Medusa: Dare to Be Truthful

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Medusa: Dare to Be Truthful was a 1992 mockumentary film starring comedienne Julie Brown as the title character, with actress Kathy Griffin and actor Donal Logue in supporting roles. Comedians Tom Kenny and Bobcat Goldthwait and game show host Wink Martindale also made cameo appearances in the film.

The film lampoons the legitimate documentary picture In Bed With Madonna, (known as Madonna: Truth or Dare in the United States). In the original, pop superstar Madonna allowed cameras to follow her around for a no-holds-barred peek into her life during her Blond Ambition Tour. In this spoof, Brown plays Medusa, a controlling, hyper-sexual blonde bombshell who has allowed a documentary crew to follow her on her "Blonde Leading the Blonde Tour".

The film, about one hour long and originally produced as a Showtime television special, goes to great pains to recreate costumes, sets and situations that occurred in the original documentary.

In an interview with celebrity columnist Michael Musto of the Village Voice, Brown recalled how Madonna first reacted when saw the film:

"At first I heard she really liked it. Then I heard she didn't like the scene where I rolled around on my dog's grave. She'd rolled around on her mother's—like that wasn't offensive enough? Then she didn't like the scene with the dancers suing me, because that really happened to her." [1]

Shortly after seeing the film, Madonna sent over a half-finished bottle of warm champagne as a dubious gift, to salute Brown's deadpan impersonation. Brown's reaction upon receiving the gift was surprising:

"It was really expensive champagne, but it had Madonna spit in it!"

According to Brown, she drank the bottle.

After its debut on cable television, the film was released on VHS for a limited time until it went out-of-print in the mid-1990s. The DVD version of the film is now available only on Julie Brown's official website.

[edit] Comparison of the original and the spoof

ORIGINAL: Madonna visits the cemetery where her mother is buried. While lying on the ground next to the grave, she says, "I wonder what she looks like now."
SPOOF: Medusa visits the cemetery where her dog "Boomer" is buried. While lying on ground next to the grave, she says, "I wonder what he looks like now," and starts to dig him up with a shovel.

ORIGINAL: Kevin Costner visits Madonna backstage and says her show was "neat". When he leaves, Madonna puts her finger in her mouth and pretends to gag.
SPOOF: Comedian Bobcat Goldthwait visits Medusa backstage and calls her show "nice," and Medusa responds in kind, only he sees her and becomes violently enraged..."I coulda gone to Monster Trucks, you know!"

ORIGINAL: Madonna sings her hit song "Vogue."
SPOOF: Medusa performs her smash hit "Vague"

ORIGINAL: Madonna, in a game of truth or dare, simulates oral sex on a water bottle.
SPOOF: Medusa does the same to a watermelon until it is sucked empty and only the rind remains

ORIGINAL: Madonna's boyfriend Warren Beatty quips "Why would you do anything if it wasn't on camera?"
SPOOF: Medusa's boyfriend Wallace Blatty refuses to visit her in Japan, prompting her to "have sex with the first man I see".

ORIGINAL: Madonna is threatened with arrest for lewd content because of her show.
SPOOF: Medusa is threatened with arrest if she bares "her muffin" during a dance number. She does, and instead is harassed by police for autographs.

ORIGINAL: Madonna refuses to remove sexual elements of her show because it would be "compromising my artistic integrity".
SPOOF: Medusa refuses to eliminate a giant ceramic penis (upon which she dances) from her show, even though it fell on her and almost killed her, because it would be "compromising my artistic integrity".

ORIGINAL: Madonna complains about sound problems during a show and yells at people around her. Stage crew try to soothe the artist by telling her she sounded great.
SPOOF: Medusa accidentally gets electrocuted on stage and yells at persons around her. Stage crew try to soothe the artist by telling her it looked great. Medusa then decides to keep the electrocution in the show, but with a lot less voltage.

[edit] Quotes

Film Director: You were amazing tonight, Medusa. You're so sexy!
Medusa: Duh.

Film Director: I want to cast you in my film. It's an update of "Heidi"...
Medusa: You mean like Shirley Temple Heidi?
Film Director: Yes, but in my movie, Heidi is all grown up. She's exploring her sexuality and she's joined a neo-Nazi regime.
Medusa: (Looking at script title) What's this? "Do the Rich Thing?"
Film Director: No. It's "Do the REICH! Thing".

"I went to the Paws and Claws cemetery to visit the grave of my dead dog Buster. My grandmother used to say 'When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.' But you can't make lemonade out of a dead dog no matter how hard you try!"

"There's the phone booth where I lost my virginity!"

"I hear the crowd in the Puh-hillipines spent millions of dollars on my tickets so there was no way I could cancel. I mean, that's more than some people make in a whole year! They tell me a couple of people in the back row were consumed by molten lava; that's like a real compliment!"

"The prettiest girl in the mirror is Me
But am I still pretty
When there's no one to see?
...Me?"

"Life can be so strange when you're all alone
I tried to call you up but they turned off your phone...
No need to pay this time
This boink's on me
Let's set our brains free
C'mon, you know, you're invited
to the party in my pants...
I'll be a virgin for you and lay my body down
'cause I know more tricks than a rodeo clown"

"Vanna White, Ed McMahon
Nicolette Sheridan
Mary Hart, Chuck Woolery
Are as vague as they can be.
Brooke Shields, Dawber Pam
Personality of Spam
Christie Brinkley, Brosnan Pierce
Bland and boring, something fierce.
Wilson Philips love to sing and
Wreck the cover of a magazine
Daniel Quayle's brain is gone.
Debbie Gibson gives good yawn.
Kelly LeBrock thinks she's great
She's just cold boogers on a paper plate
Why they're famous we don't know, but
Paula Abdul's gotta go
Ladies with no point of view,
fellas who don't have a clue
If they're stars then you can do it
Just be vague, there's nothing to it
Vague, let your body move without thinking
Vague, let your IQ drop while you bop."

"C'mon girls! Do you wanna be a Vixen? Well I'm gonna show you how and it goes like this
Expose yourself! You've got to make him expose himself!
Dare to go bare, just wear your underwear
You'll get a ride home every time!
Don't let your thunderthighs get you down..."