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Pecker (film)
Encyclopedia
Pecker is a 1998 comedy-drama
film written and directed by John Waters
and starring Edward Furlong
and Christina Ricci
. Like all Waters' films, it was filmed and set in Baltimore
; this film in the Hampden neighborhood.
The film examines the rise to fame and potential fortune of a budding photographer.
, Pecker tells the story of an unassuming 18-year-old who works in a sandwich shop and takes photos of his loving but peculiar family and friends on the side. Pecker (Edward Furlong
), so named for his childhood habit of "pecking" at his food, stumbles into fame when his work is "discovered" by a savvy New York art dealer, Rorey Wheeler (Lili Taylor
). Pecker's pictures — grainy, out-of-focus studies of unglamorous subjects — are far from professional, but they strike a chord with New York art collectors.
Unfortunately, instant over-exposure has its downside. Rorey's efforts to turn Pecker into an art sensation threaten to ruin the low-key lifestyle that was his inspiration. Pecker finds that his best friend, Matt (Brendan Sexton III
), can't shoplift
anymore now that Pecker's photographs have increased his profile. Shelley (Christina Ricci
), Pecker's obsessive girlfriend who runs a laundromat, seems especially distressed when the press dub her a "stain goddess" and mistake her good-natured "pin-up" poses for pornographic come-ons.
When his family is dubbed "culturally challenged" by an overzealous critic, they begin to feel the uncomfortable glare of stardom. Pecker's mother (Mary Kay Place
) is no longer free to dispense fashion tips to the homeless clientele at her thrift shop. Pecker's grandmother, Memama (Jean Schertler), endures public ridicule when her experience with a talking statue of the Virgin Mary is exposed on the cover of a national art magazine. Tina (Martha Plimpton
), Pecker's fag hag
older sister, is fired from her job emceeing go-go dancing
at a gay bar
because Pecker's edgy photographs chronicle the sex practices of the club's patrons. Even Little Chrissy (Lauren Hulsey), his six-year-old sister, feels the pressure of celebrity when her eating disorder
is exposed, bringing unwanted attention from nosy child welfare agencies (she's mistakenly diagnosed with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
and prescribed Ritalin.)
After Pecker's newfound fame disrupts the lives of his family and friends, Pecker turns the tables on the art world by refusing to participate in a scheduled show at the Whitney Museum of Art. Instead, he forces New York art collectors to come to Baltimore to see his latest photographs, which portray the same people who disparaged his family in an unflattering light (one photo shows Patricia Hearst adjusting her breasts in a mirror.)
Pecker is then asked what he plans to do next. He replies that he would like to direct a film.
noted a "tension between the gentler new Waters and his anarchic past. In the scenes in the male strip bar, for example, we keep waiting for Waters to break loose and shock us, and he never does, except with a few awkward language choices. The miraculous statue of Mary could have provided comic possibilities, but doesn't."
Peter Stack of the San Francisco Chronicle
wrote that Pecker is "never truly funny, but it's an amusing novelty, gaining strength from smart characterizations and sly cogency about the way people are exploited under the limelight of celebrity."
was released on September 22, 1998 by New Line Records
.
Comedy-drama
Comedy-drama is a genre of theatre, film and television programs which combines humorous and serious content.-Theatre:Traditional western theatre, beginning with the ancient Greeks, was divided into comedy and tragedy...
film written and directed by John Waters
John Waters (filmmaker)
John Samuel Waters, Jr. is an American filmmaker, actor, stand-up comedian, writer, journalist, visual artist, and art collector, who rose to fame in the early 1970s for his transgressive cult films...
and starring Edward Furlong
Edward Furlong
Edward Walter Furlong is an American actor whose best known film roles are John Connor in Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Daniel Vinyard in American History X. He is a two-time Saturn Award nominee, winning the 1992 Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor for his performance in...
and Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
. Like all Waters' films, it was filmed and set in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
; this film in the Hampden neighborhood.
The film examines the rise to fame and potential fortune of a budding photographer.
Plot
Set in a Baltimore neighborhood known for having the thickest local accentBaltimorese
The Baltimore dialect, most popularly known as Baltimorese , is a dialect of American English in the Mid-Atlantic United States that originated among the White blue-collar residents of South and Southeast Baltimore...
, Pecker tells the story of an unassuming 18-year-old who works in a sandwich shop and takes photos of his loving but peculiar family and friends on the side. Pecker (Edward Furlong
Edward Furlong
Edward Walter Furlong is an American actor whose best known film roles are John Connor in Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Daniel Vinyard in American History X. He is a two-time Saturn Award nominee, winning the 1992 Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor for his performance in...
), so named for his childhood habit of "pecking" at his food, stumbles into fame when his work is "discovered" by a savvy New York art dealer, Rorey Wheeler (Lili Taylor
Lili Taylor
Lili Anne Taylor is an American actress notable for her appearances in such award-winning indie films as Mystic Pizza, Say Anything..., Short Cuts and I Shot Andy Warhol, and the acclaimed TV show Six Feet Under....
). Pecker's pictures — grainy, out-of-focus studies of unglamorous subjects — are far from professional, but they strike a chord with New York art collectors.
Unfortunately, instant over-exposure has its downside. Rorey's efforts to turn Pecker into an art sensation threaten to ruin the low-key lifestyle that was his inspiration. Pecker finds that his best friend, Matt (Brendan Sexton III
Brendan Sexton III
Brendan Eugene Sexton III is an American actor.-Career:Born in Staten Island, New York, Sexton made his film debut in Todd Solondz's Welcome to the Dollhouse playing the troubled bully Brandon McCarthy, for which he was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award...
), can't shoplift
Theft
In common usage, theft is the illegal taking of another person's property without that person's permission or consent. The word is also used as an informal shorthand term for some crimes against property, such as burglary, embezzlement, larceny, looting, robbery, shoplifting and fraud...
anymore now that Pecker's photographs have increased his profile. Shelley (Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
), Pecker's obsessive girlfriend who runs a laundromat, seems especially distressed when the press dub her a "stain goddess" and mistake her good-natured "pin-up" poses for pornographic come-ons.
When his family is dubbed "culturally challenged" by an overzealous critic, they begin to feel the uncomfortable glare of stardom. Pecker's mother (Mary Kay Place
Mary Kay Place
Mary Kay Place is an American actress, singer, director and screen writer. She is best known as portraying Loretta Haggers on the television series Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, a role which won her a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress - Comedy Series in 1977...
) is no longer free to dispense fashion tips to the homeless clientele at her thrift shop. Pecker's grandmother, Memama (Jean Schertler), endures public ridicule when her experience with a talking statue of the Virgin Mary is exposed on the cover of a national art magazine. Tina (Martha Plimpton
Martha Plimpton
Martha Campbell Plimpton is an American actress and singer and former model. Plimpton is a screen, stage and television actress. She first appeared as Jonsy in the feature film River Rats before rising to prominence in the Richard Donner film The Goonies portraying the character Stef...
), Pecker's fag hag
Fag hag
Fag hag is a gay slang phrase referring to a woman who either associates mostly or exclusively with gay and bisexual men, or has gay and bisexual men as close friends. The phrase originated in gay male culture in the United States and was historically an insult. Some women who associate with gay...
older sister, is fired from her job emceeing go-go dancing
Go-Go dancing
Go-go dancers are dancers who are employed to entertain crowds at a discotheque. Go-go dancing originated in the early 1960s when women at the Peppermint Lounge in New York City began to get up on tables and dance the twist...
at a gay bar
Gay bar
A gay bar is a drinking establishment that caters to an exclusively or predominantly gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender clientele; the term gay is used as a broadly inclusive concept for LGBT and queer communities...
because Pecker's edgy photographs chronicle the sex practices of the club's patrons. Even Little Chrissy (Lauren Hulsey), his six-year-old sister, feels the pressure of celebrity when her eating disorder
Eating disorder
Eating disorders refer to a group of conditions defined by abnormal eating habits that may involve either insufficient or excessive food intake to the detriment of an individual's physical and mental health. Bulimia nervosa, anorexia nervosa, and binge eating disorder are the most common specific...
is exposed, bringing unwanted attention from nosy child welfare agencies (she's mistakenly diagnosed with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a developmental disorder. It is primarily characterized by "the co-existence of attentional problems and hyperactivity, with each behavior occurring infrequently alone" and symptoms starting before seven years of age.ADHD is the most commonly studied and...
and prescribed Ritalin.)
After Pecker's newfound fame disrupts the lives of his family and friends, Pecker turns the tables on the art world by refusing to participate in a scheduled show at the Whitney Museum of Art. Instead, he forces New York art collectors to come to Baltimore to see his latest photographs, which portray the same people who disparaged his family in an unflattering light (one photo shows Patricia Hearst adjusting her breasts in a mirror.)
Pecker is then asked what he plans to do next. He replies that he would like to direct a film.
Cast
- Edward FurlongEdward FurlongEdward Walter Furlong is an American actor whose best known film roles are John Connor in Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Daniel Vinyard in American History X. He is a two-time Saturn Award nominee, winning the 1992 Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor for his performance in...
as Pecker, an unassuming 18-year-old whose photographs become the center of attention from a New York art collector - Christina RicciChristina RicciChristina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
as Shelley, Pecker's obsessive laundromat-running girlfriend - Lauren Hulsey as Little Chrissy, Pecker's younger sister with an eating disorderEating disorderEating disorders refer to a group of conditions defined by abnormal eating habits that may involve either insufficient or excessive food intake to the detriment of an individual's physical and mental health. Bulimia nervosa, anorexia nervosa, and binge eating disorder are the most common specific...
- Lili TaylorLili TaylorLili Anne Taylor is an American actress notable for her appearances in such award-winning indie films as Mystic Pizza, Say Anything..., Short Cuts and I Shot Andy Warhol, and the acclaimed TV show Six Feet Under....
as Rorey Wheeler, a savvy New York art collector - Bess ArmstrongBess ArmstrongElizabeth Key "Bess" Armstrong is an American film and television actress.-Life and career:Armstrong was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the daughter of Louise Allen , who taught at Bryn Mawr, and Alexander Armstrong, an English teacher at the Gilman School...
as Dr. Klompus, a child services representative who puts Little Chrissy on Ritalin - Mark Joy as Jimmy, Pecker's crab shop owner father
- Mary Kay PlaceMary Kay PlaceMary Kay Place is an American actress, singer, director and screen writer. She is best known as portraying Loretta Haggers on the television series Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, a role which won her a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress - Comedy Series in 1977...
as Joy, Pecker's thrift shop owner mother - Martha PlimptonMartha PlimptonMartha Campbell Plimpton is an American actress and singer and former model. Plimpton is a screen, stage and television actress. She first appeared as Jonsy in the feature film River Rats before rising to prominence in the Richard Donner film The Goonies portraying the character Stef...
as Tina, Pecker's fag hagFag hagFag hag is a gay slang phrase referring to a woman who either associates mostly or exclusively with gay and bisexual men, or has gay and bisexual men as close friends. The phrase originated in gay male culture in the United States and was historically an insult. Some women who associate with gay...
go-go dancingGo-Go dancingGo-go dancers are dancers who are employed to entertain crowds at a discotheque. Go-go dancing originated in the early 1960s when women at the Peppermint Lounge in New York City began to get up on tables and dance the twist...
emcee older sister - Brendan Sexton IIIBrendan Sexton IIIBrendan Eugene Sexton III is an American actor.-Career:Born in Staten Island, New York, Sexton made his film debut in Todd Solondz's Welcome to the Dollhouse playing the troubled bully Brandon McCarthy, for which he was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award...
as Matt, Pecker's shoplifterTheftIn common usage, theft is the illegal taking of another person's property without that person's permission or consent. The word is also used as an informal shorthand term for some crimes against property, such as burglary, embezzlement, larceny, looting, robbery, shoplifting and fraud...
best friend - Mink StoleMink StoleNancy Paine Stoll better known by the stage name Mink Stole, is an American actress from Baltimore, Maryland. She began her career working for director John Waters, having appeared in all of his feature films to date...
as Precinct captain - Patricia Hearst as Lynn Wentworth
- Jean Schertler as Memama, Pecker's grandmother
- Alan J. Wendl as Mr. Nellbox
- Greg GormanGreg GormanGreg Gorman is an American portrait photographer of Hollywood celebrities. His work has been seen in national magazine features and covers, including Esquire, GQ, Interview, Life, Vogue, Newsweek, Rolling Stone, Time, Vanity Fair, and the London Sunday Times...
as Himself - Cindy ShermanCindy ShermanCindy Sherman is an American photographer and film director, best known for her conceptual portraits. Sherman currently lives and works in New York City. In 1995, she was the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship. She is represented by Sprüth Magers Berlin London in and Metro Pictures gallery in...
as Herself - Mary Vivian PearceMary Vivian PearceMary Vivian Pearce is an American actress. She has worked primarily in the films of John Waters.Pearce is the childhood best friend of John Waters and has appeared as an actress in all of his films. Because of her work with Waters, she is considered one of the Dreamlanders, Waters' ensemble of...
as HomophobicHomophobiaHomophobia is a term used to refer to a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards lesbian, gay and in some cases bisexual, transgender people and behavior, although these are usually covered under other terms such as biphobia and transphobia. Definitions refer to irrational fear, with the...
lady - Anthony Roger as Billy Heckman/Death Row Dave, one of the dancers at the club where Tina works
- Doug Roberts and Patsy Grady Abrams as Mr. and Mrs. Heckman
- Susan Greenhill as Voice of Miraculous Virgin Mary
- John WatersJohn Waters (filmmaker)John Samuel Waters, Jr. is an American filmmaker, actor, stand-up comedian, writer, journalist, visual artist, and art collector, who rose to fame in the early 1970s for his transgressive cult films...
(uncredited) as Pervert on phone
Reception
Pecker received mixed to poor reviews. Describing it as "John Waters' first stab at making a mainstream movie," Edvins Beitiks' review in the San Francisco Examiner said it "starts out well and winds up no worse than most of the stuff that comes out of Hollywood" In his review for the Chicago Sun-Times, Roger EbertRoger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
noted a "tension between the gentler new Waters and his anarchic past. In the scenes in the male strip bar, for example, we keep waiting for Waters to break loose and shock us, and he never does, except with a few awkward language choices. The miraculous statue of Mary could have provided comic possibilities, but doesn't."
Peter Stack of the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
wrote that Pecker is "never truly funny, but it's an amusing novelty, gaining strength from smart characterizations and sly cogency about the way people are exploited under the limelight of celebrity."
Soundtrack
The soundtrackSoundtrack album
A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television program. In some cases, not all the tracks from the movie are included in the album; however there are rare cases of songs in the trailers that do not appear in...
was released on September 22, 1998 by New Line Records
New Line Records
WaterTower Music is an American record label owned by Time Warner and operates as a division of Warner Bros. Entertainment. Founded to release movie soundtracks, the label has grown beyond this initial purpose and has built a roster of indie rock acts such as The Sounds, OFFICE, Robbers on High...
.
- "Happy-Go-Lucky Me" - Paul EvansPaul Evans (musician)Paul Evans is an American rock and roll singer and songwriter, who was most prominent in the 1950s and 1960s...
- "The Love Chase" - Stewart CopelandStewart CopelandStewart Armstrong Copeland is an American musician, best known as the drummer for the band The Police. During the group's extended hiatus from the mid-1980s to 2007, he played in other bands and composed soundtracks...
- "I'm a Nut" - Leroy Pullins
- "Memamam" - Stewart Copeland
- "Uh! Oh! (Part 1)" - The Nutty Squirrels
- "Straight Boys" - Vicky Randle and Stewart Copeland
- "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter" - Billy WilliamsBilly Williams (singer)Billy Williams was an African-American singer, who had a successful cover recording of Fats Waller's "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter" in 1957. The record sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc...
- "In the Mood" - Henhouse Five Plus Too (Ray StevensRay StevensRay Stevens is an American country music, pop singer-songwriter who has become known for his novelty songs.-Early career:...
) - "Back to Hampden/Sneaky Shelly" - Stewart Copeland
- "Baltimore, You're Home to Me" - Dave Hardin
- "Thrift Shop Fashion Shoot" - Stewart Copeland
- "Don't Drop the Soap (For Anyone Else But Me)" - Stan RidgwayStan RidgwayStanard 'Stan' Ridgway is an American multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter known for his distinctive voice, dramatic lyrical narratives, and eclectic solo albums and was the original lead singer of the band Wall of Voodoo...
and Stewart Copeland - "New York Montage" - Stewart Copeland
- "Swamp Thing" - The GridThe GridThe Grid are an English electronic dance group, consisting of Richard Norris and David Ball , with guest contributions from other musicians...
- "Woo-HooWoo Hoo"Woo Hoo" is a rockabilly song, credited to George Donald McGraw and originally released by The Rock-A-Teens in 1959.-Original version:The song is distinctive for its lack of lyrics apart from its title words, which gave it popularity around the world as it is not subject to language barriers...
" - The Rock-A-TeensThe Rock-A-TeensThe Rock-A-Teens were an American rockabilly group from Richmond, Virginia, active in the late 1950s.They are best known for their 1959 single "Woo Hoo", backed with "Untrue", released on Roulette Records. The song hit #16 on the Billboard Hot 100, but it proved to be their only hit.-External...