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  • Harsher in Hindsight: The scene where Dawn fires into the crowd at the nightclub before getting into a shootout with the police and where numerous dead bodies are seen littering the floor is a lot less funny after one of the worst mass shootings in American history took place at a gay nightclub in 2016, claiming 50 lives. It gets worse when, during her trial, she says "How could they not love dying if they're going to become famous for it?" That was the message of the film: people are obsessed with fame and don't care what they become famous for, as seen by Dawn's "acceptance speech" at the end of the film.
  • Heartwarming Moment: Gator is friends with his gay co-workers in The '60s. He likes them a lot, just "not their equipment".
  • Hilarious in Hindsight: As noted by John Waters during the commentary, charging ridiculous amounts for hair styling is now normal.
  • Jerkass Woobie: For the most part, Taffy Davenport is an annoying pill. But having been raised by Dawn and the home life she's been subjected to, one can see that deep down she's actually very miserable and is still developmentally a little girl a few years later. It only gets worse when she finds her real father only to be greeted by him trying to molest her, forcing her to kill him and subsequently breaks down when she got home.
  • Memetic Mutation:
    • "Nice girls don't wear cha-cha heels!"
    • "I wouldn't suck your lousy dick if I was suffocating and there was oxygen in your balls!"
    • "Mr. Wineberger, Dawn Davenport is eating a meatball sandwich right out in CLAES. And she's been passing NOATES," is heavily pointed out by viewers due to the actress's thick Baltimore accent right as she says the line.
  • Narm Charm: John Waters chuckled at Glenn Milstead trying to act butch as Earl Peterson and failing.
  • Parody Displacement: The song is actually "Black Velvet Soul" by Cookie Thomas, but most people know it as "Female Trouble" by Divine, complete with new lyrics to fit the movie's story. Downplayed in that the theme song is not meant to be a parody of the original song. They just so happen to use the same backing track.
  • Signature Scene: The "cha-cha heels" scene where Dawn goes berserk after receiving the wrong kind of shoes for Christmas.
    Mr. Davenport: Nice girls don't wear cha-cha heels!
  • So Bad, It's Good: In the same vein as his last film in regards to reviews about the movie.
  • Spiritual Successor: Amusingly enough, Hairspray. Tracy Turnblad is essentially the sweet, good-natured version of Dawn Davenport.
  • Tough Act to Follow: The film had to top one of the most trashy films in history, Pink Flamingos. While it's not as shocking, Waters thinks the story is more cohesive. While this doesn't have the same type of cult following Pink Flamingos has, it surprisingly has a lot more critical respect as seen with the 88% Positive on Rotten Tomatoes.
  • Unintentionally Sympathetic: Taffy. With Dawn Davenport for a parent, you almost don't hold any of her issues against her and might as well use her crappy upbringing as an excuse. She's still a twerp, however.
  • Values Resonance: Dawn Davenport, when invited to speak at the witness stand, mentions how people actually loved her nightclub act, including the ones that died and what had occurred was so sensational, she should be on television. During her acceptance speech, she notes how society is fascinated by monsters and getting the death penalty is comparable to winning an Oscar. This film was several decades ahead of its time - the idea of Serial Killer worship would be examined in Natural Born Killers, while productions about serial killer protagonists (Silence of the Lambs and Dexter, for example) would follow as well.

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