Drag Queens, Blood, and Family Dysfunction Collide

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MOVIE REVIEW
The Cramps: A Period Piece
18+ –

Genre: Horror, Comedy, Fantasy
Year Released: 2025
Runtime: 1h 29m
Director(s): Brooke H. Cellars
Writer(s): Brooke H. Cellars
Cast: Lauren Kitchen, Brooklyn Woods, Harlie Madison, Martini Bear, Wicken Taylor, Michelle Malentina, Jared Bankens, Sylvia Grace Crim, Olivia Peck, Gabriel Steven Perez
Where to Watch: shown at the 2025 Fantastic Fest

RAVING REVIEW: Few films dare to wear their metaphor so boldly, and fewer still succeed in making it feel as alive as this. THE CRAMPS: A PERIOD PIECE is exactly that kind of film — an audacious, messy, heartfelt horror-comedy that transforms menstrual pain into both monster and muse. It’s the debut feature of Brooke H. Cellars, and it does what any festival premiere should: provoke, entertain, and welcome a new genre voice to the stage.

The story centers on Agnes Applewhite, played by Lauren Kitchen in her feature film debut. Agnes is a young woman desperate to escape the suffocating control of her holier-than-thou mother and tightly wound sister. She takes a job as a shampoo girl at a beauty salon, a space that offers freedom, community, and the promise of self-discovery. But with this newfound independence comes another burden: debilitating menstrual cramps that twist her body and her reality until they manifest as unexpected horrors.

Shot on 35mm and drawing influence from John Waters’ creative mind, Mario Bava’s gothic beauty, and Fellini’s surreal dreamscapes, the film is a kaleidoscope of style. Bright wigs, drag performance, exaggerated fashion, and exaggerated comedy clash together to create a world where camp and pain are indistinguishable. It’s outrageous and theatrical, yet rooted in the raw truth of living with a body that refuses to cooperate.

Cellars’ director’s statement makes it clear that this project was born out of personal pain. Having battled endometriosis (a disease in which tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside the uterus, causing severe pain in the pelvis), she set out to translate invisible suffering into a horror framework that could be both distorted and strangely comforting. That intent is felt in every frame. The horror doesn’t come from lurking killers or supernatural beasts, but from the reality of existing with a condition that isolates and shames. By externalizing that experience, THE CRAMPS give it shape, voice, and teeth.

Kitchen is a revelation. Her portrayal of Agnes is timid and optimistic, caught between pleasing others and carving her own identity. She embodies both the fragility and resilience of someone trying to be everything at once: daughter, sister, worker, dreamer, survivor. For a first film, her presence is magnetic, grounding even the wildest with sincerity.

Around her, the ensemble heightens the world into a near-caricature without losing the humanity. Brooklyn Woods, as the domineering mother, is chilling in her control, while Harlie Madison’s tightly wound sister teeters between loyalty and rebellion. Martini Bear, a larger-than-life queen, provides warmth and humor, serving as the surrogate maternal figure Agnes never had. Wicken Taylor’s Teddy Teaberry adds tenderness, opening Agnes’ perspective on love and acceptance. Michelle Malentina, chaotic and fabulous as Holiday Hitchcocker, shows that even disaster can carry dignity. Together, the cast embodies the film’s ethos: a community of misfits holding each other up, even while life falls apart.

Cellars draws from a wide range of influences — everything from DAISIES to CARRIE to MOMMIE DEAREST. The result is a patchwork aesthetic that sometimes risks overwhelming the story but never loses its intent. The production design and costume choices lean into excess, and the film often feels like a living collage. THE CRAMPS embraces the absurdity of bodies, families, and the rituals we build around them.

The stylization is so strong that moments of clarity can be buried under layers of camp. There are scenes where the imagery threatens to overshadow the characters, making the narrative feel episodic rather than cohesive. Yet, these indulgences also feel true to the spirit of the project. Grain, color saturation, and texture elevate the world beyond the digital, grounding the surreal in something tactile.

As a debut, it’s fearless. Cellars has already proven herself in the short film world, and this expansion into feature territory carries the same raw, DIY energy — but with the confidence of a filmmaker unafraid to push boundaries. The film’s imperfections feel almost necessary, reminders that art born from personal experience doesn’t need to be polished to be powerful.

Ultimately, THE CRAMPS: A PERIOD PIECE is about resilience. About finding humor in humiliation, solidarity in spectacle, and selfhood in suffering. It’s chaotic, campy, heartfelt, and defiantly original. It may not appeal to all audiences, but for those willing to embrace its unruly spirit, it’s a film that won’t be forgotten.

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[photo courtesy of WARPED WITCH CINEMA]

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