Die Mommie Die!

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Die Mommie Die!

R

Released Oct 31, 2003

1h 30m

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

65%

Tomatometer

60 Reviews

73%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

Ex-cabaret siren Angela Arden (Charles Busch) is no longer in love with her husband (Philip Baker Hall), and is disconnected from her children. In an attempt to escape her marriage so that she can be with a hunky layabout (Jason Priestley), she poisons her husband. But when she begins to suspect that her daughter (Natasha Lyonne) and gay son are also sleeping with her paramour -- and they in turn begin to suspect their mother had a role in their father's death -- everything begins to fall apart.

Critics Consensus

This stagy production has enough funny moments to work.

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Marjorie Baumgarten

Austin Chronicle

Die Mommie Die! seems more like an amateur revue, perfectly all right for what it is, but not meant to be seen beyond an audience of friends and family.

Rated: 1.5/5

Dec 14, 2003

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Jay Boyar

Orlando Sentinel

You quickly start to realize that there's not much of a movie here.

Rated: 2/5

Dec 12, 2003

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Jeff Strickler

Minneapolis Star Tribune

Cheesy, corny and cheap. In other words, it's everything writer-star Charles Busch wanted his spoof of B-movies to be.

Nov 28, 2003

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

This drag queen camp farce was an unfunny drag.

Rated: C-

Jul 6, 2009

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Betsy Bozdech

DVDJournal.com

There's a fine line between classic camp and trying too hard, and Die Mommie Die! tightrope-walks its way across that line very precariously.

Rated: 2.5/4

Oct 29, 2006

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Don Willmott

Filmcritic.com

If Far From Heaven had had any sense of humor, it might have looked a little like this.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 8, 2004

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Audience Member

A really fun campy movie with great performances from Charles Busch, Natasha Lyonne, Stark Sands, Jason Priestly, and Frances Conroy. It's kind of a spoof of movies like Mommie Dearest about a diva mother and a messed up family and if you take it too seriously, you'll miss out on the fun. Great costumes, hair, make up, art direction/production design, and writing.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/19/23

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Audience Member

Mark Rucker's film of Charles Busch's script is one of those classic indie gems that seemed to fly under the radar. Rucker fills the screen with a committed stylistic flourish and he fully utilizes the talents of a cast who appear to not only fully understand the artful but over-the-top spoof equal to their commitment to their respective roles. While this is most definitely Charles Busch's movie, he never gets in the way of the consistently comedic performances of the supporting cast. Natasha Lyonne and Jason Priestley really shine in this unexpectedly fun send-up.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

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Audience Member

Campy/trashy farce! Charles Busch in drag! It's funny and not meant to be taken seriously!

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/22/23

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Audience Member

I absolutely love it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/23/23

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Audience Member

Enjoyable campy romp, this film sets out to parody the campy melodramas of the 50s and 60s by being one at the same time as sending them up. Charles Busch is very good as the heroine of yesteryear, and a convincing woman, but for my money, plays it a bit too straight. This is less Mommie Dearest and more well, Die Mommie Die! I suppose it's hard to pull off intentional camp, but everyone does a good job- particularly the ever-handsome Jason Priestley. Unfortunately I saw the first twist coming a mile away and that made the last third a little too silly, but not silly enough. It's good enough if you're a fan of the original genre and looking for something light and entertaining.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/17/23

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Audience Member

although the acting is cheezy its a different spin on sitcom life.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/13/23

Full Review

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Mark Rucker

Director

Charles Busch

Angela Arden

Natasha Lyonne

Edith Sussman

Jason Priestley

Tony Parker

Frances Conroy

Bootsie Carp

Philip Baker Hall

Sol Sussman

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Synopsis

Ex-cabaret siren Angela Arden (Charles Busch) is no longer in love with her husband (Philip Baker Hall), and is disconnected from her children. In an attempt to escape her marriage so that she can be with a hunky layabout (Jason Priestley), she poisons her husband. But when she begins to suspect that her daughter (Natasha Lyonne) and gay son are also sleeping with her paramour -- and they in turn begin to suspect their mother had a role in their father's death -- everything begins to fall apart.

Director: Mark Rucker
Producer: Dante Di Loreto, Anthony Edwards, Bill Kenwright
Screenwriter: Charles Busch
Distributor: Sundance Film Series
Production Co: Aviator Films
Rating: R (Drug Sequence|Strong Sexual Content|Language)
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 31, 2003, Original
Release Date (DVD): Jan 11, 2005
Box Office (Gross USA): $180.3K
Runtime: 1h 30m
Sound Mix: Surround