Media featuring LGBT content
In 1976 Eve Plumb shed her Jan Brady past by playing a sex worker in Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway. The TV-movie was a success so NBC filmed a sequel about her gay-for-pay boyfriend. Alexander: The Other Side of … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Alexander: The Other Side of Dawn (1977)
Before Will and Grace, Sean Hayes starred in the indie film Billy’s Hollywood Screen Kiss. Billy’s a depressed photographer who falls for an enigmatic model (Brad Rowe). The guy says he’s straight but Billy spends rest of the film harassing … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Billy’s Hollywood Screen Kiss (1998)
This August I reviewed the films at the Los Angeles Outfest. This month I’m discussing additional films from the Chicago Reeling Festival, Atlanta’s Out on Film and San Francisco’s Frameline Festival. There were several recurring themes. Breaking Up Are We … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Film Festivals 2020
Spin the Bottle follows four childhood friends to a lakeside retreat. Their Big Chill reunion is interrupted by the arrival of the nerd they tormented in school. He’s hot now and ready to play. Sexy strangers have upended the lives … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Spin the Bottle (1998)
A music promoter (Ian Rose) picks up a baby-faced boxer (Steve Bell) outside a club in Blackpool. The hook up goes badly but blossoms into romance. The promoter’s career is taking off. His jealous employers (Dani Behr and The Who‘s … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Like It Is (1998)
The Sea (Il Mare) follows a troubled actor who visits Capri. He finds himself pursued by a naïve young man and a jaded older woman. He welcomes the attention but refuses to commit to either. Giuseppe Patroni Griffi’s directing debut … Continue reading LGBT Movies: The Sea (1962)
Outfest has been promoting LGBTQIA+ stories and filmmakers since 1982. The nonprofit organization, based in Los Angeles, streamed over 160 films online from August 20-30, 2020. I managed to catch over 25 features and 60 short films. It was a … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Outfest 2020
Bedrooms and Hallways is a bisexual romcom that is hindered by binary language. “Gay” Leo (Kevin McKidd) seduces “straight” Brendan (James Purefoy) at a men’s retreat only to be “turned hetero” himself by Brendan’s ex-girlfriend Sally (Jennifer Ehle). No one … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Bedrooms and Hallways (1998)
A self-loathing artist (Arye Gross) returns to his rural home to care for his ailing grandfather. He’s soon pining for his high school crush and ignoring the attentions of a pathologically shy store clerk (Eric Schweig). He expects homophobia but … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Big Eden (2000)
Michael’s boyfriend is leaving the U.S. for work. His ex-boyfriend is living with HIV. We follow him for a day as he mentally prepares to lose them both. Parting Glances could have been a dirge but writer/director Bill Sherwood fills … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Parting Glances (1986)
Before Trolls World Tour, From Justin to Kelly and American Idol, Kelly Clarkson had a cameo in 2002’s Issues 101. This zero-budget sex farce follows a gay college student who hooks up with a closeted frat boy and his out … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Issues 101 with Kelly Clarkson!
Young Soul Rebels is a thriller set amidst the London music scene of the late 1970’s. A pair of DJs find themselves mixed up in a murder. The mystery takes a back seat to a tour of clashing subcultures: Gay … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Young Soul Rebels (1991)
CBS aired Welcome Home, Bobby on February 22, 1986. It was directed by Herbert Wise (I, Claudius) and starred Timothy Williams (Cheers). Bobby is a 16-year-old boy who gets seduced by a 35-year-old man. When gossip spreads his father (Tony … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Welcome Home, Bobby (1986)
Julie Andrews and Ann-Margaret play the disapproving mothers of a gay couple (Hugh Grant and Zeljko Ivanek). Zeljko’s dying of AIDS so the women go on a road trip to visit them. Cue fights, tears, and some very large wigs. … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Our Sons (1991)
A working-class couple turns a run-down launderette into a thriving business. My Beautiful Laundrette features a strong ensemble and a star-making performance from Daniel Day-Lewis. The simple plot allows writer Hanif Kureishi and director Stephen Frears to examine the race … Continue reading LGBT Movies: My Beautiful Laundrette (1985)
I came out of the closet in my sophomore year of high school. Junior year my friends and I organized a Gay Straight Alliance. This made it easier to stand up to the bullies who’d been harassing me for over … Continue reading LGBT Media: Out and Proud Teens
Love, Victor follows a Latinx teen who transfers to Creekwood High School in Atlanta, GA. This was the setting for Becky Albertalli’s Creekwood novels and Greg Berlanti’s 2018 film Love, Simon. Simon was embraced by friends and family after being … Continue reading LGBT Media: Love, Victor (2020)
Viktor und Viktoria follows a cisgendered female who takes a job as a female impersonator. The act is a hit but she soon falls for a heterosexual man. Will she give up the charade to be with him? This German … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Viktor und Viktoria (1933)
German lesbian boarding schools? Italian gender-fluid sky pirates? Yes please! Today, I look at two groundbreaking films that explored gender and sexuality in a pre-censorship era. I’ll provide two spoiler filled recaps. Filibus, the Mysterious Air Pirate (1915, Italy) This … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Filibus (1915) & Mädchen in Uniform (1931)
Stephen Baldwin likes Lara Flynn Boyle, who likes Josh Charles, who likes Stephen Baldwin. They’re fit young college students living in the same dorm. The solution seems obvious… or does it? Threesome hadn’t much to offer a closeted teen in … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Threesome (1994) & Fun Down There (1989)
Today’s films concern angsty gays at British Boarding Schools. In fiction such schools are cauldrons of rage and lust. Lord of the Flies and Plato’s Symposium. A place where a gay man can discover his true self or be beaten … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Another Country (1984) & Maurice (1987)
