Warhol films mental collapse in a hotel room and calls it cinema. He's not wrong.
Queen of China (Hanoi Hanna), based on Ronald Tavel’s scenario, loosely refers to the real-life radio show host who broadcast antiwar propaganda to American soldiers in Vietnam. It is Mary Woronov’s showcase piece, in which she metes out physical and psychological abuse to Susan Bottomly, Angelina “Pepper” Davis, and Ingrid Superstar in a room at the Chelsea Hotel. At first, the cast tries to accurately adhere to Tavel’s scenario, but by reel two it all falls apart—the performers begin to use their real names and exhibit a sort of residual stress disorder that permeates the rest of the film.
Acting
Woronov's genuinely terrifying improvised cruelty.
Production
Chelsea Hotel as decaying character itself.
Director
Andy Warhol
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The real Hanoi Hanna broadcast from 1965-1970; this film weaponizes her psychological tactics in a cramped hotel room.
Warhol allegedly refused to call 'cut,' letting the reel run out to capture genuine performer exhaustion and breakdown.
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