The Cockettes
Strand Releasing | Release Date: June 28, 2002 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
77
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 22 Critic Reviews
Positive:
19
Mixed:
2
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Film ThreatChris Gore
This is one of those rare docs that paints a grand picture of an era and makes the journey feel like a party. Read full review
91
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
The Cockettes weren't talented, exactly, yet the bedazzled flakiness of their passion takes you closer than just about any movie has to what was once really meant by the term ''free-spirited.'' Read full review
90
New Times (L.A.)David Ehrenstein
Brilliant new documentary.
90
VarietyDavid Rooney
Joyously re-creates the brief but resplendent reign of the legendary freakadelic drag troupe. Read full review
89
Austin ChronicleKimberley Jones
Cue the footage of Cockettes in spangles and glitter, high-kicking and belting out show tunes at the top of their lungs. Damn, it looks grand. Read full review
88
Baltimore SunChris Kaltenbach
The Cockettes is a grand place to visit, even for those who wouldn't want to live there.
88
Chicago TribuneLoren King
It puts The Cockettes into social, political and popular cultural context and gives the documentary a moving resonance. Read full review
83
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
The film does leave you with the lingering regret that you missed a hell of a good party. It is, as the kids used to say, a trip.
80
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Has the glorious, gaudy benefit of much stock footage of Those Days, featuring all manner of drag queen, bearded lady and lactating hippie. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
This comprehensive and charming film not only recalls those days exactly, it also manages the wonderful trick of taking us back there along with it. Read full review
80
L.A. WeeklyErnest Hardy
A fascinating, richly detailed documentary about the legendary queer collective based in San Francisco in the late '60s and early '70s. Read full review
80
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
Looks like Weimar decadence and feels like down-home friendship.
80
Washington PostAnn Hornaday
An absorbing primer in one of the most fascinating chapters in American social history. Read full review
80
The New York TimesDana Stevens
Revisits the San Francisco of the late 1960's and early 70's, a time and place so encrusted with legend and cliché that you might wonder if there is anything left to say. It turns out there is quite a lot -- which the filmmakers have brought triumphantly to life. Read full review
75
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
The Cockettes epitomized a brief confluence of new possibilities, not so much in theater as in personal style, lending them a certain historical value that greatly exceeds their contribution to theater.
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerPaula Nechak
The Cockettes is a fascinating poke into the soul of the '60s and it moves past a simple chronology of a counterculture phenomenon to examine how this predecessor to glitter rock and camp movies, such as "The Rocky Horror Show," could ever have ascended to such heights. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldConnie Ogle
A sweet reminder of their lost and lively world. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleJames Sullivan
A sweet-natured reconsideration of one of San Francisco's most vital, if least widely recognized, creative fountainheads. Read full review
70
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
This amazing footage alternates with interviews that include more than a dozen surviving members of the troupe, whose recollections are by turn funny, touching and mind-boggling. What a time! Read full review
60
Village VoiceJ. Hoberman
Fond, funny documentary. Read full review
60
The A.V. ClubNathan Rabin
Makes a terrific case for the group's historical importance, even though its performances seem more fun to discuss than watch. Read full review
38
New York PostMegan Lehmann
Indulgent, tedious documentary. Read full review
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