Every once in a while a movie comes along that you usually wouldn't watch, but the critical praise is just too much to ignore. Hedwig and the Angry Inch is one of those movies; it is very unlikely that I would be walking around in the video store and just pick out a movie about a transvestite singer from Germany. However, it had shown up on so many Top Ten Lists that I just had to see it.

As I sat through Hedwig of the Angry Inch, I wasn't overly interested by the story or the visual style of the film. It has a very racy and strange approach to chronology, mixing cartoon and reality, past and present together nonchalantly. The first half hour or so the movie is a little over the top, but maybe that was because I didn't know what to expect.

The longer the movie went, the more I came to respect it. It's completely different from any movie I have liked before in every respect. The storyline, the visual flare, and even the acting was foreign to me. Yet, for some strange reason, I enjoyed it. I was intrigued by it. I came to see what all of those critics were talking about.

I will not watch Hedwig and the Angry Inch again. I will not seek other movies of a similar type. Nevertheless, I respect the daringness of the film. The movie has great acting, especially from the lead John Cameron Mitchell, who also wrote and directed the film. It's visually impressive. It has a good plot. It is a good movie.

At times Hedwig and the Angry Inch goes a little over-the-top, but most of the time it is dramatic and funny, and fairly entertaining. Again, it is not something that I would watch again, but it is definitely something that I would recommend to someone who wants to see a movie that is a little different.

Review by Erik Samdahl. Erik is a marketing and technology executive by day, avid movie lover by night. He is a member of the Seattle Film Critics Society.