Mark Blane's semi-autobiographical New York fantasia Cubby toured film festivals this summer, playing at events like OutFest in LA, Frameline in San Francisco, New York's NewFest and Reeling Film Festival in Chicago, among others. It's a film that seems tailor-made for festivals -- quirky, strange, shot on 16mm film, a bit clunky, with subject matter that was never... Continue Reading →
One defining, central fact of most queer lives is some measure of repression and/or trauma during adolescence, some essential hiding of the self that leaves many us grappling for much of the rest of our lives with when, how, to whom, and for what purpose we choose to disclose our various identities to the people... Continue Reading →
What do you call a rom-com without the com? Technically From Zero to I Love You isn’t a comedy. It’s a gay romance through and through, but it has all the tropes of a rom-com. From the meet-cute, the therapist, the art-gallery job, the zippy title, the improbable scenarios, the side-kicks whose only function is... Continue Reading →
The first thing you see in Lulu Wang’s touching, entertaining The Farewell is a card that reads, “Based On An Actual Lie”. Some of my favorite films and shows have explored the cost of lies, including All The President’s Men, Election, and the recent HBO miniseries Chernobyl. Wang’s film, while firmly in the popular entertainment... Continue Reading →
One of the advantages of hating all things superhero is that I don’t have to take part in those “bro-ey” discussions that usually begin with, “Dude, did you see what Thanos did to civilization? I can’t wait for the next 40 installments!” I tend to go blank when I’m with a gaggle of gays who... Continue Reading →
The path of the queer community has never been walked in a straight line. The seminal 1984 documentary Before Stonewall charts the history of the gay and lesbian movement in the United States from the Twenties to Stonewall in 1969, making for an invaluable primer into our own collective backstory. Restored and re-released in selected... Continue Reading →
Films dealing with grieving often face an uphill battle when an audience feels forced to identify with a character in mourning that they’ve just met. Great filmmakers and actors find something specific in visual terms or in character detail to latch us in, while others end up with less than engaging experiences. Writer-director John Butler... Continue Reading →
Growing up, I always had a soft spot for big budget American studio films. I subconsciously knew most lacked subtlety and sophistication, but man was it fun to watch Goldie Hawn and Chevy Chase rappel down the side of a building in Foul Play or see Liza Minnelli, Gene Hackman and Burt Reynolds share the... Continue Reading →
My mother took me to my first concert when I was a young teen. Ever the stylish trailblazer, she wore a halter top, hot pants, go-go boots and a cape as she led me into a giant arena in Cleveland to see none other than Elton John. She stood and sang the whole time and... Continue Reading →
