It Doesn’t Suck: Showgirls (Pop Classics)

Some movies are unjustly slandered upon release, only to be seen as classics in the years that follow. But I doubt any film has had a greater comeback than Showgirls, which was reviled for years as a Razzie Award-winning champion of terrible cinema and a misfire of epic proportions, only to be reexamined these days as a misunderstood masterpiece by many.

It Doesn’t Suck is one man’s take on the curious rebirth and reconsideration of Showgirls, separating it from the post-Basic Instinct stigma of both director and screenwriter, and putting it under the microscope on its own merit. It’s an admittedly engaging exercise in stowing your preconceived notions at the door and giving something a second chance, and Nayman is better prepared than most for the reflexive slings and arrows a reader might launch his way.

This is no mere Armond White-esque contrary stance simply to be contrary; this is a well-conceived, persuasive term paper on a piece of cinematic history. From a filmmaking, conceptual standpoint, It Doesn’t Suck has a lot to say, and does so with charm, humor, and sincerity. No small feat.

I still think Showgirls sucks, though.