hedwig ( john cameron mitchell ) was born a boy named hansel in east berlin .
as a teen seeking his ” other half , ” he reluctantly agrees to a sex change operation in order to marry american g . i .
luther ( maurice dean wint ) .
the operation , performed by a hack surgeon , is botched , and the ” angry inch ” is all that’s left .
now a ” she ” , hedwig comes to america , is abandoned by luther , forms a rock band and falls for her 17-year old lover/prot ? g ? , tommy , only to be rejected by him later , too .
she and her band , the angry inch , shadows the now-famous tommy gnosis across the us ( for revenge ? ) , but hedwig is really in search of her lost other half in ” hedwig and the angry inch . ”
first time helmer john cameron mitchell , along with composer/lyricist stephen trask , created and starred in their acclaimed off-broadway production that has become the movie .
and quite a movie it is in its eclectic variety of songs , outrageous costumes , sets and makeup and , especially , a riveting performance by mitchell as the title character .
mitchell and trask have reinvented the movie musical and couple it with the underlying story of just whom hedwig is and what she is looking for .
i am , by far , not a big fan of musicals .
sure , there are exceptions , like bob fosse’s ” all that jazz ” and ” cabaret , ” but , for the most part , they are just not my cup of tea .
” hedwig and the angry inch ” is an exception , though , with its combination of humor , wit and a collection of tunes that covers musical styles ranging from ” the rocky horror picture show ” and meatloaf to david bowie to the sex pistols .
the original songs , by stephen trask ( also appearing as one of the members of the band the angry inch ) , are full of energy and variety and , even though it’s not my kind of music , i found every one entertaining and fun .
the audience i saw ” hedwig ” with thought so , too .
the main attraction to this one-man/woman show is the presence of its star .
john cameron mitchell gives a solid , sometimes fun , sometimes angry performance as a person searching for self-enlightenment and love .
as a young boy growing up in east berlin , hansel is abused by his g . i .
father and raised by his german mother in a tiny flat so small that ” mother would make me play in the oven ” where he listened to pop music on armed forces radio .
later , as a young man , he meets luther , another g . i .
and is swept off of his feet .
the ensuing angry inch incident comes soon after .
flash forward to a trailer park in junction city , kansas , and luther is leaving hedwig for another boy .
frustrated and broke , she takes on baby-sitting and the odd ” job ” to make ends meet .
she also forms a band with four korean housewives and the musical talent of hedwig is born .
she meets , falls for and loses young tommy , who steals her songs and goes off to become a rock sensation .
jealous and angry , hedwig and her new band begins a campaign to shadow tommy’s tours and , with the help of her manager , phyllis stein ( andrea martin ) , is trying get a law suit going against the star for stealing her songs .
hedwig and the angry inch get gigs , not coincidentally , at a chain of seafood restaurants that just happen to be next to the forums where tommy gnosis is playing .
things finally come to a head , so to speak , in new york city .
the popularity of the off-broadway musical and its offshoots have garnered a ready-made audience base for ” hedwig . ”
the wit , humor , music and search for identity has great appeal to young adults , but the charismatic presence of mitchell makes this a cut above what it could have been .
it is this one-man/woman show that casts its spotlight on its ” internationally ignored ” rock star and mitchell is outstanding in the role .
there isn’t a lot going on with other characters , though there are amusing little sidebars , like hedwig’s backup singer/lover , yitzak ( miriam shor ) , deciding to break away from the band to join a polynesian road show of ” rent ” as a puerto rican drag queen .
the low budget that the moviemakers have for the production belies the quality of the film .
attention to details – hedwig’s costumes and outrageous ” cabaret ” -like makeup ; the seedy trailer park setting ; and , the kitschy seafood restaurants – are loads of fun to watch and lend the appropriate air to the proceeds , all on what has to be a beer budget .
” hedwig and the angry inch ” may not be for everybody , but the energy of the effort , the songs , the imaginative sets and costumes and a fast steady pace make it a pleasure to watch .
if you’re a fan of contemporary , edgy music , it is an even bigger draw .
i give it a b+ .