a grade "B+" on scale of A to F. Though critical reviews were mixed, the performances of the three leads were roundly praised. Joe Brown of The Washington Post called the film "fiercely funny" and wrote, "Three snaps up for Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes and John Leguizamo, who walk the walk, and work it." Emanuel Levy of Variety gave a mixed review, but wrote, "Sporting blond wigs, Snipes admirably wiggles his hips while wearing high-heeled red shoes. Using a low register, Swayze also excels as a man still suffering from parental rejection. Shining throughout is the brilliant Leguizamo, as the Latino spitfire who needs to prove to his comrades that he’s more than 'a mere boy in a dress.'" Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote "What is amazing is how the movie manages to be funny and amusing while tippy-toeing around (a) sex, (b) controversy and (c) any originality in the plot. Credit for that belongs to Swayze, Snipes and Leguizamo, who are surprisingly good at playing drag queens." While Ebert gave the film two and ½ stars out of four, his colleague Gene Siskel gave a more positive review and predicted an Oscar nomination for Swayze. Multiple critics pointed out the film’s similarities to The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, and said To Wong Foo was subpar in comparison due to the predictability of its plot, script and tonal unevenness. The decision to have the leads spend most of the film in drag, even going to bed in their wigs and makeup, was also criticized as straining credulity. Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times wrote screenwriter Beane and director Kidron "don’t seem to know any way to emphasize the humanity of their characters except by swaddling them in mushy cliches." Actor and writer Michael Kearns argued the film and its promotion is "eager to wink and snicker at homosexuality." The film's omission of "any hint of gay sexuality" was noted by Janet Maslin of The New York Times, as well as Brown of the Post, who decried the fact that "always in the (admittedly few) mainstream movies with gay characters, [the film's] hero-ines" do not get to partake in the film's romantic story arcs, and appear to only function as asexual fairy godmothers for the townspeople of Snydersville. In a positive review, Edward Guthmann of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote, "It's a distant cry from