'Rocky Horror' virgin no more: Popping my midnight screening cherry

Tim Curry at peak hotness

This weekend I finally realized a long-held film buff goal -- I intended my first midnight screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show with a coterie of sexy, uproarious friends. In addition to a vicious hangover, I came away with several takeaways.

Before I get into all the details, I'll answer everyone's first question: did I dress up? Yes and no. I wore glasses and a bowtie in homage to Brad, with a custom-made "Rocky Horror Virgin" t-shirt made by my girlfriend.

Perhaps I'll take the leap into wearing drag the next time, although my friends who did left some big heels to fill.

I've always enjoyed the movie on its own terms, ever since I first discovered it during its endless re-runs on Vh1. I've never known if it became a phenomenon because people thought it was so bad it's good or if people were just slow to catch on to how awesome it is.

I'd like to think it's the latter and not the former, mainly because I'm the kind of guy who gets emotionally attached to films I like. As my girlfriend very aptly put it, Rocky Horror is "absurd and it makes no sense but it's still incredibly fun and sexy." It's also pretty wildly subversive, especially for a 1975 film.

My favorite thing about it has probably got to be Tim Curry's performance. One of the rare performances that is probably equally titillating to both men and women -- his Dr. Frank-N-Furter has one of the greatest movie entrances of all time, a spectacular voice, wit, charisma -- he's breathtaking.

A close second would be Susan Sarandon, who is so incredibly sexy in this movie it should be a crime. Obviously she still looks phenomenal today, but she has never looked more delicious than she does here.

Susan Sarandon at peak hotness

As for the midnight experience? Well, of course it was a blast. I had been to this kind of thing before, most specifically The Room, but obviously this is the mother of all midnight screenings -- so I was a little worried I would be intimidated by the whole thing.

To prepare, I watched the movie a couple times beforehand to try to learn the call-and-response gags and I got properly wasted to weaken my inhibitions.

When my crew of friends arrived I was pleasantly surprised to see (with the exception of a few film snob geeks) that the crowd was incredibly sweet and welcoming to newcomers like me.

The screening opened with an impromptu dance party and then Rocky Horror first-timers were beckoned to the front of the theater to either drop it like it's hot or perform their best fake orgasm. I didn't participate in this only due to drunkenness but I did get to see my girlfriend and an Aussie friend of ours pretend to be in the throes of passion with each other. Not half bad.

Once the screening got going it was a delight to play along with the prop throwing, although I don't know if I could ever memorize all the one-liners you're encouraged to hurl at the screen.

Perhaps it was the fact that I was surrounded by funny, upbeat friends -- but the whole experience has a warm, supportive vibe about it, even if we were encouraged to scream "slut" at the screen on a regular basis.

It's an experience that everyone who wants to have an open mind should have. Again, the movie itself is not so much to be understood as enjoyed. The finale, which takes a sudden turn to sci-fi is confusing at best, and the songs while enjoyable enough are not exactly compelling musically.

But who cares? The movie is a joy to behold for its vivid visuals, its unabashed sexuality -- both gay and straight, and its undeniable originality. It's about to enter its fortieth year playing in theaters, the longest theatrical run in movie history, and after this unique experience I can easily see it running for forty more.