POLYESTER (1981)

The 1981 film POLYESTER brought queer icons John Waters and Divine together again for a comedic homage to Douglas Sirk’s classic Hollywood melodramas. Gay actor Tab Hunter, who was a major Hollywood heartthrob in the 1950s/60s, plays Divine’s romantic interest.

Waters used what he called “Odorama” as a theatrical gimmick for POLYESTER; Divine would start sniffing in an exaggerated way, and a number would flash on-screen, to let the audience know it was time to smell their mysterious “scratch-&-sniff” card. The 10 scents were:

1.     Roses

2.     Flatulence

3.     Model airplane glue

4.     Pizza

5.     Gasoline

6.     Skunk

7.     Natural gas

8.     New car smell

9.     Dirty shoes

10.  Air freshener

On the 2004 DVD release, Waters’ expressed his delight in having audiences "pay to smell s—t."

POLYESTER

1981. USA.

Director: John Waters

Screenplay: John Waters

Starring: Divine, Tab Hunter, David Samson, Edith Massey, Mink Stole, Ken King, Mary Garlington, Joni Ruth, Stiv Bators and Hans Kramm

Criterion has released a wonderful 4K restoration of the film on DVD/Blu-ray – it’s also available streaming for rent/purchase through AppleTV, Amazon and YouTube.