he was at it!

 

- Towards the end, Wood gets even closer to autobiography by depicting the story of a transvestite soldier. Wood himself was said to have worn women’s underwear whilst serving in the military. Don’t ask, don’t tell? Wood says fuck that, I’m gonna show and tell. So brave. 

 

Rating: F