Hairspray

‘Pleasantly plump’ teen Tracey Turnblad (Ricki Lake) dances her way onto Baltimore TV using the opportunity to send up the absurdity of segregation in John Waters’ commercial hit.

When overweight teen Tracey Turnblad (Ricki Lake) dances her way onto Baltimore TV and a spot on the Corny Collins Show she uses her platform to send up the absurdity of segregation. Hairspray was John Waters' biggest hit of his career, spawning an award-winning Broadway musical and a film remake, and whilst it may have been a joyous PG-rated film, it maintained the subversive edge which had come to define his work. Divine stars as Tracey's mother, Edna, giving him the recognition he so longed for as a serious actor just weeks before his untimely death.