Poison - Todd Haynes

Poison, directed by Todd Haynes was released in 1991. It is a film inspired by the writings of Jean Genet and includes quotations from three of his books - Miracle of the Rose, Our Lady of the Flowers, and Thief's Journal. The film is made of three stories that intersect - Hero, Horror, and Homo. Hero is about a boy who kills his father and then flies away out of the second story window. It is told through interviews and is quite interesting...all the back stories and how they create an image of this boy we know very little bout. The second film (all in black and white) is named Horror. It tells the story of a doctor who somehow extracts sexual desire out of a human body. He accidentally drinks it and slowly transforms into a monster covered in sores and pustules. Coming out in 1991, this is clearly a metaphor about AIDS. The third section is named Homo and is based more specifically on the writings of Genet. It deals with a prison wedding between two men, love forsaken, and desire.

Haynes had done a few short films at this point. His first feature was named Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story...told all with Barbie dolls. At this point I don't believe you are able to see it anywhere as the Carpenter family took offense and refused to allow it to be shown. He followed Poison with a very interesting film named Dottie Gets Spanked. Haynes has such a great style and always picks really interesting subjects for his films. While I don't think you can see a film and know that it is a Haynes (unlike Wes Anderson, and others), his work is something I really enjoy. You should check it out, and if you are interested in more about Genet, I'm working my way through this gorgeous biography.