I'm The One That I Want, the film version of Margaret Cho's brutally honest, wicked funny and very moving one-woman show, is brimming with the energy of a live performance. Performing before a capacity crowd at the Warfield Theater in her hometown of San Francisco, Cho is a real homecoming queen. Of course her material, much of which is as gay as many of San Francisco's residents, is so outrageous and hilarious, that she is also the reigning queen of comedy. Almost nothing is sacred; from her mother's well-intentioned but off-kilter phone messages to her abuse at the hands of ignorant network executives to the distinctive smell that brings her back to her childhood, Margaret Cho knows just what to say to make you laugh and make you think, and even make you do both at the same time.
The films opens this week.
Gregg Shapiro: There is a shot of you just before you take the stage at the Warfield Theater in the movie version of your one woman show I'm The One That I Want, and the excited expression on your face is like the one a kid has before getting their favorite ride at an amusement park. Is that how it feels for you?
Margaret Cho: I think so. I think that there is a lot of that excitement and also that terror, a little bit. Right before you go on, it's like "Oh, my God. What's going to happen?" ( laughs ) . But I always have that excitement. I think part of it had to do with the fact that I was playing much larger venues this time than I ever have. The crowds were like four or five times as big as what I was used to playing. It was really a huge jump in energy, and just noise. It was very loud and exciting. When the music would come on ... I love that song "Cherry Bomb" ( by The Runaways ) , and I played it every night before I went on. It's such a bad-girl song. I just wanted to run out there. The lights would come down and, I remember, my heart would just jump out of my chest, like "OH MY GOD! She's going to come out!" I was so excited. I felt like I was part of the audience. Then I realized it was me and it was so scary that it was me. I went through a whole range of emotions in those few seconds before going out. It is definitely like a ride.
GS: Your parents are among the people entering the theater for the show, and you say in a voice-over that neither of them have ever seen you perform live before and that it was a concern of yours. What did they think of the show?
MC: They loved the show. They were really happy for me. They really love my career. I think that they just never came to see me because they felt like what I do is so scary. They were so afraid for me. That I was going to make a mistake or embarrass myself or embarrass them, and they were overly concerned with the machinations of what was going on backstage. They were just freaked out, so they never actually came. When they did come, it was really overwhelming for them, because they never realized how huge all of it had become. They were really happy. They loved the show.
GS: You told the audience about how excited you were to be performing at the Warfield for the first time, because you used to go there to see concerts and shows. Was there one particularly memorable concert or show that you saw there?
MC: I remember seeing Crowded House there when I was just starting to do standup. That was a really influential concert for me because I love them. I thought that if I could be famous I would one day get to meet them. I actually did meet the lead singer, Neil Finn, like three weeks ago, which is really weird. Because I'd completely forgot about it ( meeting them ) , and then I met him ( laughs ) . You meet people in this business and you hang out and talk to them, and it's no big deal. I had this really different vision of show business when I was growing up. I thought that the world was all jet-set and Concorde Airplanes and VIP lounges everywhere you went. Show business isn't really like that at all. It's like having a regular job a lot of the time. It's not as glamorous as it's made out to be.
GS: I'm really glad that you brought up Neil Finn. I noticed that you thanked him in the credits at the end of the movie. I interviewed Tim Finn, his brother, a few months ago, and he was wonderful.
MC: Oh yeah. They're both great. I really love their music. They've been very influential, kind of like a spirit guide, guiding me. I really love what they do. I'd just like to capture that honesty for my own work.
GS: Your show is peppered with references to a variety of famous people, among them eccentric fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld. Has Lagerfeld ever sent you anything to wear while you are performing?
MC: No, he never has. Andre Leon Talley, however, is a very big fan of mine, and always insists that Karl loves me and loves all of it ( laughs ) . He should send me something to wear.
GS: You also make mention of the Facts Of Life girls and your ex-boyfriend Quentin Tarantino in your performance. Have you ever heard from Blair, Jo, Tootie or Natalie?
MC: I wish I had. I love them. I actually did a production of The Facts Of Life with all drag queens, here in Los Angeles. It was quite an event. I played Natalie, and I was so thrilled to do so. But, I've actually never met them or heard from them. I love them all. And Quentin Tarantino is a great fan of the show and a great fan of mine. I also love him very much. It's fun to name-drop a little bit. To talk about Quentin is to talk about family, really. He's just my really close friend.
GS: The movie version of I'm The One That I Want is not the first time that you have appeared on the big screen. You were also in the movie It's My Party. Would you like to have a career as a movie star?
MC: I would. I think it would be great. Although I love doing standup and I love writing my own shows and touring. That's all very important to me. I would like to do both.
GS: Speaking of being a movie star, will you be attending any of the premiere screenings of your movie?
MC: I will be at the premiere screening in New York City, at the Quad Cinema. I'll also be at screenings at the New Art in Los Angeles.
GS: You mention a screenplay in the movie. Whatever happened to that screenplay? Is it going to be produced?
MC: I don't think so. It's a very different screenplay. It's really funny, but it's not something that I would necessarily make right now. It's very moody and thoughtful. It's a comedy, but it's not where I'm at in my life. I don't think I'd produce that kind of thing at this time.
GS: Comedy concert movies are having something of a comeback. Ellen DeGeneres has one that is currently showing on HBO and Kings Of Comedy, directed by Spike Lee and starring D. L. Hughley, Steve Harvey, Bernie Mac, and Cedric The Entertainer, is opening in movie theaters soon. Why do you think that this style of filmmaking is making a comeback?
MC: I think that people are looking for a sense of real and raw entertainment. There is so much happening with computers in film ... there's so much digital and artificial stuff that there seems to be a need for really raw entertainment, which is what standup comedy is. That seems like a natural evolution to me, that there would be so much interest in it now, a return to that kind of film.
In the '70s and the '80s we had Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy. It's been done before, and it continues to be something this is really interesting and fun and fresh. I think that all of those comedians are great, so why not have a movie?
GS: You make reference, during the movie, to having sex with a woman, and to a couple of different boyfriends. Are you currently romantically involved?
MC: I am not currently romantically involved, although I would like to be. And I have many options.
