Bela Lugosi, Daniel Davis, Dolores Fuller

Upon discovering the alarming suicide of a known transvestite, a curious police inspector seeks enlightenment from a professional--a psychiatrist familiar with the 'illusive' gender phenomenom. The ps...( read more  read more... )ychiatrist tells the police about two separate tales: Glen is to be married to Barbara, but must find a way to tell her of his desire to wear her angora sweater, and of his cross-dressing needs in general. Another is the story of Alan, who decides to physically become a female via surgery.

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38% liked it

6,125 ratings

Critics

32% liked it

22 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 5 min.

Directed by: Edward D. Wood Jr, Edward Wood Jr

Release Date: January 1, 1953

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DVD Release Date: February 15, 2000

Stats: 420 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (420)


  • October 6, 2009
    Bizarre offering from Ed Wood that belongs in the Bad Movie Hall of Fame. Another unintentionally funny film from arguably the worst director of all time. Best if viewed with Crow and Tom Servo (MST3000).
  • April 28, 2009
    Ed Wood's opera prima is way ahead of its time. A sensationalist take on the controversial matter of transvestism and sex change, but that doesn't keep it from being absolutely nuts and hilarious, almost surreal.

    Wood could have been a pitiful and mildly mentally impaired man, ...( read more)but he was definitely an auteur who envisioned and created and specific kind of work. Though poor, the results always leave you wandering whether he was insane or he was just a genius pulling off a big, elaborate joke.

    On the other hand, Bela Lugosi, the man who once was a mega star, was here in the rock bottom. But strangely, he sort of raises the film's quality (not to say hilarity) thanks to his larger than life way of reciting Wood's dreadfully convoluted and idiotic writing. He makes a Greek tragedy out of every sentence.

    Edward D. Wood Jr. was like a child working with crayons, and I guess that's why one has to feel some affection for him and his equally weird troupe of underachievers.
    I was certainly mesmerized with this, especially the dream sequence, one of the most raving mad scenes I've ever witnessed
  • August 25, 2007
    How many times can you squeeze the word "transvestite" into a conversation? I'll bet it's not as many times as in this unintentionally hilarious film by everybody's favorite hack director Ed Wood.
  • August 11, 2007
    It's flatly and awkwardly told, but has some amusing moments.
  • November 15, 2006
    This has got to be one of the worst movies I've ever seen in my life. But the combination of nonsense, bad acting and total foolishness offeres up a real gem.
  • November 20, 2009
    With Plan 9 Ed Wood gave us what may possibly be the best accidental comedy ever, but with Glen Or Glenda? he gave us something that I don't think has been repeated in film history, accidental surrealism. Seeing this film for the first time was one of the most bizarre movie expe...( read more)diences I've ever had. Between Lugosi's rambling and somewhat insane narration(?), random stock footage of buffaloes, some ludicrous acting by Wood himself, and what I can only imagine are supposed to be dream sequences, this movie seems like it was filmed inside the head of a mental patient. I don't think that anybody, other than the maestro of bad movies, could ever produce something like this without meaning for it to be weird. This movie may have been a classic if released as a surrealist film, but Wood probably didn't see anything out of the ordinary about it. In fact the entire movie probably made perfect sense to him. Just more evidence that he was either a mad genius or just plain ol' mad. Plan 9 may get all the attention, but if you ask me, this was Wood's masterpiece. A story so personal that nobody, other than its maker, knew what the hell it was trying to say.
  • November 14, 2009
    Some awkward moments but i like it, good subject, but i am not sure if is a documentary, a drama or a horror film hehe
  • October 23, 2009
    Not Interested in seeing
  • May 20, 2009
    Possibly the worst film ever made. But see Plan 9 From Outer Space.
  • March 26, 2009
    BEVWARE OF THE BIG GREEN DRAGON!

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