The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975, UK/US)

In director Jim Sharman's ultimate-audience sing-along participation midnight-movie cult-musical film:

• the opening song "Science Fiction/Double Feature" was sung by a giant pair of disembodied blood-red lips under the opening credits (voice of Richard O'Brien as Riff Raff) - it served as a tribute to Hollywood's sci-fi and B-horror films of earlier decades
• the two main characters were a sexually-repressed couple: wholesome, strait-laced hero Brad Major (Barry Bostwick) and his girlfriend Janet Weiss (Susan Sarandon); they attended a friend's wedding in Denton, TX (or Ohio?), in November of 1974, where Brad was best man for Ralph Hapschatt (Jeremy Newson), while Janet served as the maid of honor for bride Betty Monroe (Hilary Labow); Brad and Janet had first met in a science class taught by Dr. Everett Scott (Jonathan Adams)
• during a wedding photo opportunity - taken on the front steps of the church, the film foreshadowed three of the film's future characters - Riff Raff and Magenta (an "American Gothic" couple), and Dr. Frank-n-Furter (the Minister)
• following their attendance at the wedding, the romantically-inspired Brad delivered a musically-vocalized marriage proposal ("Dammit Janet") to Janet, first in the church cemetery and then in the church
• throughout the film, a Narrator (Charles Gray) would randomly appear; he was introduced in an impressive-looking study as a criminologist-expert, who explained some of the events as a case study; he was suspiciously viewing a projected slide image of a photo taken at the wedding on the church's steps; he explained the tale of the film's hero and heroine with a thick scrapbook of photographs of their misadventures and experiences, known as "The Denton Affair"
• after the wedding, when returning home on a rainy night, Brad's car had a blow-out - and Brad and Janet were forced to walk back to a gothic castle-mansion; as they entered the outer gate (with a sign: ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK!!), they sang "(There's a Light) Over at the Frankenstein Place"

The Castle-Mansion's Outer Gate Sign

"Over at the Frankenstein Place"

Brad and Janet at the Castle Door

• the engaged young couple were met at the front door by tall, gaunt, slightly bald, black-clad hunchbacked butler Riff Raff (Richard O’Brien) and his sister - domestic maid Magenta (Patricia Quinn); they entered into the castle where they learned the 'Master's' party was in progress; they came upon a group of annual conventioneers (aliens from the planet Transsexual in the Galaxy of Transylvania) who danced and sang a rendition of the "Time Warp" - the film's major musical highlight
• during the song/dance, the Narrator helped with a tutorial by providing a pull-down chart of dance steps for instruction's sake: "It's just a jump to the left" - and the guests responded: "And then a step to the right...Let's do the Time Warp again"; part way through the song, Janet fainted; further chorus verses were sung by Magenta and red-haired, household groupie Columbia (Laura "Little Nell" Campbell), Frank's assistant and ex-lover, who wore a gold-sequined top hat as she tap-danced

"Time Warp"

• behind them, a black-cloaked figure descended in an elevator, tapping one sequin-encrusted high-heeled boot; Brad tried to reassure Janet: "I'm here, there's nothing to worry about"; when the elevator opened behind the couple, the figure in the elevator turned toward Janet, causing her to scream and faint at the sight of the heavily-made up character
• the couple experienced the dramatic entrance of fishnet and heels-wearing Dr. Frank N. Furter (Tim Curry) in a full drag outfit, with heavy mascara; as a greeting, the crazed, mad transexual transvestite sang: "How do ya do-a" to Brad; then, he strutted boldly forward through a gauntlet lineup of the revelers; on a stage in front of the banner reading ANNUAL TRANSYLVANIAN CONVENTION, he dropped his black cloak onto his throne behind him to reveal his sexy, skimpy, cross-dressed lingerie outfit: a pearl necklace, a leather draw-string vest, a tight corset (with leather bikini briefs or panties), fishnet stockings, black garters, and high-heeled boots

The Dramatic Entrance of Transylvanian Leader Dr. Frank N. Furter
"Sweet Transvestite"

• the Transylvanian leader Dr. Frank N. Furter seductively sang the campy classic "Sweet Transvestite" to the newly-engaged couple : "I'm just a sweet transvestite... from Transssssexual Transylvania-hah-hah!"
• afterwards, he invited the engaged fiancees to stay the night - ("Why don'tcha stay for the night?") - Brad and Janet were reduced to their underwear, and then took an ascending elevator to visit 'mad scientist' Frank's secret upstairs lab for the unveiling of his artificial Frankenstein-esque creation; Frank had changed into his laboratory garb - a dark-green lab coat with long surgical gloves
• Frank proudly showed off his mummified humanoid suspended in a large vat of water ("I Can Make You a Man"); the creature's bandages were removed to reveal a reanimated, attractive muscle-bound, whitish-blonde-haired, tanned, beefcake playmate sex toy or object named Rocky Horror (Peter Hinwood) wearing only a gold bikini; he had been solely created for Frank's bisexual gratification
• suddenly, a greasy-haired, black leather-clad biker Eddie (Meatloaf) (with a gash over his forehead) emerged on his cycle from a DEEP FREEZE cyrogenic refrigerator that had just malfunctioned; earlier, when Eddie arrived at the castle as a delivery boy, he became Frank's lover, but then became one of Frank's experimental lab subjects; he performed a rockin' version of "Hot Patootie Bless My Soul" (an ode to rock 'n' roll) with his current girlfriend Columbia; to prove that ex-boyfriend Eddie no longer meant anything to him, and angry that he had been upstaged, the wrathful Frank murdered (off-screen) Eddie with an ice-pick inside the cyrogenic chamber
• Frank then reassured and comforted Rocky and praised his manly beauty: "Don't be upset. It was a mercy killing! He had a certain naive charm, but no - muscle"; during Dr. Frank N. Furter's reprise of "I Can Make You a Man", Janet unexpectedly piped up: "I'm a muscle fan!"; Frank's new creation was led away, as in a marital procession, to a honeymoon bed-chamber
• there were dual suggestive scenes of the two separated honeymooners Janet and Brad after they were led away to separate rooms in the castle; both of them ended up engaging in sex with Frank in his lighted tent: (1) first - Frank (dressed as Brad) heterosexually coupled with Janet, filmed in reddish light, and (2) second, Frank (dressed as Janet) engaged in a homosexual pairing with Brad, seen in in bluish light

The Dual Seductions of Janet and Brad - Both by Frank
Janet in Red Light	Brad in Blue Light

• after Janet's sexual awakening (and loss of virginity), she found Rocky (who had been sadistically tormented by Riff Raff with a torch) hiding in his tank at the lab and was quickly aroused by him; she was being spied upon via a bedroom, closed-circuit TV video monitor by Columbia and Magenta
• seeking revenge, Janet sought to seduce the bi-sexual Rocky (it marked her second time cheating on Brad), while wearing nothing but a white bra and panties; she made love to the idealized, male love machine creation, singing: "Touch-a Touch-a Touch Me" ("I thought there's no use getting Into heavy petting It only leads to trouble And seat wetting Now all I want to know Is how to go I've tasted blood and I want more...I'll put up no resistance I want to stay the distance I've got an itch to scratch I need assistance Touch-a touch-a touch-a touch me I wanna be dirty Thrill me, chill me, fulfill me Creature of the night..."); their sexual coupling would be a shock to Frank, after he learned that Rocky had been initiated into heterosexual love and deflowered by Janet

Janet and Rocky -- "Touch-a Touch-a Touch Me"

• Riff Raff announced the arrival of Frank's wheelchaired, rival scientist Dr. Everett Scott (Brad's ex-science teacher at Denton HS) at the castle; Dr. Scott was viewed suspiciously by Frank as a UFO investigator for the federal government (and he feared that maybe Brad and Janet were spies also); Dr. Scott claimed he was only there looking for his missing nephew Eddie
• after Janet and Rocky were discovered under a red sheet where they had just made love, their names were called out in the dialogue - in fact, all the main characters in Frank's laboratory called out each other's names in surprise: ("Janet!" "Dr. Scott!" "Janet!" "Brad!" "Rocky!", etc.)
• during a cannibalistic dinner in the grand dining room to celebrate Frank's birthday, Frank carved up the meat platter - as Dr. Scott memoralized his nephew Eddie in a song ("Eddie") about how he was a troubled "no-good" youth after the death of his mother (his only interests were rock-and-roll, porn, and motorcycles): "All he wanted was rock-and-roll porn. And a motorbike. Shooting up the junk. He was a low-down, cheap little punk! Taking everyone for a ride"; the Narrator showed pictures from the scrapbook of Eddie's life - including dirty photos, his police record of fingerprints, and his mug shots

A Scrapbook of Eddie's Life ("Eddie") Shown by the Narrator

• after the song, Frank removed the tablecloth and suddenly revealed Eddie's decomposing corpse under the table, hacked up and framed in a glass coffin; Eddie's body had been mutilated for the night's meal - and they had literally eaten 'Meatloaf'
• to cover up for his ghastly crime, and also in fear that his visitors-guests (Brad, Janet, and Dr. Scott) were conspirators, the mad Frank-N-Furter flipped a switch on his alien technology (a Sonic Transducer) in the laboratory to freeze Brad, Janet, and Dr. Scott where they were positioned; then Magenta flipped another switch on his Medusa, and one by one, the three were transformed into nude marble-stone statues; with a few more switch pulls, the rebellious Columbia (who had just given Frank an ultimatum) and Rocky were also converted into statues

Frank's Sonic Transducer

Janet's Fear: "You mean he's going to send us to another planet!"

Transformed into Living Marble Statues

• Frank announced that everyone should prepare for a floor show; on an empty stage, each of the four marble statues (Brad, Janet, Rocky and Columbia, but NOT Dr. Scott) had been bedecked by Frank in similar decadent drag garb (singing and dancing versions of Frank), costumed on stage in stiletto high-heels, fishnet stockings, heavy makeup, boas and tight black corsets (or bustiers); each of them was unfrozen, resurrected or reanimated with Frank's de-Medusa machine, and then performed "Floor Show," "Rose Tint My World," and "Fanfare/Don't Dream It" as a preface to Frank's own bizarre cabaret show

The Statues One by One Came to Life on the Empty Stage Before the Show - Beginning with Columbia

• the climactic "floor show" medley was then presented in the empty theater in front of an RKO Radio Picture Tower logo (with emitting sparks); Rocky, Columbia, Janet, and Brad now functioned as backup singers; the camera zoomed into Frank who was in front of the tower, and as the lead singer and showgirl, he crooned: ("Whatever happened to Fay Wray..."); he also sang about how they could become sexually liberated by giving themselves over "to absolute pleasure - Swim the warm waters of sins of the flesh. Erotic nightmares beyond any measure. And sensual daydreams to treasure forever"
• at the end of the performance, Frank encouraged everyone to follow his example by diving into a swimming pool that had magically materialized before him; the four others joined him in the water, a la Busby Berkeley style, and sang, kissed and made love to each other during the pool orgy, while singing Frank's refrain for "Don't Dream It": "Don't dream it. Be it. Don't dream it. Be it...."
• after Frank sang the first verse of "Wild and Untamed Thing" in the pool, he climbed out and joined the four others to perform more refrains during an energetic song-and-dance routine on stage - including kicks in a chorus line: "We're a wild and an untamed thing. We're a bee with a deadly sting. You gotta hit and your mind goes ping! Your heart'll pump and your blood will sing. So let the party and the sound rock on. We're gonna shake it 'till the life has gone. Rose tint my world, keep me safe from my trouble and pain"

The Floor Show - "Wild and Untamed Thing"

• suddenly in the finale, the performance was interrupted by Magenta (with a Bride of Frankenstein hairdo) and Riff Raff (with a pitchfork-shaped laser ray-gun); both wearing futuristic gold and silver costumes, they announced that they had been promoted to lead the Transylvanians, and that Frank was now their prisoner: "Frank-N-Furter, it's all over Your mission is a failure Your lifestyle's too extreme I'm your new commander You now are my prisoner We return to Transylvania Prepare the transit beam"; Riff Raff's plan was to return everyone (members of the alien race) back to their home planet of Transylvania (in the galaxy of Transexual), but to leave the failed and extremely-decadent Frank behind
• Frank was allowed to sing a farewell song: "I'm Going Home" in a circular spotlight on stage, but then was eliminated with Riff Raff's laser-gun weapon ("a laser capable of emitting a beam of pure anti-matter"), for the crime of killing Eddie; Frank was struck by a laser blast while attempting to escape as he backed up and climbed the stage curtain; he fell to the stage floor dead; during Frank's attempted escape, Columbia was also struck with the ray-gun for attempting to save him

The Death of Frank by Laser Gun - The Toppling of the RKO Tower and Death of Rocky in the Pool

• enraged but also in pain, Rocky came to Frank's side, and carried Frank's lifeless corpse to the top of the RKO radio tower (a parody of the climax of King Kong (1933)), while blasts struck him; when the tower toppled backwards, Rocky plunged into the pool and died
• Riff Raff and Magenta revealed themselves as aliens - incestuous siblings from outer space (from the planet Transsexual in the galaxy of Transylvania): (Riff Raff: "Our noble mission is almost completed, my most beautiful sister, and soon we shall return to the moon-drenched shores of our beloved planet")
• after Magenta joyfully led a brief reprise of the "Time Warp" song (with its "dark refrain"), the castle-mansion, doubling as an alien spaceship, blasted off into space as they were beamed back to their home planet
• in the conclusion, Brad and Janet (still in drag costumes) and Dr. Scott were freed, but crawling in the charred dirt where the castle had once been, as the Narrator iconically declared: "And crawling on the planet's face, some insects called the human race. Lost in time and lost in space and meaning"
• the film ended with a reprise of the opening song - "Science Fiction - Double Feature" - with cast pictures