If you missed last night’s 20th anniversary screening of Half Baked at Avalon Theater, there’s no way you know what next month’s screening will be. Well, unless you read the title of this article. Anyway, get ready for pageant season and join us at the Avalon on Wednesday, September 12 for a very special screening of Drop Dead Gorgeous. Those familiar with the 1999 dark comedy can just skip the rest of the article and buy tickets here.
Drop Dead Gorgeous is a faux documentary about an annual beauty pageant in the small town of Mount Rose, Minnesota. The film explores the preparation, execution, and aftermath of the event. Contestants Amber Atkins (Kirsten Dunst) and Rebecca Leeman (Denise Richards) are the favorites to win the 1995 pageant, but nothing is ever certain in Mount Rose, except for cups of hot coffee and pans of delicious bars. Cheating, mayhem, and lutefisk ensue as the competitors vie for the title of Mount Rose American Teen Princess.
Beyond Dunst and Richards, the film features an absolutely loaded cast of stars-to-be and random favorites. Kirstie Alley, Ellen Barkin, Allison Janney, Amy Adams, Brittany Murphy, Sam McMurray, Will Sasso, Adam West, and the music of Mark Mothersbaugh all make memorable contributions. That lady who played Frau Farbissina in the Austin Powers movies is in it, too.
Tickets to the 7 p.m. screening are $5. Lakefront Brewing will kindly sponsor the event, as always. And now, a word from the mayor.