In Keir’s loving hands, Mr Pat comes alive with the passion, difference and defiance of all those ageing queer icons who used to sit at the bar in your local gay venue. But when this divine performance dovetails with Stephens’ exceptional screenplay, Swan Song becomes a glittering gem – flamboyant, touching and heartwarming; Swan Song is an instant classic. In cinemas nationwide on June 10th. READ MORE: Swan Song: In Conversation with Todd Stephens
It’s hard to believe that Todd Stephens’ semi-autobiographical movie Edge of Seventeen was released twenty-four years ago or that Gypsy 83, the second film in his Ohio trilogy, is twenty-one years old. Swan Song sees Stephens return to Sandusky, Ohio, his hometown, with an intimate and celebratory tribute to Mr Pat, a hairdresser, performer, and local legend.
Pat Pitsenbarger (Udo Kier), known as ‘Mr Pat’, was once the talk of the town; his hairdressing business was the centre of community life, and his performances in the local gay bar were legendary. Mr Pat now resides in a nursing home, spending his money on illicit ‘More’ cigarettes while neatly folding paper napkins to while away the hours of silence. After the death of one of his prestigious former clients, the Republican politician Rita (Linda Evans), Pat receives a request to do Rita’s hair and makeup for the upcoming funeral. Pat declines the offer; after all, he has no supplies, and Rita left him when he most needed her, so why should he be there for her final send-off? But as he folds yet another paper napkin, Pat decides it’s time to confront the ghosts of his past and return to the town that holds so many memories in a final flamboyant, tender and touching odyssey.
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Every gay venue in every town has its legends, from those who campaigned for community equality to those who cared for others during the AIDS epidemic and stuck two fingers up at the world with pride and defiance. These icons used to sit at the bar of any local gay pub; they were royalty and were treated as such. Many didn’t suffer fools gladly, their cutting humour and defiant tone, celebrated as they sipped their drinks and puffed on their cigarettes. Everyone around them treasured their treasure trove of memories and knowledge. They were the gatekeepers of the local gay community and the custodians of its history.
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However, since the late 1990s, these figures have slowly disappeared, and cocktail bars, restaurants, and coffee shops have replaced the lively, community-driven gay venues they once presided over. During these years, the gay scene has changed forever, with the heart of the LGBTQ+ community vanishing through the march of time and social progress. These themes ripple through Stephens’ film and are brought into sharp focus when Mr Pat sees two gay dads playing with their kids and says, “I wouldn’t even know how to be gay now.” Stephens’ movie is a sharp, witty and bittersweet love letter to a changing gay world that now actively alienates many older LGBTQ+ people.
Udo Kier in Swan Song ©Peccadillo Pictures
But if all this sounds sombre, fear not, because Swan Song is also incredibly funny and delightfully vibrant. Stephens’ film is packed with wit and charm, from Mr Pat’s search for hair products now labelled toxic to his reunion with his former protégé, Dee Dee Dale (Jennifer Coolidge).
This humour is matched by a tender, touching and beautiful exploration of Mr Pat’s life as he revisits moments and ghosts from his past. Here, we learn that Pat’s lover, David, died of AIDS during the height of the pandemic, with Pat’s straight hairdressing clients shunning him for Dee Dee in the process – their loving home demolished after David’s nephew threw him out to sell it. These experiences were everyday for life partners of Pat’s generation, as a lack of marriage rights saw ‘husbands’ isolated and ignored by their partners’ families upon death. Central to this balance of humour, emotion, eccentricity, and joy is the amazing Udo Kier, a tour de force throughout Stephen’s film.
In Keir’s loving hands, Mr Pat comes alive with the passion, difference and defiance of all those ageing queer icons who used to sit at the bar in your local gay venue. But when this divine performance dovetails with Stephens’ exceptional screenplay, Swan Song becomes a glittering gem – flamboyant, touching and heartwarming; Swan Song is an instant classic.
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