Once again, the hilarious Google plot outline- ‘An obese woman (Divine) gives birth to an obnoxious child and embarks upon a bizarre and violent life of crime.’

Get ready for your jaw to ache with this John Waters film. Every single line of dialogue is comedy gold as we chart the criminal career of glamour puss Dawn Davenport as she sashays her way to the highest strata of her destined path- the electric chair. Her final speech is the equivalent of an Academy Award speech and is utterly brilliant.

Female Trouble examines the issues of celebrity, true crime and the link between the two. It was years ahead of its time in predicting that Ted Bundy and The Yorkshire Ripper would receive sackfuls of fan mail and love letters when they were incarcerated.

The film is also years ahead of its time regarding another sinister phenomenon- acid attacks. In John Waters’ world however, these scars are merely beauty enhancements in the same way as tattoos and botox are today.

This ties into another aspect that Female Trouble was ahead of the curve on- punk rock. The ‘ugly’ as ‘beautiful’ ethos is central to the revolutionary aspect of the future youth cult as was having the pride to express yourself as you want to. The clothes, hair (at the film’s conclusion, Dawn even sports a huge Mohican) and, indeed, attitude.

Female Trouble is another example of John Waters letting his freak flag fly and attracting similar people to do the same. It’s not just a film, it’s a state of mind.

My favourite John Waters film, Female Trouble will always be one of my Top 10 Films.

5 out of 5 stars