Along with "Valley of the Dolls", "Reefer Madness," and "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls," "Showgirls" belongs in the pantheon of bad film. But don't take that wrong. This film is so bad, that it's fabulous.
From the deer in the headlights performance of Elizabeth Berkley, to the so far over the top that you need a telescope to look down at it dialogue, this film is a camp masterpiece. Never before have so many cliches and ridiculous scenarios been gathered in one film.
The plot? A simple girl with big dreams travels to the big city to become A STAR! She struggles against the odds, only to achieve her BIG BREAK! She rejects it all when she realizes that fame is hollow and disallusioning. Sounds like every show biz movie every made except in this version, the big dream is to be a topless showgirl, the big break involves literally breaking the competition's leg and fame involves wearing three sets of false eyelashes and sparkles as clothing. The movie dislikes women so much that there is no female character in the whole of it that isn't either wildly catty or completely witless. Men in this film don't fare much better, but no male is subjected to a gang rape as the lone sympathetic female character is.
If I remember correctly, Joe Esterhaus was paid a ridiculous amount of money for the screenplay for this film. As penance for creating this abomination, he should be required to wander the earth, giving money to anyone who sat through it.
Nonetheless, I recommend this film as a laugh riot for the sheer lunacy of it.
