Swan Song
Todd Stephens, USA, 2021o
Gay Pat Pitsenbarger looks back on a colorful life as a celebrity hairdresser. But now he lives in a nursing home in Ohio and has actually already given up on life. Then one last job brings him out of his shell and onto the road once again. The trip through the small town becomes a journey through his life. Both hold surprises.
Long since shunted off to an old people's home, where only his secretly rebellious smoking gives him the feeling of being alive, former star hairdresser Pat decides he wants to have another go. He bails out of the asylum and accepts the curious assignment of doing a deceased acquaintance's hair one last time for public viewing. The gay Pat embarks on a melancholy journey to the places of his work and thus into the realms of memories of past escapades. The straightforward plot is a bit too simply combed in some scenes. But the dry and at the same time mischievous charisma of the main actor Udo Kier holds the film together. Besides, this is not only the swan song of the hero, but also that of a frivolously lived out act, of an old-school gayness that no longer exists today. That, too, is exciting.
Till Brockmann
Eine dankbare Rolle für Udo Kier zwischen Besinnlichkeit und Extravaganz – der deutsche Schauspieler, sonst eher für Nebenrollen bekannt, liefert eine grosse Show. Etwa, wenn er auf einer kleinen Bühne tanzt – mit einem ganzen Kronleuchter als Kopfputz.
Gregor SchenkerGalleryo
