by Paige Lau
Drag has a long history with theatrical arts and film is no exception. Representation of drag in film has evolved and stretches into multiple genres. The focus of this analysis is on comedy films featuring drag. More specifically, the film Some Like it Hot (directed by Billy Wilder) follows this basic story structure and uses drag and comedy. The aim here is to investigate the representation of drag in film and whether it pushes problematic views or if they are progressive films that still offer a positive representation of drag.
Some Like it Hot came out in 1959. America came out of the closet closed by conservative senator Joseph McCarthy and a new era of social unrest was brewing. Restrictive and absurd censorship in the form of blacklisting was out; now the exploration of new ideas and criticism of the government was back in. Despite this, American filmmakers still have the yoke of the Hays Code around their neck. The Hays Code or Hollywood Production code was a rating system before the now well-known rating system. The Hays Code censored films with inappropriate content such as sex, drugs, nudity, homosexuality, ridicule of religion, and anything that would “, lower the moral standards of those who see it.” This code made it hard for films to tackle what would be considered risqué from getting produced and seen in American theaters (Mondello). Some Like it Hot is a film the Hays Code would never approve (and it didn’t). Nevertheless, the film was wildly successful, and its use of sexual allusions, drag, mobsters, and homosexuality was the final bullet in The Hays Code casket (Mondello). As far a drag film history goes, Some Like it Hot already threw the door open for other prominent drag films. But is Some Like it Hot a drag film that offers positive representation, or did it spread stereotypes for the sake of comedy? And what makes a drag film a drag film?
Wilder’s film follows Joe (Tony Curtis) and Jerry (Jack Lemmon), two musicians, who don drag to hide their identities by joining an all-women band going to Florida. They do this because they witnessed a Chicago Gangster getting revenge and killing his fellows and it just so happens the gangster “Spats” doesn’t want any witnesses. The duo struggles to hide the fact that they are men and fight over their love of fellow band member Sugar (Marilyn Monroe).
While the two main characters are in drag for most of the film’s run time, Some Like It Hot doesn’t address the drag community or drag performances directly. Some Like it Hot speaks more to the representation of woman, exploration of sexuality, and foreshadows some politics surrounding trans issues. Those three topics heavily intersect with drag, but Some Like it Hot is in a gray area compared to films overtly about drag like Mala Mala or Hurricane Bianca.
Let us break down how Some Like it Hot tackles those three topics. The film employs the use of drag to thrust its main characters into the world of women. By doing this the Main characters are treated like women and are infantilized by authority figures and are sexually harassed. Daphne (Jerry) gets hit on by a rich white guy, Osgood Fielding III (Joe E. Brown), and gets sexually harassed by him in the elevator. They also find camrider and friendship with the other women. The women of the band are not characterized as “Madonna’s or whores.” The women, namely Sugar are represented as people. Yes, they are shown gossiping, but they’re also shown drinking and venting out their drama. There are no angelic housewives or venomous streetwalkers here. The main characters first meet Candy drinking out of a flask in a train bathroom. Not only did that go against the puritanical Hay’s code, but it was also illegal in the film’s setting: the prohibition era. Some Like it Hot is predicated on the idea of flipping the bird on the prohibition mindset. The film ends with Daphne (Jerry) revealing to his soon-to-be fiancé Osgood Fielding III that he’s a man. And Osgood is fine with it responding with “Nobody’s perfect.” This line was radical for the time and to a degree it still is. It also happens to be on Billy Wilder’s tombstone (Doonan and Tomazou). Some Like it Hot doesn’t feature real drag performers or the community, but the film was progressive for mainstream audiences in the 1960’s. Billy Wilder put their best foot forward here. The film does a lot of good, especially when it was released, but there are some problematic roots here.
This is a comedy film. For the most part, the film does not make drag the butt of the joke. There are moments, and of course, there is a joke about not being able to walk in high heels. The comedy comes less from drag and more from the actions of the characters. For example, Joe pretends to be a millionaire on the beach and flirts with Candy. Jerry dressed as Daphne finds out about his deception and races him back to their hotel room with Candy to confront him. But when Jerry reaches the room, Joe is dressed as Josephine taking a bubble bath. The joke hits after Candy leaves and Joe rises from the bubble bath with his wig and the outfit he wore on the beach. The joke is the situation and actions not on the people or drag. The worst the film stoops to if you can call it that. Is Jerry wanting to take advantage of him passing as a woman to flirt and creep on other women. He is criticized for this in the film and his character develops past this. But this does, unfortunately, mirror the fear-mongering that has been spread about transwomen and bathroom bills. Mind you, Jerry is not trans, but him dressing and passing as a woman and acting in this way that echoes contemporary moral panic is still relevant. Bathroom bills are a form of legislation aimed at allowing people to use bathrooms that match their gender identity rather than their biological sex. The controversy around them was spurred by this idea that perverts will use this to access the other bathroom and lead to sexual assault. Anything resulting in sexual assault is terrible that goes without saying, but this dissenting opinion is nothing but fear-mongering and transphobia. A pervert or pedophile will commit sexual assault in a bathroom regardless of the sign on the door. Allowing trans-people to use the bathroom that aligns with their gender identity with the protection of the law won't suddenly cause a wave of sexual assault. The two aren't connected. Some Like it Hot unfortunately manifests that fear briefly. The aim of this film wasn’t to promote transphobia that much is made clear with the rest of the film. I’d be making a mistake if I didn’t mention this aspect of the film. Especially, since several films and media after Some Like it Hot represent drag and to a greater extent trans people as psycho killers. This trend would be from films like Psycho and Silence of the Lambs (Doonan and Tomazou). And of course, the novel Troubled Blood by J.K Rowling under the pen name Robert Galbraith pulls this transphobic trope of fearing a “man in a dress” to the present. The three pieces of media mentioned contain harmful representation. Some Like it Hot doesn’t contain representation harmful like that. The film conjures that political fear but doesn’t aim to reaffirm it.
Billy Wilder’s film is genuinely funny and for the most part, offers a positive representation of drag and those drag adjacent. The film isn’t as progressive as many contemporary drag films, but for its time Some Like it Hot blew open the door for drag representation and pathed a way for more diverse and progressive cinema in America. I’d include myself among the some who like it hot.
Sources
Doonan, Simon, and Aaron Toumazou. “How Drag Went from Comedy to Psychosis to Oscar Bait.” British GQ, 28 Sept. 2019, www.gq-magazine.co.uk/culture/article/drag-queens-in-films.
Mondello, Bob. “Remembering Hollywood's Hays Code, 40 Years On.” NPR, NPR, 8 Aug. 2008, www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=93301189.
Wilder, Billy, director. Some Like It Hot. United Artists, 1959.
תגובות