Shake and Shimmy It With All of Your Might

Well on its way to becoming the movie musical of its generation, Hairspray will go where no other movie in its original run has gone before: starting this Friday, special edition "sing-a-long" prints will begin screening in select cities.

Not only is this a perfect excuse to see the movie again, this is an excellent way for New Line to keep the movie in the public eye ... and ears. Stars Nikki Blonsky and Elijah Kelly will kick off the special showings with a launch event in New York City August 1.

In related news, the Hairspray soundtrack is currently #4 on the Billboard Top 200 and is the #1 album on iTunes. Over on the singles chart, "You Can't Stop the Beat" is #88 on Billboard's Top 100.

Also on sale is the official Hairspray "companion book", filled with never-before-seen pictures and removable goodies like "Corny Collins Council" trading cards and "Har-D-Har Hut" stickers. The book would make a perfect gift for anyone, like, say, your favorite blogger ...

And for a way-cool three-way comparison between the original movie, the stage musical and the movie musical, head on over to Broadway.com.

Click here to purchase either the Hairspray soundtrackor companion bookfrom Amazon.com.
Links via HairsprayMovie.com, Playbill.com and Broadway.com.

Michelangelo Antonioni: 1912-2007

Michelangelo Antonioni, the Italian modernist who's stark, enigmatic films provided a counterpoint to the neorealism of such peers as Frederico Fellini, died yesterday, the same day as another cinematic legend, Ingmar Bergman.

Antonioni made his mark on international filmmaking in the 1960's with his acclaimed L'Avventura trilogy (featuring his muse, Monica Vitti) and the highly influential Blow Up, a watershed moment for the swinging decade. Following the infamous Zabriskie Point, Antonioni rebounded with The Passenger (starring Jack Nicholson), considered by many one of his finest works.

Although not as prolific as some of his contemporaries, Antonioni's seductive visual style and minimalist vision placed him among the elite of international iconoclasts. His impact and influence on world film is immeasurable.

Links via Imdb.com and NYTimes.com.

Mmmm ... Box Office Smash

Despite some mediocre reviews (including mine), The Simpsons Movie raked in the (wait for it) d'oh this weekend, making it the highest-grossing debut for a traditionally animated feature. Obviously, there are a lot more Simpsons fans out there then anybody realized.

In a nutshell (mmmm ... nutshells), I felt that the movie, while funny at times, lacked anything unique to say as a feature film. The show has been on the air for going on 19 seasons, and it's clear its glory days are behind them. Perhaps if the movie had been made earlier in the series' run, or was handed over to a fresh writer (instead of nine-plus people who have been churning out the "d'ohs!" for years now), it may have turned out a better movie experience, not merely a good extended TV episode.

Meanwhile, for a look back at the best Simpsons movie parodies, visit the Film Babble Blog. And for the gay view on the franchise, the San Francisco Bay Guardian lists the 10 reasons why they love Springfield, and PlanetOut.com offers their own "Ultimate Gay Simpsons Quiz".

UPDATE: The Simpsons Movie is now available on DVDfrom Amazon.com.

The Latest on DVD: Go Spartans and More

The latest and greatest available on DVD this week:

New Releases:

• 300- That is the number for DVD this week, and apparently they are releasing that many different versions of the homoerotic/homophobic (poe-tay-toe/pah-taa-tah) epic starring Gerard Butler and a bunch of well-oiled extras. And riding on its coattails:
• The History Channel Presents Last Stand of the 300
• Hot Fuzz- The buddy/cop comedy from the creators of Shaun of the Dead.
• Starter for 10- Starring dreamy James McAvoy.
• Pathfinder- Starring Lord of the Rings' Karl Urban.
• Shooter- Starring Marky Mark.

The Classics Aisle:

• Film Noir Classics Collection, Volume 4- Ten new-to-DVD movies are included in this new set from Warner (titles also sold separately in double feature packs):
• Act of Violence and Mystery Street
• Crime Wave and Decoy
• Illegal and The Big Steal
• They Live By Night and Side Street
• Where Danger Lives and Tension
• Popeye the Sailor: 1933-1938, Volume 1- The spinach-eating seaman finally gets a decent DVD collection.
• 20 Million Miles to Earth- Please note: This two-disc 50th anniversary edition is colorized, but Ray Harryhausen says it's OK.

Gay Films:

• Get a Life- The tale of a gay guy's search for "a straight guy willing to turn gay just to be with him" (such demands).
• Whole New Thing- A whole new take on the typical coming-of-age story.
• Looking for Langston- Director Isaac Julien's provocative look at black gay icon, Langston Hughes.

TV on DVD:

• The Best of The Kids in the Hall, Volume 2
• Dallas: The Complete Seventh Season
• The Archie Show: The Complete Series
• Space: 1999 30th Anniversary Edition Megaset
• Thunderbirds Megaset

Scary Stuff:

• The History Channel: Haunted History of Hollywood
• Learn to Dance with John O'Hurley & Charlotte Jorgensen
• John Wayne's Tribute to America

And Finally:

• The Rhineman Exchange- Check out the cast for this mini-series from 1977: Lauren Hutton, John Huston, Roddy McDowell, José Ferrer, Larry Hagman, Stephen Collins, Claude Akins, Rene Auberjonois and Werner Klemperer. I have no idea if it is any good or not, but who cares?

Click on the individual links to purchase them at Amazon.com.

Link via WashingtonPost.com.

Comic-Con '07: Bumps in the Night

Don't be scared, it's only a bunch of horror movies ...

- Trick 'r Treat (pictured) looks like good scary fun ... so why isn't it opening this Halloween?

- Apparently, all former metal heads take the natural career progression from rock music to slasher flicks. Following in the footsteps of Rob Zombie, Twisted Sister Dee Snider directs his own splatterfest, Hatchet.

- For more gore for your buck, check out the R-rated trailer for Resident Evil: Extinction, via the good folks at Cinematical.

- Don't miss Clive Barker's explanation how he came up with the title for Midnight Meat Train, courtesy of The Movie Blog.

- First The Shawshank Redemption, then The Green Mile, then The Mist, due out later this year; Frank Darabont sure has a thing for Stephen King. Darabont will next tackle The Long Walk, an adaptation of one of King's Richard Bachman books.

- Underworld 3, any one?

- Question: what would happen if a horde of vampires descended on a town without sunlight for a whole month? 30 Days of Night is the answer.

- In more vamp news, Fox 2000 pays a pretty penny for the rights to The Passage, a trilogy of terror set in an apocalyptic future.

- Looks like Jessica Alba inherited Sigourney Weaver's Ghostbuster kitchen appliances in The Eye.

- And whoever designed the international poster art for Saw IV sure knows how to get ... ahead.

Links via MovieWeb.com, ObsessedWithFilm.com, MoviesBlogMTV.com, Cinematical.com, TheMovieBlog.com, Bloody-Disgusting.com and Variety.com.

Brief Encounters

Anyone who has visited their online store or received a catalog from TLA Video knows that they have some unique categories for their videos. In addition to such obvious sections as "Editor's Picks" and "Lesbian Erotica", shoppers can browse for titles under such tittillating headings as "Hollywood Full Frontal" and "International Skin".

In their latest attempt to provide their customers with the utmost in specialized choices, TLA has recently added a new category, "Men in Briefs". Reasoning that most A-list actors avoid the big screen full monty (Ewan McGregor notwithstanding), this section will include a vast array of cinematic treasures with one simple common denominator: movie stars in their underwear.

A surprisingly limited selection for now, "Men in Briefs" features some of the quintessential entries into the annals of male undergarments on film, such as John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever, Tim Robbins in Bull Durham (pictured) and Tom Cruise in Magnolia (but no Risky Business?) And let us not forget White Squall, which pretty much defines this whole sub-sub-sub- genre.

Yes, you too can discover that Clay Pigeons' Vince Vaughn "favors tight, white boxer briefs that hug his crotch and legs nice and snug!" and that both Keanu Reeves and Steve Martin (ew) "show nice packages" in the "warm comedy" Parenthood. I betcha that ain't quoted on the box ...

Nonetheless, no matter how breathlessly they describe Jackie Chan's "god-like body", there is no way I'm watching that. And by "that", I mean Jackie Chan's First Strike.

Links via TLAVideo.com.

Comic-Con '07: Fantastic Films

Even more news from the 'Con of Wrath' (and elsewhere), this time focusing on the science fiction and fantasy genres:

- Michelle Pfeiffer, who looks absolutely fetching in her goat-drawn chariot (pictured), stars in Stardust as a witch who will go to any extreme to retain her eternal youth (not unlike some people I know). Robert De Niro co-stars as a pirate who may-or-may-not be gay.

- If you, like me, were a little nonplussed by the original trailer for The Golden Compass, then do yourself a favor: watch this. This extended footage (first seen at the Con) ditches the trailer's stretching to connect it to The Lord of the Rings (way to set yourself up for failure, New Line) and instead focuses on what appears to be the film's strongest asset, the story. Whatever doubts I had are gone; this looks like a must-see. Plus, with a fierce Nicole Kidman and a scruffy Daniel Craig, how could you go wrong?

- Fans of Korean giant dragon movies, take note: Dragon Wars is coming.

- A fantasy movie based on a series of popular children's books that "center on a group of young children as they’re introduced to a magical world"? ... I don't know, David Strathairn, The Spiderwick Chronicles sure sounds like Harry Potter to me.

- For the upcoming remake of Death Race 2000, tough guys Jason Statham and Tyrese Gibson take on the roles originally played by David Carradine and Sylvester Stallone in Roger Corman's original. And who is their ultimate nemesis? Joan Allen. Seriously.

- Hey, fanboy, wanna be in Fanboys?

- If you were as impressed with The Descent as I was, then director Neil Marshall's next film Doomsday should spike your radar ... even if it does sound like 28 Weeks Later.

- "Booed at Cannes". There is just no way Richard Kelly's Southland Tales can ever get away from that fact. But it sure as hell sounds interesting.

Links via StyleScenes.LATime.com, AfterElton.com, AfterEllen.com, YouTube.com, ObsessedWithFilm.com, MoviesBlog.MTV.com and Cinematical.com.

Monthly Wallpaper - August 2007: Cult Movies

I have been creating my own monthly movie collage/calendar wallpaper for about a year now, sharing them with my similarly movie-obsessed friends and family members. And now, I get to share them with you too.

All you have to do is click on the picture above to enlarge it, then simply right click your mouse and select "Set as Background". (You can also save it to your computer and set it up from there if you prefer.) The size is 1024 x 768, but you can modify it if needed in your own photo-editing program.

Each month I will bring you a different theme and, as you can see, August is "Cult Movie" month. Films pictured range from midnight movie staples (The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Pink Flamingos, Eraserhead) to camp classics (Valley of the Dolls, Mommie Dearest, Showgirls) to off-the-wall comedies (Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, This is Spinal Tap) to more current cult converts (Donnie Darko, The Big Lebowski, Scarface) to the truly unique (Grey Gardens, surely more then a mere documentary).

Speaking of The Big Lebowski, EW.com's Popwatch recently pointed out a new "fan handbook" for all those fans of the Coen Brothers' ode to bowling and White Russians to read when they are not going to a Lebowski convention. The tome even got the blessings of 'The Dude' himself, sporting a forward by none other then Jeff Bridges. Click here to purchase I'm a Lebowski, You're a Lebowski: Life, The Big Lebowski, and What Have Youfrom Amazon.com.

Links via PopWatch.EW.com and FilmGuardian.co.uk.

Ingmar Bergman: 1918-2007

Ingmar Bergman, a master of cinema and one of the most influential directors in film history, has died.

In his lifetime, Bergman won many world film prizes, including the Thalberg, the César and several at Cannes. However, all it takes is a casual glance over his filmography to see the true impact the Swedish auteur had on international film:

Smiles of a Summer Night. The Seventh Seal. Wild Strawberries. Through a Glass Darkly. Persona. Cries and Whispers. Scenes from a Marriage. Face to Face. Autumn Sonata. Fanny and Alexander.

Masterpieces all. A true genius has left our midst.

Links via Imdb.com and Reuters.com.

We Could Be Heroes

In honor of their 40th year of publication, The Advocate is currently running an online poll to determine "40 gay heroes" that will be honored in their upcoming anniversary issue.

From the list of 100 nominees, made up of well-known out politicians, celebrities and people who have made a difference to the LGBT community over the past 40 years, you can vote for as little as five and as many as 40.

Film-related nominees include:

• Edward Albee: Playwright, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf
• Pedro Almódovar: Writer/director, All About My Mother
• Mark Bingham: 9/11 hero, depicted in the film United 93
• Charles Busch: Actor/writer, Die, Mommie, Die!
• Ellen DeGeneres: Oscar host/actress, Finding Nemo
• Donna Deitch: Director, Desert Hearts
• Melissa Etheridge: Singer/songwriter, An Inconvenient Truth
• Harvey Fierstein: Actor/writer, Torch Song Trilogy
• David Geffen: Producer, Interview With a Vampire
• Christopher Isherwood: Novelist, source for Cabaret
• Elton John: Singer/songwriter, The Lion King
• Cleve Jones: Subject, Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt
• Larry Kramer: Writer, Women in Love
• Tony Kushner: Writer, Munich
• k.d. lang: Singer/actress, Salmonberries
• Greg Louganis: Athlete/actor, It's My Party
• Ian McKellen: Actor, Gods and Monsters
• Armistead Maupin: Writer, The Night Listener
• Harvey Milk: Subject, The Times of Harvey Milk
• Rosie O'Donnell: Actress, A League of Their Own
• Pratibha Parmar: Director, Warrior Marks
• Marlon Riggs: Director, Tongues Untied
• Vito Russo: Author, The Celluloid Closet
• Christine Vachon: Producer, Boys Don't Cry
• Gus Van Sant: Director, My Own Private Idaho
• Bruce Vilanch: Writer, Oscar shows
• Andy Warhol: Director/producer, Flesh
• John Waters: Director, Pink Flamingos

Head on over to vote, 'cause you can't complain about who is elected unless you do; I will report on the results here when they are released.

Link via Advocate.com.

Cinematic Crush: Chris Evans

Is it hot in here, or is it just Chris Evans?

"Flame on" is right. As hotshot pilot Johnny Storm/high-flying super-stud the Human Torch, Evans scorched the screen in the two Fantastic Four movies with his cocky charisma and smoldering good looks. Why else would I, after watching the first Four, run home and watch Cellular?

I am not alone in this Evans adulation, as witnessed by online shrines and his number two (with a red-hot bullet) ranking on AfterElton's "Hot 100". So what sets Chris apart from a dozen or so other hunks de jour? Some would say those pouty lips or the furry pecs, but I would say it is the whole package ... plus all those photos (like the one above) that pose him like some previously unknown blue movie star from back in the day.

S-s-s-s-s-smokin' ....

Links via Imdb.com, ChrisEvans.com and AfterElton.com.

Bio-Curious

Stepping away from the Comic-Con blitz for a moment with a few award buzz-worthy biopics on the horizon:

- If the awesome trailer wasn't enough, now word has it Cate Blanchett will doff her royal duds in Elizabeth: The Golden Age, the second in a planned Elizabeth trilogy.

- Benicio Del Toro looks hungry for another Oscar. Not only is he going the "real person" route in the role of Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara, but he is also re-teaming with his Traffic director Steve Soderbergh on the film, titled Guerrilla. To see how he compares to all those dorm wall posters, here are some onset pictures.

- And let us give all due praise to Anne Hathaway. Unlike a certain fellow Disney flick alumna, our girl Anne is gaining more and more fame for the right reasons. After her sparkling debut in The Princess Diaries movies, Hathaway turned in fine 'adult' performances in Brokeback Mountain and The Devil Wears Prada, endearing her to us for a lifetime. Now she takes on the role of a lifetime: Jane Austen in Becoming Jane.

Since Hollywood has already mined most of Austen's works, they have now turned to the life of the author herself for the next swooning big screen romance. Hathaway, looking resplendent in her period garb, was born for this part; and the presence of James McAvoy (not too mention Julie Walters and Maggie Smith) doesn't hurt either.

Becoming Jane opens in select cities this Friday, nationwide August 1o.

Links via Cinematical.com, HollywoodReporter.com, Imdb.com, BenicioDelToro.com and YouTube.com.

100 Years ... 100 Posts

To celebrate the 100th post here at Movie Dearest, here is one of my all-time favorite YouTube videos, titled "100 Movies, 100 Quotes, 100 Numbers".

Don't say that "Alonzo Mosley FBI" has too much time on his hands. This meticulously researched, perfectly edited montage - a take-off on the "AFI's 100 Years" lists devoted exclusively to movie clips featuring dialogue containing every number from 100 to 1 - is pure brilliance.

All the classics are here, from "docking bay 94" to "but these go to 11" to "I can eat 50 eggs" (pictured). And numero uno is perfectly chosen. I spent a good afternoon figuring out what movie each quote was from (and still got some wrong), but now you don't have to: the full list is posted on Alonzo's blog. But see how many you can come up with on your own before you take a peek.

Enjoy! And here's to the next 100 posts.

Links via YouTube.com and Acrentropy.blogspot.com.

Comic-Con '07: Toon Up

The latest crop of animation ranges from the "wow" to the "whatever":

- The new teaser for Blue Sky's Horton Hears a Who starts out impressive ... until the elephant opens his mouth and out comes Jim Carrey. And it just goes further downhill once you hear the Who, and it's Steve Carell. I swear, what happened to the good old days when the most famous person in an animated film was Thurl Ravenscroft? And aren't Dr. Seuss characters supposed to speak in rhyme?

- I'm still not sold on this whole mo-cap thing. Tell me, what is the point of making animation so photo-realistic, as in the Beowulf trailer, instead of just doing it in live action?

- In the paw steps of Garfield and Underdog comes Alvin and the Chipmunks ... and they don't look much better.

- The Weinsteins are trying to get their feet wet in animation with Igor, a computer animated comedy that sounds like warmed-over Shrek leftovers. And, yes, it will have a star-studded cast (sigh), including the recently added Eddie Izzard, replacing Jeremy Piven as a mad scientist.

- And the film that will likely be more entertaining then these other four combined, Pixar's WALL·E, was presented at Comic-Con by its director, Andrew Stanton (who won the Oscar for Finding Nemo). Hopes are high for this one, and from what has been said about it, it looks to be another winner. Plus, the title character doesn't speak like a famous person.

Links via Video.aol.com, Members.aol.com, Apple.com, Movies.aol.com, Cinematical.com and YouTube.com.

Nobody Puts Baby in the ... Video Game?

First a movie. Then a TV show. Then another movie. Then another TV show. And now ... the video game.

Yep, soon you too can play the Dirty Dancing video game. Not that you would want to ... or that there's anything wrong with that.

In related Dirty news: Toronto prepares their own version of the London stage version. And the Dirtyness goes on ...

Links via Imdb.com, Codemasters.com and Playbill.com.

Comic-Con '07: Just (Re-)Imagine

Before we get to the latest news on remakes from Comic-Con and elsewhere, be sure to check out the UPDATES to my previous posts regarding Indiana Jones and Iron Man.

- Disney continues their wholesale raiding of that "vault" of theirs with the recently announced "re-imagining" of Escape to Witch Mountain. Gee, could the success of a certain boy wizard have anything to do with it?

- The Invasion is the latest in remakes of Invasion of the Body Snatchers (the third!), but it stars Daniel Craig (along with Nicole Kidman, above), so we'll see it any way.

- First Halloween, now Terror Train??? Can't anyone respect the cinematic heritage of Jamie Lee Curtis? (Although Rob Zombie's Halloween looks promising; check out the creepy trailer.)

- Asian action film fans brace yourself, this ain't pretty: Joel Schumacher may direct an Americanized remake or Breaking News.

- From the "Do We Really Need Another Christmas Carol" file (believe me, its an expando file): Robert Zemeckis, who seems to be overdoing all these mo-cap movies of late, will direct Jim Carrey as Ebenezer Scrooge in the latest take on the tale (damn you, Dickens descendants, for allowing it to slip into public domain!). Zemeckis has also recruited his Back to the Future buddies to co-star. Get ready for Christopher Lloyd as the Ghost of Marley (OK, I can see that) and Michael J. Fox as ... Tiny Tim??? Yikes.

- On the TV to movie front: Johnny Depp is eyeing a big screen redo of Dark Shadows. This will be, amazingly, Depp's first role as a vampire.

- If The Simpsons can do it, why not Family Guy?

- Surprising considering how lame the recent teaser trailer was, scenes from Steve Carell's Get Smart was met with enthusiasm at the Con. Smart co-star and Borat refugee Ken Davitian also talked up his upcoming 300 spoof, Hunting and Fishing.

And now we all have the image of the corpulent Davitian in Spartan Speedo's and a cape burned into our brains forever.

Links via Cinematical.com, ObsessedWithFilm.com, YouTube.com, Yahoo.com, TheMovieBlog.com, Variety.com, Apple.com/trailers and MoviesBlog.MTV.com.

The Latest on TV: Una and More

Notable movies and other programs on TV for Monday July 30 to Sunday August 5:

The Independent Film Channel heats things up in August with the documentary series Indie Sex, presenting the various ways that sex, both straight and gay, has been portrayed in American and international cinema.

The four-part series (starting Wednesday) will focus on such themes as "Censored", "Taboos", "Teens" and "Extremes" and features the typical round-up of filmmakers on the subject, such as Shortbus' John Cameron Mitchell, The Living End's Gregg Araki and John Waters (who seems to enjoy this second career as a talking head).

Films covered range from the classic (Blue Velvet, Last Tango in Paris, Midnight Cowboy) to the reviled (9 ½ Weeks, Porky's, Showgirls), with a few gay-themed works (But I'm a Cheerleader, Chuck and Buck, Edge of Seventeen) to liven things up.

MUST-SEE OF THE WEEK: Once again, Fox Movie Channel comes through for us with Cavalcade, the 1933 Best Picture Oscar-winner that is not available on DVD. The film, based on Noel Coward's play, stars one of my favorite character actresses, Una O'Connor (pictured above, with Herbert Mundin). It will air next Sunday.

Over on LOGO, the "gay Christian teen" documentary Camp Out airs Saturday, followed by another doc on Sunday, Farm Family: In Search of Gay Life in Rural America. Both films are not yet on DVD.

And finally, TCM starts their annual "Summer Under the Stars" programming (each day is dedicated to a different star's films) this week, but before that, be sure to check out Test Pilot on Tuesday. Not only does it star faves Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy and Myrna Loy, but see if you can detect the hidden gay subtext that I'll cover in an upcoming "Out of the Celluloid Closet".

To go along with the month long theme, I'll not only list the "star of the day", but attempt to pick my personal favorite film set to air that day, as well as any rarities (not on DVD) that need mentioning.

• Wednesday - Elizabeth Taylor: A Place in the Sun.
• Thursday - Peter O'Toole: Lawrence of Arabia. Also showing: The musical version of Goodbye, Mr. Chips and Otto Preminger's Rosebud, which Robert Osborne dubs "bizarre".
• Friday - Joan Crawford: Mildred Pierce. Also showing: The doc Joan Crawford: The Ultimate Movie Star (narrated by Anjelica Huston and featuring gay icon Charles Busch), Flamingo Road, Autumn Leaves and Berserk!
• Saturday - William Holden: Stalag 17. Also showing: Executive Suite (with Barbra Stanwyck).
• Sunday - James Stewart: Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.

UPDATE: All this week is "Movie Week" (with movie-themed questions) on the syndicated Who Wants To Be a Millionaire, plus the celebrity edition of Jeopardy! Check local listings for showtimes in your area.

Click on the network links to find the show times in your area. All programming is subject to change.

Links via IFC.com, FoxMovieChannel.com, LOGOOnline.com and TCM.com.

Comic-Con '07: Continuing Adventures

Further news from this weekend's Comic-Con and elsewhere, focusing on sequels and other continuing series.

- The big news this past week was the confirmation that Zachary Quinto (Heroes' nasty Sylar) has been cast as the younger Spock in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek reboot. More surprising is that Leonard Nimoy has been coaxed out of retirement to don once more his famous Vulcan ears for the new film (likely in some form of framing device). The film's first poster art (above), charmingly retro, was also revealed.

- We, like Cinamatical and The Guardian, like our Bond "more gritty, less quippy". Eon Productions, please take note. In related news, Daniel Craig is now the highest paid actor in England. And he still won't return my calls.

- Rachel Weisz (who nabbed her Oscar and ran) is out; Maria Bello is in as Brendan Fraser's ladylove for the third Mummy movie, rather clumsily titled The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. Here's some more casting news for the flick, courtesy Obsessed With Film.

- Per our sources, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian looks like "more of the same". And from this peek at the concept art, we would have to agree. This second chapter, which is currently filming in Prague, will be released next May, with subsequent chapters to follow suit.

- Cars 2, any one? Can't say that I blame them; the merchandise is doing alarmingly well.

- More from the Mouse House: To wet your appetite (or possibly quench it) for another Pirates of the Caribbean movie, Disney may turn to TV for the next adventure of Captain Jack Sparrow.

- From the "Nope, Nothing to See Here" file: Borat 2. As one of the few people who loathed the first movie, I say "thank goodness".

- From the "Don't Count on it Anytime Soon" file, Robert Rodriguez sub-file: Sin City 2 and Grindhouse 2. Hey Robert, maybe the following quote has something to do with the delays "due to issues apparently involving the Weinsteins": "we [would] kill Harvey Weinstein in the movie". Ya think?

- And from the "Who Asked for That?" file: Meatballs 5. I had no idea there was more then two ...

Links via HollywoodReporter.com, Cinematical.com, Guardian.co.uk, UltimateJamesBond.wordpress.com, StarPulse.com, ObsessedWithFilm.com, NarniaWeb.com, ComingSoon.net, JVPixarNews.blogspot.com, Hollywood.com, SuperHeroHype.com and FilmWad.com.

Straight Eye on the Queer Guys

Planet Out is currently collecting your stories on how your straight friends and family have reacted to gay and lesbian characters they have seen in the movies. They pose the theory that even if you found such films as In & Out and As Good As It Gets cringe-worthy, they may have actually led to positive responses from the heterosexuals in your life.

My first thought on the subject was of me and Big Edie watching Queer as Folk together ("See ma, it has Sharon Gless in it."), but that was a TV show (and she covered her eyes through most of it). Then there was the time I forced my metal-head brothers to listen to Erasure on a long family trip. Still not a movie, still doesn't count.

Then I recalled a particular weepy night long ago when, after watching Untamed Heart ("He ... (sob) ... left her (wail) ... his records!") with my brother and sister-in-law, I thought, "hey, let's continue down this road to despair" and popped in Longtime Companion. Despite more tears, I feel that they understood me a little more as a gay man, not just as their gay brother.

Visit Planet Out to submit your story, the best of which will be featured shortly on their sister site, Gay.com. I will link to that article when it is posted.

(After further inspection and a lengthy, fruitless site search, there is no direct link to submit your stories listed in the article in question. So I say submit them via the "letters to the editor" link here, and let them now that when they ask people for input, they should try to make it a little easier to do so. And you can tell them I told you to say that too.)

Links via PlanetOut.com, Imdb.com and Gay.com.

Poster Post: 01.18.08/Cloverfield

Chances are you have already seen the voyeuristically scary teaser trailer for producer J.J. Abrams' next film project. Still untitled (what, is this a trend?), the vague advance marketing for the film, codenamed either 01.18.08 or Cloverfield (depending on which day of the week it is), will either pay off big time come January or fizzle out, Snakes on a Plane-style, from too much fanboy over-expectations.

In any event, the teasing continues with this poster image, released this weekend at Comic-Con, showing the other end of the carnage seen in the trailer. My opinion on the beastie that beheaded Lady Liberty? I say it's ol' Smokey ...

Links via YouTube.com, Imdb.com and Wikipedia.org.

Best of the Fests: Philadelphia 2007

OutFest wasn't the only gay film festival recently. The Philadelphia Gay and Lesbian International Film Festival held their annual event as well, presenting special Artistic Achievement Awards to actor Farley Granger and director Craig Lucas.

Winners in their film competition included The Bubble (pictured), Itty Bitty Titty Committee, In Sickness and In Health and Life of Reilly.

For more information on the festival and a full list of winners, visit their official site.

Links via Imdb.com and PhillyFests.com.

Comic-Con '07: Four Color Fun

The 38th Annual San Diego Comic-Con is in full swing this weekend, and the makers of all the remotely genre-related movies lined up for the next year or so are making announcements faster then the Millennium Falcon in warp speed ... or something like that. This first batch of items will cover various comic book and superhero franchises, so get your geek on.

- The Dark Knight just keeps us wanting more. If you're itching for more of Heath Ledger's Joker then just the picture above, you can also hear him in the newly released teaser trailer (tease is right; there are no actual scenes in this trailer, just dialogue). And yes, that is Maggie Gyllenhaal above, taking over for Katie Holmes as Batman's damsel Rachel Dawes. To read how Gyllenhaal feels about her predecessor, visit Cinematical.

- The eagerly awaited film adaptation of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' legendary graphic novel Watchmen just got closer to reality. Major casting has been announced, and a few of our favorites will soon be donning the ol' cape and cowl for 300 director Zach Snyder's next epic. As previously rumored, Billy Crudup will be the big blue Dr. Manhattan (although reportedly via Davy Jones-like motion capture CGI). Patrick Wilson is Night Owl, the Superfriendly Batman-type, and his Little Children co-star Jackie Earle Haley is Rorschach, the "dark and broody" Batman-type. Grey's Anatomy's Denny Duquette, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, will play "The Comedian", although something tells me he won't be funny. Rounding out the cast are Matthew Goode as the "glamorous Ozymandias" and Malin Akerman as the token female do-gooder, Silk Spectre. If this all sounds a bit confusing, head over to Obsessed With Film for the official plot synopsis as well as a look at the Con-exclusive poster. You'll have plenty of time to soak up the back-story: the announced opening date: March 6, 2009.

- Other DC Comics-to-films possibly in the works are the Justice League of America, the Teen Titans, Captain Marvel (Shazam!) and Jonah Hex.

- A slimmed-down Jon Favreau introduced some Iron Man clips at the Con that haven't made their way online yet. Samuel L. Jackson (as Nicky Fury) and Hilary Swank (as Black Widow possibly) will reportedly appear in cameo roles in this film, setting them up for possible spin-offs.

UPDATE: Watch it while you can: the Iron Man footage seen at the Con, courtesy of Obsessed With Film. If the actual footage is officially released, I'll post it ASAP; this is a phone cam job via YouTube.

- The Incredible Hulk, the sequel-that-is-not-really-a-sequel, is currently filming, with Edward Norton filling the purple pants of Eric Bana (yeah, I don't see it either). Tim Blake Nelson has been cast as the villainous Leader, a green-skinned baddie with a GIANT BRAIN (yeah, I don't see it either).

- Elsewhere around the Marvel Universe, the Silver Surfer and the Black Panther may have directors, while the Punisher has a new actor.

- Seth Rogan wants Kung Fu Hustle star Stephen Chow to be Kato to his Green Hornet.

- Meet Doug Jones, the unseen star of Pan's Labyrinth, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer and the upcoming Hellboy 2: The Golden Army.

- Who knew Rosario Dawson and Guy Ritchie had their own comic books? Which will be made into movies, of course.

- The team behind Disturbia will next take on Vertigo Comics' Y: The Last Man for New Line.

- And finally, Todd McFarlane wants a do-over for his Spawn.

Links via Comic-Con.org, YouTube.com, Cinematical.com, Variety.com, MoviesBlog.MTV.com, ObsessedWithFilm.com, TheMovieBlog.com, BlackFilm.com, LATimes.com, Premiere.com, Imdb.com and HollywoodReporter.com.

Priscilla, Queen of Broadway?

At first glance, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert may not appear to be the ideal choice for a stage musical. Sure, musical numbers abound in the film fave, but these are drag queens, so the songs are all lip-synced. And who wants to hear "I've Never Been to Me" sung by a dude in a dress?

Alas, the producers of the hit Australian stage version came up with the perfect answer: cast three "divas" to belt the disco classics. Add three fabulously coifed and coutured men to play our heroines Mitzi, Felicia and Bernadette (the roles originally played onscreen by Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce and Terence Stamp). Then have the boys lip sync to the live singing. It is a very theatrical conceit that works, if the big "I Will Survive" number (seen here on the Aussie version of Dancing With the Stars) is any indication.

Fans may also want to take a look-see at the official site of the production from down under, where you can play the "official" Priscilla, Queen of the Desert: The Musical game. Yes, I said game. You maneuver the big silver bus through the Outback, picking up stray stilettos and hormone pills (!) while avoiding wandering wombats and kangaroos. All the while, a medley of 70's hits is blaring in your ear, so you may want to turn down the speakers while your driving. I swear, it is the gayest game since "Mystery Date".

As would be expected, there is now talk that Priscilla may pack up her bus for Broadway, following in the footsteps of fellow Aussie export, The Boy from Oz, another musical gayer then most.

Which leads us to "Armchair Casting- Broadway Edition": what three Broadway "divos" do you see as the leads? I would say Gary Beach was born to play Bernadette. Beach has donned drag in The Producers and La Cage aux Folles, so why stop him now? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below.

Click here to purchase The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Deserton DVD from Amazon.com.
Links via Imdb.com, YouTube.com, PriscillaTheMusical.com and Towleroad.com.

Hey Cruella, Put That Out!

In what can only be called a symbolic gesture in this day and age, Walt Disney Pictures has issued a ban on any onscreen images of smoking in its films. Considering that the bulk of this studio's output is such G-rated fare as Ratatouille, I don't think this will be very hard. (As for Disney's more "adult"-orientated films put out under their Touchstone and Miramax labels, smoking onscreen will be "strongly discouraged". Whatever.)

But what does this mean for the images (created in a less "Oh, but we have to protect the children" time) from such classics as Pinocchio (lost boys puffing on stogies on Pleasure Island), The Three Caballeros (Jose Carioca and his ever-present cigar) and 101 Dalmatians (Cruella de Vil is never without her green smoke-spewing cigarette holder)? Disney already got the scissors out for the DVD release of the lesser-known Melody Time, snipping out every last trace of cowboy Pecos Bill's tobaccy habit. Will the same be done to forthcoming new DVD editions of Pinocchio and Dalmatians?

Well, it is doubtful that even Disney would go that far. For one thing, I cannot imagine the expense such self-censorship would entail, and the public outcry from animation purists and film historians would be deafening if these two certified masterpieces were tampered with in any way. Also, in both cases, smoking is shown as bad - Pinocchio turns green, Cruella is the villain. So I think it is safe to say that both films will be re-released unharmed - or at least with a "smoking is bad for you" disclaimer tacked on the beginning ... for now.

However, how much longer will it be until that isn't enough? In the excellent satire Thank You for Smoking, William H. Macy's senator announces a plan to edit out all images of smoking from old movies. He illustrates this by showing a photograph of Gary Cooper with a candy cane sticking out of his mouth in place of a cigarette. Sure, it is a ludicrous idea (if not down right impossible - watch any day of Turner Classic Movies and you will see that everyone in every old movie smoked - constantly), but there is a sense that it could happen - that is what makes the scene funny in the first place.

There are certainly dangers the Hollywood studios would face if they allow Washington to control too much of what you see. The MPAA has already hinted at automatically rating a movie an "R" if there was any smoking in it (can you imagine, an "R"-rated 101 Dalmatians), and studios in England have already instituted a ban on any smoking on its sound stages. Are such blanket policies really necessary? Or is this just more political conservatism run amuck?

You may ask, well, it is just smoking, that's bad for you, so they shouldn't show it any way, right? OK, fine, what about alcohol? Alcohol is bad for you, so no drinking onscreen. Guns? Guns kill people, so no guns either. Cars - cars cause accidents, no cars. Food! Someone can choke on a chicken bone and die, nobody can eat in a movie ever again ...!

Absurd, yes, but you can see how slippery the slope is; the politicians should do their jobs and leave the movie making to the moviemakers (free of any government-sanctioned restraints on content) and let parents give little Johnny the anti-smoking talk. After all, isn't the government busy enough without worrying if a cartoon character lights one up?

Which reminds me: Hey Cruella, got a match?

Links via ABCNews.go.com, LaughingPlace.com, Imdb.com, USAToday.com and ThisIsHertfordshire.co.uk.

Poster Post: The Demon Barber

First look (via Playbill) at the upcoming film version of Stephen Sondheim's classic stage musical Sweeney Todd, directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp.

Click here to buy Sweeney Toddposters from Amazon.com.

Links via Playbill.com and Imdb.com.

Out in Film: Farley Granger

One of my goals with the "Out in Film" feature is to spotlight actors, actresses and other filmmakers who many may not know are gay. Such was the case, for me at least, with Farley Granger (I must have missed the memo from headquarters).

The classically handsome Granger, one of the last contract players at Goldwyn, starred in the pseudo-queer Hitchcock classics Rope (opposite John Dall) and Strangers on a Train (co-starring Robert Walker). Naturally, Granger was closeted at the time, although he was involved with "aggressively out" Rope screenwriter Arthur Laurents. Other notable films in Granger's filmography from this time include They Live By Night, O. Henry's Full House and Hans Christian Andersen with Danny Kaye.

After his Hollywood hay days, Granger turned to television and Broadway (starring in Deathtrap), traveling to Italy to star in his personal favorite film, Senso, directed by Luchino Visconti. His last onscreen role was in 2001's The Next Big Thing.

Granger, recently honored with a lifetime achievement award at the Philadelphia International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, currently lives in New York with his longtime partner, Robert Calhoun. The two collaborated on Granger's memoir, "Include Me Out: My Life from Goldwyn to Broadway".

Click here to purchase Farley Granger's autobiographyfrom Amazon.com.

Indiana Jones and the Return of Marion

One of the things I loved so much about Raiders of the Lost Ark was that the heroine wasn't your typical damsel-in-distress. She was feisty and headstrong, a perfect romantic foil for our hero.

I think that is why I was never too crazy about the two other Indiana Jones movies. Temple of Doom's Kate Capshaw was everything Raiders' leading lady was not - whiny, grating, blonde. And I don't even remember the actress in The Last Crusade. (OK, I looked it up, Alison Doody. Yawn.) Neither character had half the spunk and personality, let alone the chemistry with Harrison Ford, as Karen Allen's Marion Ravenwood.

So imagine my excitement in learning that Karen Allen will, after 27 years, return as Marion in next year's (still untitled) Indy 4. And this isn't a rumor; Steven Spielberg announced it himself at the San Diego Comic-Con yesterday.

Naturally, any further details are scarce, such as the size of the role (hopefully not a mere cameo) or her relationship to the character played by Shia LaBeouf, who may be the long lost son of Dr. Jones. One thing is certain though; it will sure be nice to see Marion at Indy's side once more.

UPDATE: Visit IndianaJones.com for video footage of the announcement.

Links via ETOnline.com and IndianaJones.com.

Gowns by Adrian

Only San Francisco is fabulous enough to devote an entire film series to fashion on film called, appropriately enough, the "Fabulous Fashion in Film" series.

Starting tomorrow at the historic Castro Theatre with the George Cukor classic The Women (starring Joan Crawford, Norma Shearer and Rosalind Russell), the mini-film festival will also screen such well-dressed movies as Funny Face, The Best of Everything, Paris is Burning, Velvet Goldmine and The Devil Wears Prada. The series wraps up August 3rd with a pseudo-Diana Ross double feature: Dreamgirls and Mahogany.

See, I told you it was fabulous.

Links via CastroTheatre.com and Imdb.com.

CGI Will Always Love You

When it comes to making lists, Entertainment Weekly is not known for a vast knowledge in film history. In fact, it seems to go back only as far as the birth days of their interns.

So, you would think that a top 10 list of computer-generated characters would be more up their alley, considering the first use of the technology was only back in the 80's. No such luck. Not only is the oldest film on the list (Jurassic Park) dated 1993, but they actually placed not one, but two movies that are barely months old (Spider-Man 3, Transformers).

In addition to this shortsightedness, such impressive creations as the "water aliens" from The Abyss, the hippogriff in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Sonny from I, Robot are MIA. These were truly 'pixilized' performances that made you go "wow", as opposed to ... Casper? And that's not even delving into the vast Pixar oeuvre.

Sigh. At least they got some right (if not exactly in the right spots), as my top 5 from the list attests:

1. Woody and Buzz from Toy Story: Gotta give props to my boys from the first ever all-computer animated feature, which should have bumped them higher then EW's #7.
2. Gollum in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and ...
3. Davy Jones in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest: EW has them switched, but really, could Davy have existed without Gollum before him?
4. Yoda in Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones: Freed of Muppetry, the Jedi Master kicked ass in this movie. Although he'll always sound like Grover to me.
5. The Tyrannosaurus rex in Jurassic Park: I'll let EW slide on this one, as a lot of the T-rex's scenes used a life-sized animatronic as well as CGI. Factor in all the other dinos from the film (especially the raptors) and I'll buy it.

Links via EW.com and LaughingPlace.com.

The Latest in Theaters: Eat My Shorts

Sorry about that headline, I was just channeling a little Bart to get ready for The Simpsons Movie, opening tomorrow. After 18 years (d'oh!), the animated television comedy finally makes the jump to the big screen. Honestly, I haven't watched the show in years, but it is always nice to know that it is there. And I'm sure I'm not the only one, so to get you in the mood for the big movie, here are some links to a few articles and other fun stuff:

• Visit the official movie site to create your own Springfieldian avatar (yes, that's me above) and more.
• LA Weekly interviews Simpsons creator/very rich guy Matt Groening.
• For more behind-the-scenes info, visit Premiere.com and Entertainment Weekly.
• Test your knowledge of Homer and the gang with Movies.com's Simpsons Quiz.
• Study up on a list of Simpsons-created words, courtesy of Cracked.com.
• And relive the best moments of the greatest (and longest) unconsummated love story of all time, the Burns and Smithers (non-)affair, at Out.com.

I'll have my full "Toon Talk" review of The Simpsons Movie early next week.

Also opening this week is No Reservations. I am so glad this movie is finally coming out, not because I want to see it, but so they stop showing those "Raw enough for ya?" commercials all the time. Catherine Zeta-Jones is a top chef who gets Baby Boomed and ends up with Little Miss Sunshine Abigail Breslin. Aaron Eckhart (recently interviewed by The Advocate) co-stars as the love interest, which he really should be past at this point in his career. Click here for more dish (ouch) on the movie from EW.

As if she isn't in the headlines enough lately, Lindsay Lohan also has a new movie this week. I Know Who Killed Me is another serial killer thriller, with Lindsay as a student-by-day/stripper-by-night that has the gals at AfterEllen.com claiming it the "next Showgirls". We'll see about that...

Also opening (in limited release) is Arctic Tale, a nature documentary (narrated by - Queen Latifah?!) that I'm sure has nothing to do with March of the Penguins or An Inconvenient Truth.

Visit Fandango - Search movie showtimes and buy tickets!
Links via Imdb.com, SimpsonsMovie.com, LAWeekly.com, Premiere.com, EW.com, Movies.com, CRACKED.com, Out.com, Advocate.com, AfterEllen.com and MoviesBlog.MTV.com.

Poster Post: Warhol on Fassbinder

Andy Warhol's evocative take on Rainer Werner Fassbinder's Querelle.

Click here to purchase the Querelle posteror DVDfrom Amazon.com.
Link via Imdb.com.

Movie Music: The Tide is High

There are many reasons why Longtime Companion is remembered. It was one of the first feature films to tackle the subject of AIDS. Bruce Davison's moving, Oscar-nominated performance. Campbell Scott.

But one of the reasons why I remember it so fondly is the songs, which is surprising considering a soundtrack album was never released.

All the songs fit the period and, most importantly, the mood of each scene. Blondie's"The Tide is High" all bouncy and free-spirited, plays over the opening scenes, perfectly capturing the carefree times before the disease. When the epidemic begins to take over their lives, one character escapes into the original cast albumof Dreamgirls. And, towards the end of the movie, both the characters and we are given a much-needed laugh with an unexpected string quartet version of a song I won't name, lest you haven't seen the movie.

The clincher is Zane Campbell's"Post Mortem Bar". Plaintive and powerful, the song plays in contrast to a jubilant onscreen reunion. It is one of the few songs I get choked up to every time I hear it.

That is the essence of a great movie song, able to transform you back to the emotions of the film, letting you relive that moment, even with the tears.

Click the links above to buy the albums the songs are featured on, or click here to purchase Longtime Companionon DVD, from Amazon.com.
Link via Imdb.com.

Brokeback Broadway

One thing about rumors is that half the time they are, in a way, wish fulfillment waiting to happen.

Such is the case with the recent gossip of a stage version of the landmark film Brokeback Mountain. Back around the time the Brokeback theme was released as a dance mix (yeah, I know; you can't get much gayer then that), the thought entered my mind of a Broadway musical based on the story of two cowboys in love (OK, maybe you can get gayer then that).

All kidding aside, if Romeo and Juliet can be turned into West Side Story, why not a serious musical drama based on Brokeback? With the right handling, it could work.

Unfortunately, I feel that if this project does turn out to be true, we will be subjected to a whole other round of "gay cowboy" jokes, except with extra "show tune" ammo to fuel the thinly veiled homophobia. Personally, I really don't want to see Jay Leno crooning "Climb Brokeback Mountain" to the tune of "Climb Ev'ry Mountain".

Former X-Men Hugh Jackman (Tony-winner for The Boy from Oz) and James Marsden (who proved he can sing in Hairspray) are mentioned as candidates for the roles of Ennis and Jack, leading AfterElton.com to chime in with their own casting choices: Patrick Wilson (above left, in Oklahoma! drag) and Cheyenne Jackson (middle left, who will hopefully not be reduced to the go-to guy for gay roles on Broadway). I could also see Matthew Morrison (middle right, the original Link Larkin in Hairspray) and Matt Cavenaugh (right, as the Urban Cowboy) in the iconic roles. (Click on the picture for a closer view.)

However, the answer may be more obvious. Remember Jake Gyllenhaal's outrageous Saturday Night Live opening number? That boy's got pipes. Now replace the lyrics "I'm Telling You I'm Not Going" with the words "I Wish I Knew How to Quit You".

Scary how these things work out sometimes.

Click here to purchase Brokeback Mountainon DVD from Amazon.com.

Links via Towleroad.com, AfterElton.com and YouTube.com.

Potent Quotables: Thorn on Nutrition

Although my brothers and I ate up such post-2001/pre-Star Wars sci fi parables as Logan's Run and Silent Running, I never saw Soylent Green until recently. (Nor did I know that "Soylent" was a combination of "soy" and "lentil", but that's another story.) Because of its oft-parodied signature line and the presence of Charlton Heston, I always assumed this movie was big cheese fest.

Well, I was wrong; it is actually a nice little futuristic thriller, with a heart-breaking final performance by Edward G. Robinson. Yes, there are some cheesy moments (such as when anyone bleeds red tempera paint), but overall it is effective, if a bit over-earnest.

Speaking of over-earnestness, here is the classic closing line, bellowed by Heston's Detective Thorn in his last ditch attempt to get out the truth. All together now:

"SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLE!"

Click here to buy Soylent Greenon DVD from Amazon.com.
Link via Imdb.com.

Women We Love: Kate Winslet

Leonardo DiCaprio. Johnny Depp. Patrick Wilson. That is the type of leading man line-up any actress would kill for.

The lady who had them all (on film at least) is the marvelous Kate Winslet. An actress of unfathomable talent, Winslet is a joy to watch simply because she makes it all look so easy, especially when it comes to making her co-star (and audience) fall in love with her.

Winslet appeared seemingly out of nowhere with Heavenly Creatures, solidifying her future stardom with Sense and Sensibility (wherein she was romanced by both Greg Wise and Alan Rickman). However, it was with Titanic that Winslet truly entered into our hearts forever. A lesser actress would have been lost among the ice burgs, but Winslet's Rose is one for the romantic ages.

Other, ever more varied roles followed: Quills, Iris, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Finding Neverland and, most recently, Little Children. With five Oscar nominations at age 31 (the youngest most-nominated person in Academy history), Winslet is poised to overtake current record-holder Meryl Streep as the most nominated actress ever.

And we will have the privilege to witness her every step of the way.

Link via Imdb.com.

Movie Dearest Hits the Big Time

I woke up this morning to a pleasant surprise: Movie Dearest is featured on the front page of the Internet Movie Database, the premiere online movie site.

Specifically, my article "Why We Should Not Boycott Hairspray" is listed in today's "Hit List" of featured articles. Click here to visit Imdb.com and scroll to the bottom to see it.

Needless to say, this is all very exciting - Big Edie is verklempt with joy. As of now, my site counter has more then tripled in number and continues to rise.

Welcome to all the new readers and I hope you like what you see and come back for more!

Link via Imdb.com.

Best of the Fests: OutFest Wrap Up

This year's OutFest, the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, came to a close last night, and Out in Hollywood's Greg Hernandez was there to get all the scoop.

This was a festival after all, so awards were handed out in a gala show hosted by none other then Bruce Vilanch. The big winners of the Audience Awards were The Bubble (Dramatic Feature) and For the Bible Tells Me So (Documentary Feature; click here for Greg's review), while 25 Cent Preview won two Juried Awards (U.S. Dramatic Feature and Outstanding Actors for co-stars Merlin Gaspers and Dorian Brockington). Click here for a full list of winners.

Greg also got a chance to speak to several celebs on hand, including T.R. Knight, Brothers & Sisters stars Sally Field and Matthew Rhys (who also starred in the festival favorite Love and Other Disasters) and Trevor Wright, star of Shelter, another fest fave.

And add another film to your must-see list: a documentary on out gay Christian singing duo Jason and deMarco called We're All Angels.

OutFest's closing night film was the west coast premiere of C. Jay Cox's Kiss the Bride, starring Phillip Karner, Tori Spelling and James O'Shea. The next night, it held its east coast premiere at the Philadelphia Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. For an interview with Cox (plus an uncensored rear view of O'Shea), head over to Hot in Hollywood.

Links via OutFest.org, InsideSoCal.com, Imdb.com, PhillyFests.com and HotInHollywood.tv.

Caught in the 'Act'

No doubt you have seen by now the viral videos of the unique rehabilitation program instituted at Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center in the Philippines.

The orange-clad prisoners have displayed remarkable, marching band-like precision to the tunes of such artists as Michael Jackson, Queen and ... Whoopi Goldberg?

Click here for their latest production number inspired by Sister Mary Clarence and the Sister Act choir.

UPDATE: The Advocate has an article on the making of the videos, including interviews with the inmates who play 'Michael Jackson' and his girlfriend in the "Thriller" dance.

Links via YouTube.com, Imdb.com and Advocate.com.

Out of the Celluloid Closet: Gilda

In Gilda, every man wants the title character, which is understandable since Rita Hayworth plays the part, inarguably her most famous role.

What is interesting is that once the two male leads (Glenn Ford and George Macready) get her, they don't want her any more. And what exactly is up with their "partnership" at the casino?

Perhaps a hint of what is really going on can be gleaned from Ford's comment after Macready rescues him from a robbery - with a switchblade cane, no less (you can't get more phallic then that). After giving him the once over, he states "You must lead a gay life." Indeed.

Click here to purchase Gildaon DVD from Amazon.com.
Link via Imdb.com.

The Latest on DVD: Mickey & Judy & Fred & Mario

The latest and greatest available on DVD this week:

The Classics:

• Classic Musicals from the Dream Factory, Vol. 2 - A new box set collecting the following new-to-DVD tuners (all available separately as well):
• Words and Music- Starring Mickey Rooney.
• The Pirate- Starring Judy Garland.
• Royal Wedding and The Belle of New York- Starring Fred Astaire.
• That Midnight Kiss and The Toast of New Orleans- Starring Mario Lanza.
• That's Dancing!- The compilation doc hosted by Gene Kelly. I wore out an old VHS copy of that last film back in the day, so it is nice to finally see it on DVD. Other classic boxes this week include sets devoted to:
• Doris Day & Rock Hudson Comedy Collection- Includes Pillow Talk, Lover Come Back and Send Me No Flowers.
• Elvis Presley MGM Movie Legends Collection- Includes Clambake, Frankie and Johnny, Follow That Dream and Kid Galahad.
• Frank Sinatra MGM Movie Legends Collection- Includes The Manchurian Candidate, Guys and Dolls, The Pride and the Passion, A Hole in the Head and Kings Go Forth.

New in Thrillers:

• Zodiac- Jake Gyllenhaal stars in David Fincher's serial killer thriller.
• The Number 23- Jim Carrey stars in Joel Schumacher's numerical thriller.
• The Host- The Korean horror thriller.
• Perfume: The Story of a Murderer- The French olfactory thriller.

More New Releases:

• Nomad: The Warrior- The Kazakhstan historical epic complete with 300-ish cover art.
• Renaissance- An animated noir featuring the voice of Daniel Craig.
• Cashback- The full-length version of the Oscar-nominated short. I have seen the short and there was gratuitous female nudity all throughout it (I haven't seen so much p*ssy since The Aristocats), so I can't imagine what the feature will be like.
• The Woody Woodpecker and Friends Classic Cartoon Collection- Speaking of shorts, classic cartoon fans rejoice as the toons of Woody, et al are finally released on DVD. (Thus concludes are p*ssy and Woody coverage for the week.)

Foreign Faves Return:

• Raise the Red Lantern- Starring Gong Li.
• To Live- Also starring Gong Li.
• Jean de Florette and Manon of the Spring- A French double feature.
• Hard Boiled- A two-disc "ultimate" edition of John Woo's actioner.
• Les Enfants Terribles- Jean-Pierre Melville's classic gets the Criterion treatment.

TV on DVD:

• Weeds - Season Two
• The Ultimate Underdog Collection Volume 1
• The Ultimate Underdog Collection Volume 2
• The Ultimate Underdog Collection Volume 3- All just in time to cash in on the upcoming Disney movie.
• The Secrets of Isis - The Complete Series- This was a Saturday morning version of Wonder Woman that should get some parties around here excited.

Of Gay Interest:

• Tan Lines- Coming-of-age on the beach.
• Boys in Love Collection, Volume 1- A box set collecting the romantic comedies The Trip, Everyone and Under One Roof.
• Pet Shop Boys: Cubism in Concert

Click on the individual links to purchase them at Amazon.com.

Hairspray's Boffo B.O.!

Although it did not hit the #1 spot, Hairspray nonetheless made $27.8 million its opening weekend. This figure makes it the highest-grossing debut for a movie musical ever, besting The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (who knew?).

Proving that you can never think too little of the general public, the film-that-shall-not-be-named came in first, with Harry Potter down to second place (guess all the muggles were busy reading; by the way, click here for some Hogwarts funnies).

Forget what I said about High School Musical; Hairspray is the new Grease (and they're both named after hair products, too). All the little girls and gay boys out there are eating this one up, and Tracy and Link will stay in their hearts just as Danny and Sandy did for us almost thirty years ago. And just wait until it hits DVD - in high def, no less, New Line's first foray into the format (wonder how well John Travolta's Edna will look, pores and all).

Here's some more 'spray odds and ends for you:

• Broadway Blog tells the movie studios how they can make money off of screen musicals.
• Premiere.com takes a pictorial look at drag in film, while MSNBC.com says the practice may be misogynistic.
• Take the Hairspray Quiz at PlanetOut or head over to LOGO Online for more fun stuff.
• And for more looks at the Hairspray dolls (and way too many of Zac Efron's bangs), hop over to Broadway World for their coverage of the toy line's debut at Toys 'R' Us in Times Square.

Click here to buy the Hairspray dollsfrom Amazon.com.
Links via EW.com, Broadway.com, YouTube.com, LaughingPlace.com, TheDigitalBits.com, BroadwayMouth.blogspot.com, Premiere.com, MSNBC.MSN.com, PlanetOut.com, LOGOOnline.com and BroadwayWorld.com.

It's Too Darn Hot

Far be it for me not to take any opportunity to post pictures of incredibly handsome men (and rich and famous ones at that), but prepare yourself to make your hot summer nights even hotter by taking a gander at AfterElton's "Hot 100 List".

The online poll, voted on exclusively by gay and bisexual men, raises some interesting insights into the differences between who's "hot" in the mainstream (read: straight) media and who gets the gays all hot and bothered. For example, while Brad Pitt ranks high (at #12), his pal George Clooney couldn't even break out of the 90's, while Johnny Depp, Matthew McConaughey and Orlando Bloom aren't quite as high as you would expect. And Tom Cruise? Not even a single vote (there you go, Kevin Naff, there's your gay boycott of Scientology).

Playing gay helped (for example, most of the casts of Queer as Folk and Noah's Arc are present), but actually being gay helped a lot too, with 15 out actors included. (This may explain T.R. Knight's surprisingly high spot in the top 10; yes, he is adorable, but #8?)

And for the record, all my boys that I voted for made the cut - and all in the top 50, no less. That either means a lot of people share my exquisite taste, or my tastes are more mainstream then I care to admit.

My personal top 10, in no particular order (don't want them to get jealous) follows, with their final ranking noted. (Their beefcake shots are served in the collage above; click on the picture for a larger view.)

• Jake "Jack Nasty" Gyllenhaal: #1.
• Chris "Hot Stuff" Evans: #2.
• Daniel "Bondalicious" Craig: #3.
• Hugh "Triple Threat" Jackman: #7.
• Robert "My Celebrity Boyfriend" Gant: #14.
• Patrick "Those Lips, Those Eyes" Wilson: #15.
• Heath "Thunder from Down Under" Ledger: #20.
• Cheyenne "Broadway Babe" Jackson: #36.
• Jason "British Thug" Statham: #40.
• Josh "Southern Bad Boy" Holloway: #47.

And for the ladies out there, check out AfterEllen's companion list here.

Links via AfterElton.com and AfterEllen.com.

Movie Moments: Notorious

In Alfred Hitchcock's Notorious, Ingrid Bergman - in cahoots (and in love) with Cary Grant - is spying on her shady businessman husband Claude Raines. She must sneak his key to a suspiciously locked door away from him and pass it on to Grant during a party thrown at their house.

Grant, watching Bergman from a landing above, sees the key hidden in her hand. Hitchcock and cinematographer Ted Tetzlaff accomplished this cinematically with a camera dolly that swoops down from Grant's point-of-view all the way down to a close-up of the key clutched in Bergman's hand below.

Years later, Bergman presented the "UNICA key" (so called due to the lock manufacturer) to Hitchcock at his AFI Lifetime Achievement Award ceremony.

Click here to purchase Notoriouson DVD from Amazon.com.
Link via Imdb.com.

Off the Shelf: 101 Must-See Movies for Gay Men

Former Advocate arts editor Alonso Duralde wrote "101 Must-See Movies for Gay Men" as a means to educate those younger then us in the finer cinematic lessons that can be learned from the likes of Margo Channing, Edie Beale and Tyler Durden.

Film, as Martin Scorsese said, creates within us a common memory, and nowhere is that more true then among gay men with the cinephile gene. This entertaining book is not only a valuable starting point to brush up on the classics (Auntie Mame, Written on the Wind), but a great way to reacquaint yourself with old favorites you never realized were way queer (Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory).

And be sure to check out this awesome video compilation of Duralde's "101".

Click here to purchase this bookfrom Amazon.com.
Links via AlonsoDuralde.com and YouTube.com.

Cinematic Crush: Paul Newman

It's the eyes. Paul Newman always resisted the sex symbol label, but it was undeniable. As was his unmistakable talents.

From his early roles (Somebody Up There Likes Me, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Hustler) to his iconic characters that cemented his screen immortality (Hud, Cool Hand Luke, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) to his smooth transition from acting legend (Absence of Malice, The Verdict, The Color of Money) to cool-as-a-cucumber character actor (The Hudsucker Proxy, Nobody's Fool, Road to Perdition), Newman was always an actor first, movie star second.

We cannot blame him for wanting us to think that way; but blame those eyes for making us think otherwise.

Link via Imdb.com.

I Want My "MDV"

To have a permanent spot for all the videos featured here at Movie Dearest, I have created a special playlist on YouTube to collect them all in one place for your viewing pleasure.

Think of it as "MDV - Movie Dearest TeleVision". (Indulge me on this one.)

From this playlist, you can save the videos to your own favorites, send them to friends or family, or leave your own witty/snarky comments right there on YouTube for the whole world to see.

To kick off this new feature, and in honor of the continuing success of its Broadway incarnation, MDV brings you the classic title number (in all its eight minute and three second glory) from Xanadu.

All together now: "Xanadu!" Clap-clap-clap ... "Xanadu!" Clap-clap-clap ...

Links via YouTube.com.

He Got Annie

In last week's "From Screen to Stage", Seth Rudetsky interviewed Andrea McArdle on the Rosie Cruise. Well, it turns out McArdle wasn't just aboard for the seafood buffet.

In part two of Seth's story, he relates how his childhood dream of being an orphan in Annie was realized, with McArdle reprising her most famous role (at age 43, no less). Naturally, Miss O'Donnell herself got into the act as Miss Hannigan (that's her with McArdle - in the red dress, mind you - above).

And what about Seth, who spent hours listening to the "Red Album" as a child? He played Tessie, the "ohmygoodness" girl. (More pics available at Broadway.com.)

In other Broadway via Hollywood news:
- The Dolly Parton-scored 9 to 5 should punch the clock sometime in the 2008-09 season.

- A stage version of Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, the classic movie that starred Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy and Sidney Poitier, is also being readied for that time.

- Dallas star Linda Gray returns to Texas (onstage, at least) in a stage adaptation of Terms of Endearment that will tour the United Kingdom.

- The movie version of Nine gets a screenwriter and some possible leading ladies. Rumor has it that Judi Dench, Anne Hathaway, Katie Holmes and Chicagoans Renee Zellwegger and Catherine Zeta-Jones are all in the running.

- Speaking of Chicago, real-life marrieds and Dancing With the Stars alumni Harry "Making Love" Hamlin and Lisa "Melrose Place" Rinna have extended their run as Billy Flynn and Roxie Hart.

- The Producers, no longer on Broadway but still in Vegas (for now), heads to Atlantic City.

- When in California, visit Universal Studios Hollywood ... especially for their "Wicked Wednesdays".

- The Kiss of the Spider-Woman musical returns to New York.

- Special mention must be made of a milestone achievement for my favorite Off-Broadway musical, Altar Boyz.

- Mash-ups are fun: Carrie White meets Harry Potter in Carrie Potter and the Half-Blood Prom.

- In other oddities: Hannibal the Cannibal sings in Silence!, the musical version of The Silence of the Lambs. Seriously.

In stars on stage news: Ian McKellan takes on King Lear, Kathleen Turner returns to the stage - to direct Crimes of the Heart, and Queer as Folk's Randy Harrison is Billy Bibbit in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

- And finally, read all about gay goddess Tallulah Bankhead's onstage mishaps at Playbill.com.

Links via RFamilyVacations.com, Playbill.com, Broadway.com, BroadwayWorld.com and Variety.com.

Get Away from DirectTV, You Bitch!

You never see it coming.

You're sitting there watching TV, when all of the sudden a scene from your favorite movie pops up on the screen. All seems like you remember, until your favorite character turns to the camera and starts berating you for not having a satellite dish with high def capabilities.

No, it's not a nightmare, just the latest batch of DirectTV ads cluttering the airwaves. And if it wasn't bad enough to see Christopher Lloyd and William Shatner squeezing out some more change from the Back to the Future and Star Trek franchises, now Sigourney Weaver is "revisiting" her iconic Aliens role - a role that she was nominated for an Oscar for - in this latest ad.

Now, this isn't quite as bad as the commercialized necrophilia that was visited upon poor Audrey Hepburn, John Wayne and Fred Astaire (at least his is not immortalized on YouTube ... yet). And certainly, as the Film Babble Blog points out, there are some actors (Charlie Sheen, Jessica Simpson) that you couldn't care less what they do as long as you have your remote handy.

But why, Sigourney, why? Not getting enough work lately? Heck, I'd rather watch you in Tadpole II or Ghostbusters 3 then to see you shilling satellite equipment (and believe me, that's saying a lot).

How 'bout a nice Revlon ad instead?

UPDATE: The Washington Post has not only found out how they make this blasphemy, but that they are going to make more of 'em ...

Links via YouTube.com, FilmBabble.blogspot.com and WashingtonPost.com.

Sex and the Cinematic Male

Christie Keith over at AfterElton.com gets all the tough assignments. She recently had the enviable task of coming up with a list of "Gay Sex Scenes That Changed Movie History". Sigh ... Writing about movies can be so hard.

All kidding aside, Christie does her usual masterly job of separating the wheat from the chaff, as it were (and she didn't even have to resort to Shortbus). Of the 29 film scenes mentioned, here are my top 5:

1. James Wilby and Rupert Graves in Maurice: Easily the most romantic of the lot.
2. Wes Ramsey and Steve Sandvoss in Latter Days: I love the extended post-coital dramatic scene as well.
3. Brad Davis and Günther Kaufmann in Querelle: You'll want to light a smoke after this one.
4. Linus Roache and Robert Carlyle in Priest: I was unaware of an "unrated" DVD until this article. Cut to me bumping it up to the top of my Netflix queue.
5. Daniel Day Lewis and Gordon Warnecke in My Beautiful Laundrette: How many of us have done the "champagne kiss" thing after seeing this?

And I had no idea about Wet Hot American Summer ... back to Netflix I go.

Link via AfterElton.com.

Jedis Invade Disney World and More

In the wake of their annual "Star Wars Weekends", Walt Disney World's Disney-MGM Studios will continue the popular Jedi Training Academy show this fall. (So expect a lot of Jake Lloyds running around with plastic light sabers.) This of course has sparked speculation on a whole new Star Wars themed area (including a jazzed-up new "Star Tours" ride), all the better to combat Universal Orlando's upcoming Harry Potter land.

In other Studios news, the long-rumored renaming of the park may just happen now that Pixar has become part of the Mouse House. Yep, it may become Disney-Pixar Studios. And I'll believe that when I see it.

Speaking of Pixar, the Ratatouille rats are on hand now (and even in the parade) and construction continues on the new "Toy Story Mania!" ride. Naturally, High School Musical is represented in a daily "pep rally" show. And the rumor mill is rumbling about a possible new Indiana Jones attraction to coincide with the upcoming fourth film.

Elsewhere around the world, The Three Caballeros have been added to the Mexican pavilion, while Finding Nemo has taken over the Living Seas, at Epcot. Nemo and friends can also be seen in the stage musical adaptation (from the Avenue Q composers) that plays daily at Disney's Animal Kingdom. Changes at Magic Kingdom may include at least a Pirates of the Caribbean-themed restaurant and possibly more Pirates stuff. And the new "Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor Comedy Club" has opened in Tomorrowland.

On the other side of the country, in Disneyland, Nemo (yeah, him again) has been added to the long-dry docked Submarine Ride. Plus, there a major plans to revitalize Disney's California Adventure, the Anaheim flagship park's much-derided second gate (they are already adding their own "Toy Story Mania!" as well). As that park has a "Hollywood" section (which recently added there own Monsters, Inc. themed-ride), it is safe to assume that we may see more movie-related rides there as well.

And finally, a new musical show based on Toy Story will be added to the Disney Cruise Line. Hmmm, that's an awful lot of Pixar ... maybe the Disney-MGM Studios should be renamed the Pixar-Disney Studios.

Links via OrlandoSentinel.com, UniversalOrlando.com, LaughingPlace.com, WDWNews.com, TheDisneyBlog.com and Disney.go.com.

Absolutely Fabulous

To see just about every gay and lesbian director in film today, look no further then Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema. Originally shown on the Independent Film Channel, this documentary (available on DVD) is a valuable companion piece (a pseudo-sequel, if you will) to the ultimate gays on film doc, The Celluloid Closet.

Focusing on the rise of queer moviemaking in independent film, from Kenneth Anger's Fireworks to Brokeback Mountain (Ang Lee appears, the only non-queer interviewed), the film includes interviews with such out directors as John Cameron Mitchell, Todd Haynes and Angela Robinson, as well as critic/historians B. Ruby Rich, Alonso Duralde and Jenni Olson.

And for a fitting post-script to the film, read Duralde's AfterElton.com piece detailing the current status of queer cinema in these post-Brokeback times.

Click here to purchase Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinemaon DVD from Amazon.com.
Links via Imdb.com, Amazon.com and AfterElton.com.

The Latest on TV: Porkers and More

Notable movies and other programs on TV for Monday July 23 to Sunday July 29:

Remember that spooky story that Robert "Porkers!" Shaw told in Jaws about the sinking of the USS Indianapolis and the subsequent shark smorgasbord? Well, I always wanted to see a movie of that, and now I can with Ocean of Fear: Worst Shark Attack Ever, part of (naturally) "Shark Week" on The Discovery Channel. The two-hour original documentary (narrated by Shaw's Jaws co-star Richard Dreyfuss) premieres Sunday.

TCM has a mini-musical marathon this Wednesday devoted to tuners of the 1970's, including Godspell, Tommy and Paint Your Wagon. You haven't lived until you see Lee Marvin croaking out his version of "Wanderin' Star".

Other TCM highlights of the week include two movies (not on DVD) featuring Oscar-nominated Best Actress performances: Anne Bancroft in The Pumpkin Eater (Thursday) and Julie Harris in The Member of the Wedding (Saturday).

Over on AMC, their Movies That Shook the World series takes a look at Philadelphia (Monday) and revisit Pussy Galore and company in Bond Girls Are Forever (Tuesday).

MUST-SEE OF THE WEEK: Fox Movie Channel has the hard-to-find-on-DVD silent masterpiece Sunrise airing Wednesday. This Oscar-winning Best Picture (starring Janet Gaynor) was recently named one of the top 100 movies of all-time by the American Film Institute.

LOGO airs The Rock Hudson Story Wednesday, as well as "10 Most Excellent Things: Hairspray" throughout the week.

Click on the network links to find the show times in your area. All programming is subject to change.

Links via DSC.Discovery.com, TCM.com, AMCTV.com, FoxMovieChannel.com, AFI.com and LOGOOnline.com.

Indy 500

The latest news from the "Sequels and Remakes We Don't Want" file:

- Shia LaBeouf may or may not continue the Indiana Jones saga (what, into triple digits?), and Harrison Ford may or may not continue to star. And Indy 4 may or may not be called Indiana Jones and the City of the Gods (and I don't think they mean this City of God).

- Dark City director Alex Proyas is developing a prequel of sorts to the Dracula story. At first glance it may seem "gee, do we really need another Dracula movie?" However, the film, titled Dracula: Year Zero, will delve into the character's life as Vlad the Impaler, somewhat untrod territory on film.

- In other classic horror character revamps: Something that could either be very cool or ... not is the planned remake of The Creature from the Black Lagoon. A childhood favorite of mine, they have big web-footed shoes to fill on this one.

- As if they hadn't learned before, Ace Ventura will continue as a "Jim Carrey movie without Jim Carrey." Nancy Drew's Josh Flitter will play Ace's son this go round.

- Following this year's Shrek the Third, DreamWorks has promised a fourth and fifth Shrek and, per Jeffrey Katzenberg, "that will be it." We'll hold you to that one, Jeff.

- Halle Berry may fill Jane Fonda's plastic bustier in the long-threatened Barbarella remake. I smell another Razzie, Berry.

- What may prove to be a blessing to us all, Terminator 4 is tied up in a big ol' legal mess.

- The "truth", as it were, may still be out there for Mulder, Scully and an X-Files sequel.

- Steve Buscemi gives us his ideas for a Big Lebowski 2. (Don't count on it, dude.)

- And finally, the "Who Wants This?" award goes to the proposed remake of Troll. Yikes.

Links via IESB.net, Imdb.com, Variety.com, The-ReelGillman.com, LaughingPlace.com, ContactMusic.com, AfterEllen.com, DarkHorizons.com, HollywoodReporter.com, MoviesBlog.MTV.com and FilmWad.com.

Holdin' Out for a Hero

Thanks to a certain web-slinger, superhero movies are now all the rage, as witnessed by the next batch of comic book-inspired flicks:

- If you like Hugh Jackman the way I like Hugh Jackman (sportin' claws and 'burns), then you'll be glad to hear the X-Men spin-off Wolverine just nabbed an Oscar-winning director.

- A big screen Green Hornet has been rumored for years, with everyone from George Clooney to the late Brandon Lee attached. So how did they end up with Seth Rogan?

- Kevin Spacey will return as Lex Luthor in Superman: Man of Steel, directed by Bryan Singer after he helms the long-delayed The Mayor of Castro Street.

- Stan Lee says Iron Man, starring Robert Downey Jr., will be "something totally different than anything we have seen before." Except that, like every other comic book-based film, it will have him in a silly cameo.

- Frank Miller's legendary Watchmen series inches closer to the silver screen, with the rumored casting of Billy Crudup as the Superman-like Dr. Manhattan. This is very good news for Crudup fans as the character does not wear a costume. Oh yeah, and he's blue.

- For the time being, it appears that all we'll get of Heath Ledger as the Joker in the next Batman film, The Dark Knight, is fuzzy pictures and even fuzzier plot information. Could a possible teaser trailer offer us any more?

Links via Cinematical.com, DarkHorizons.com, Variety.com, CinemaFusion.com, CHUD.com, Wikipedia.com, Batman-Dark-Knight.MovieChronicles.com and SuperHeroHype.com.

Wack-A-Rat

It is not unusual to see toys inspired by Disney/Pixar movies. It is unusual to see toys that invite physical abuse.

Meet Remy, the star of Ratatouille. Not only does Remy like to cook, he likes to talk. To get him to talk, all you have to do is slap him. Yes, slap him. "Bon Appetit!" he blurts after you clock him in the nose. And you thought Transformers and G.I. Joes promoted violence ...

One good thing about this is that now, apparently, they have the technology to really get those Dynasty dolls right.

Click here to buy the Ratatouille Talking Remydoll from Amazon.com.
Link via LaughingPlace.com.

God Rest, Tammy Faye

Tammy Faye Messner, former televangelist and subject of the beloved documentary The Eyes of Tammy Faye, has died.

Messner, just seen in a Larry King interview on Thursday, had battled colon cancer since 1996. She passed away peacefully Friday morning at the age of 65.

Per CNN, Messner was "one of the few evangelical Christians who had the support of the gay community. She was one of the first televangelists to reach out to those with AIDS when it was a little-known and much-feared disease. In return, she told King in July, "When I went -- when we lost everything, it was the gay people that came to my rescue, and I will always love them for that."

And we will always love you, Miss Tammy Faye.

Links via Imdb.com and CNN.com.

It's Hairspray!

As if there was any doubt.

All my expectations and more were fulfilled. The new Hairspray is joyous, funny, moving and, most of all it rocks. Literally, as it never lets up from the first beat of "Good Morning Baltimore" to the final crescendo of "You Can't Stop the Beat".

What I was most impressed with about the movie was how they were able to build off of the innate charms of both of the previous incarnations, creating something entirely unique unto itself, while still staying true to the spirit and spunk that has always existed in the story, whether as movie or musical or, now, both.

The entire cast is top-notch, but special mention should be made of Nikki Blonsky. This girl is a dynamo. Singing, acting, dancing - she's got it all. And she's never done anything before. Not a movie, not Broadway, not even a crappy TV singing competition. Truly, a star is born.

I also have to give credit to John Travolta. He makes the character his own and, once you get over the site of him, you believe in his Edna Turnblad. Is he the best Edna? Honestly, I would have to say no, because I did see Harvey Fierstein do it in Vegas. However, Travolta's performance does work within the scope of this movie, and in the end, that is all that matters.

If for some reason you weren't planning to see this movie (you don't like the idea of a remake, the whole Washington Blade/Travolta thing), do yourself a favor: go. If not, you will just be cheating yourself out of a great time at the movies.

Links via Imdb.com and YouTube.com.

The Great Cate

1998's Elizabeth is probably the last movie you would expect a sequel to; after all, those are usually reserved for superhero sagas and fantasy epics, right?

But the life of Queen Elizabeth I went on after the events of the first film, naturally. And really, who could resist seeing Cate Blanchett's passionate, fiery monarch again? (I still think she should have won the Oscar over Gwyneth Paltrow that year; maybe this will give her another shot at.)

In the trailer for Elizabeth: The Golden Age, Blanchett appears to be at the top of her game yet again (although I'm not so sure about that Braveheart bit); she spends equal time sparring with the returning Geoffrey Rush and flirting with Clive Owen, who is always welcome, thank you very much.

Catch the trailer on the film's official website, which opens with the intriguing tagline "Woman Warrior Queen". Yeah, I've known my fair share of those in my day.

Links via Imdb.com and ElizabethTheGoldenAge.net.

There's a Time for Turkey ...

In Kevin Murphy's "A Year at the Movies", he recounts his covert mission smuggling an entire Thanksgiving dinner into a movie theater. While I admire his cheekiness after the fact, I am not so sure how I would have felt if I was sitting in the same theater as him that day, with the sounds of a Tom Jones-like bacchanal going on in the front row and smells of roast turkey and canned cranberries wafting about. Especially if I had just eaten just that.

Which brings me to this note on cinematic etiquette: a movie theater is not a food court. When I go into my local cineplex, I expect to smell popcorn, nothing else. No burritos from Baja Bungalow, no marinara from Mama Meloni's, no fish sticks from Fran's Fry-Daddy. If I wanted an international taste sensation, I'd go to Epcot.

What is even worse about this situation is not just that people do this (who then don't even have the decency to hide the food in their purse), but that theater employees allow them to do it.

Note to all ticket takers out there: I know you are either still in high school or never finished it, so you may not have the "life experience" to recognize such situations, but pay heed. If someone walks up to you and has to balance a styrofoam container with ranch dressing oozing out of it on your tiny little ticket taker pedestal in order to dig out their ticket from the pocket of their acid wash jeans, don't let them go any further with that food.

We have all been taught since we were tiny little children that you "cannot bring outside food into a movie theater" and dammit, rules are rules. If I can't bring in an 89¢ Big Gulp and instead have to buy a $4 drink of the same size (upsold for just a quarter more), then Peter and Polly Picnicker can't bring in their pot stickers from the Panda Palace.

That is all.

Links via Amazon.com and Imdb.com.

Potent Quotables: Toddy on Reformation

Norma: "I think that the right woman could reform you."

Toddy: "You know, I think that the right woman could reform you too."

-- Lesley Ann Warren and Robert Preston in Victor/Victoria (1982).

Click here to purchase Victor/Victoriaon DVD from Amazon.com.

Link via Imdb.com.

Out in Film: Marc Shaiman & Scott Wittman

To conclude the weeklong countdown to the premiere of the musical version of John Waters' Hairspray (in theaters now!), today's "Out in Film" shines the spotlight on the film's songwriting team.

Collaborating in life as well as in work, partners Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman created all the toe-tappin' songs heard in the new Hairspray, and they have the Tony Awards to prove it.

Previously, the duo provided songs for such films as Down With Love and Addams Family Values, and they are currently working on a stage musical adaptation of Steven Spielberg's crime caper Catch Me If You Can.

Shaiman is also a prolific composer, receiving Oscar nominations for his scores to The American President, The First Wives Club and Patch Adams, as well as nods for co-writing songs from Sleepless in Seattle and South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut. He is also known for crafting those parody songs for Billy Crystal's Oscar appearances.

For two recent interviews with Shaiman, check out Broadway.com and Playbill.com.

Links via Imdb.com, Playbill.com and Broadway.com.

One, Two, Freddy's Coming for You

Every year come All Hallow's Eve, Universal Orlando pulls out all the stops for their "Halloween Horror Nights". This year's month-long event will take on a familiar face ... or should I say, faces ... with three slasher flick icons guaranteed to send shivers up your spine.

Making their first appearances at the festivities are The Texas Chainsaw Massacre's Leatherface, Friday the 13th's Jason Voorhees and A Nightmare on Elm Street's Freddy Krueger, a trio of bogeymen who's presence will guarantee that the night will be a real slice.

I have been to a couple of these in the past, and it does make for a creepy night, especially with all the drunk frat boys stumbling around.

Link via HalloweenHorrorNights.com.

Critics Bow and Exalt

Movie Dearest continues the weeklong countdown to the new movie musical Hairspray, opening nationwide tomorrow:

The reviews are in, and they are as fabulous as Michelle Pfeiffer in that outfit.

Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly rates it an "A-", calling it "a fizzy and delirious high-camp message-movie musical that may just turn out to be the happiest movie of the summer."

Glenn Kenny of Premiere.com awards 3 out of 4 stars (which means it is "so money"), saying "Hairspray proves that summer movie fun needn't be witless and/or soulless."

Dennis Harvey of Variety says it is "high on retro movie-musical craftsmanship."

Michael Rechtshaffen of The Hollywood Reporter keeps it simple: "A giddy breath of fresh aerosol."

David Ansen of Newsweek calls it "a plus-size pleasure."

Peter Travers in Rolling Stone sticks to the tried and true: "Hairspray has a beat. And you sure can dance to it."

Rex Reed of the The New York Observer says the movie is "splashy, flashy, trashy musical mayhem that made me laugh and hum, put snap in my fingers and rhythm in my feet, and left me thoroughly entertained."

Ebert & Roeper give it "Two BIG thumps up!", with Roger going for the obvious: "It's no drag."

Greg Hernandez at Out in Hollywood cuts to the heart of the matter: "But, let's face it, the film absolutely could not work if the role of the loveable, brave and spirited Tracy Turnblad isn't spot-on. In newcomer Nikki Blonsky, we have our Tracy. She is a wonder."

And the Broadway Blog tells us what we want to hear: "They got it right. They got it right! Thank God, they got it right!"

In related news, the just released soundtrack album debuted in the #2 spot on Billboard's soundtrack chart.

You can't stop the beat indeed.

UPDATE: Even the Washington Blade gave it a glowing review!

Links via EW.com, Premiere.com, Variety.com, HollywoodReporter.com, MSNBC.MSN.com, RollingStone.com, Observer.com, BVEntertainment.go.com, RogerEbert.SunTimes.com, InsideSoCal.com, BroadwayMouth.blogspot.com, Playbill.com and WashBlade.com.

The Latest in Theaters: When Chuck Met Larry

The other "gay but not really gay" movie that opens this week is I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry.

Despite a clever title and the GLADD seal of approval, this so-called comedy about two New York City firemen who pose as a gay couple to receive "special benefits" (only available in movieland) has a lot going against it.

First off, it stars Adam Sandler.

And if that isn't enough, the trailers promoting it are laced with cringe-inducing gags that makes one long for the subtler days of, say, Andrew Dice Clay.

The worst thing? Per The Advocate's Kyle Buchanan, it isn't even funny. Over at AfterElton.com, Alonso Duralde likens Chuck and Larry to such deservedly long-forgotten films as Norman, Is That You? and The Gay Deceivers (and if you haven't seen these two, trust me, that is not a good thing).

But hey, real gay firemen liked it.

Also, check out Duralde's insightful piece on how Chuck and Larry fits into a pattern of how Hollywood handles equal rights stories with kid gloves and a pat on the head, as well as MSNBC's Dave White's bitingly witty jaunt through the history of gay film stereotypes.

UPDATE: Aaron Hillis at Premiere.com kicked this movie's ass.

Links via Imdb.com, AfterElton.com, Advocate.com, MSNBC.MSN.com and Premiere.com.

Videodrone: An Introduction

Welcome to Videodrone, where your link to the latest trailers and funniest online videos is just a click away.

The first of these "America's Funniest Net Videos" is brought to you via QueerSighted and features familiar quotes from such favorites as 9 to 5, Tootsie and (well what do you know) Mommie Dearest.

To view the video, just surf on over to the other site. I'm generally not going to post videos directly on this site because, frankly, those YouTube boxes are ugly.

Links via QueerSighted.com and YouTube.com.

Hands Off the Merchandise: An Introduction

While preparing my Hairspray articles, I came across this USA Today article announcing a new line of Hairspray Barbies ... oops, I mean dolls (oh crap, now Mattel is going to sue me).

Anyhoo, aren't they fab? From left to right, there's Amber, Link (dreamy), Tracy (love the highlights), Edna (!), Seaweed and Penny. I'm just bummed they didn't do a Motormouth Maybelle one. Just imagine: Queen Latifah with kung-fu grip!

This news also inspired me to create a new section here at Movie Dearest to showcase unique and unusual toys, dolls, lunch boxes and other paraphernalia under the title "Hands Off the Merchandise". Fitting, huh?

Click here to buy the Hairspray dollsfrom Amazon.com.

Link via USAToday.com.

My Top 100 ... For Now

To give you a taste for my tastes in movies, I have listed the 100 films that I voted for in the American Film Institute's most recent poll. You can find it in the sidebar under the heading "My Ballot: AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Movies - 10th Anniversary Edition".

As is my prerogative, this list is certainly subject to change. For example, in the six months since I voted I have seen Elia Kazan's A Face in the Crowd, an awesome movie that certainly would be included if I were making the list today. Oh well, at least they will be re-polling members once more in another ten years.

For the record, 64 of my choices made the final cut, announced about a month ago. They are indicated on the chronological list in the sidebar with a *, and the links will take you to their respective IMDB pages.

What is most fun about these things (for me anyway) is figuring out the statistics of it all. You know, the most this or the least that. I have compiled facts and figures for each of the AFI lists, which will appear in this section eventually. To give you an idea of what I am talking about, here is some interesting data for the 100 movies on my ballot:

• The oldest film is Harold Lloyd's Safety Last; the newest is Brokeback Mountain.
• The most represented decade is the 1950's, with 18 films.
• The most represented year is (naturally) 1939, with 5 films.
• There are 3 silents on the list (I know, I need to see more).
• Dramas account for 45 entries, the most represented genre. Musicals, one of my favorite genres (go figure), comes in second with 17.
• Steven Spielberg is the most represented director (5 times), followed by Alfred Hitchcock (4 times).
• The actors who appear the most are Humphrey Bogart, Dustin Hoffman and James Stewart, with 4 films each, while the actresses are Faye Dunaway (purely coincidental) and Judy Garland, with 3 films each.
• The Godfather Part II is the only sequel (isn't that always the case?).
• There are 6 animated films, 7 if you count Mary Poppins.
• There are only 4 films with overt gay themes: Midnight Cowboy, Cabaret, Dog Day Afternoon and Brokeback. This is a case where foreign fare does infinitely better.
• 24 films were Oscar-winning Best Pictures. 43 more were nominated for that prize as well. (For the record, Safety Last was released prior to the Academy's existence.)
• The film with the longest title is The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (49 letters, symbols and spaces); the shortest is Jaws (4 letters).
• 37 1/4 * films are in glorious black and white.

* This figure includes the Kansas sections of The Wizard of Oz.

UPDATE: The list has been removed from the sidebar and can now be found in the comments section below.

Links via Imdb.com and AFI.com.

Awards Watch: Ugly Emmy

While I don't necessarily cover a lot of television here, I did want to give a shout out to some of my personal favorites that made the cut for this year's Emmy Awards, announced this morning. If anything, it gives you an idea of the TV shows I like. And the nominees are:

• Brothers & Sisters: The crappy Boston Legal was nominated instead of this? At least Sally Field and Rachel Griffiths were.
• Dancing With the Stars and Top Chef (come on, admit it, you watch them) are both up for the "reality competion" award.
• Desperate Housewives: Three of them made the grade - Felicity Huffman, Dixie Carter and Laurie Metcalf.
• Dirty Jobs: Mike Rowe is a stud. That's all I'm going to say.
• Grey's Anatomy: A Best Drama nominee even with their rough third year, and boy, they sure racked 'em up in the acting races: T.R. Knight, Katherine Heigl, Chandra Wilson, Sandra Oh, Kate Burton and Elizabeth Reaser.
• Heroes: A surprise nominee for Best Drama Series, Masi Oka was the sole hero singled out.
• Lost: Michael Emerson and Terry O'Quinn were mentioned ... but no Elizabeth Mitchell!
• Smallville: I love my Superman wherever I can get him.
• The Sopranos: The controversial final season netted 16 nods, more then any other series, including ones for Best Drama, James Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Michael Imperioli, Aida Turturro, Lorraine Bracco and Tim Daly.
• Ugly Betty: The most nominated comedy series with 11 nominations, including nods for Best Comedy and actors America Ferrera (yeah!), Vanessa Williams (woo-hoo!), Judith Light and Salma Hayek.

In addition to Knight, out-and-proud actors Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother) and Ian McKellen (for his guest stint on Extras) were also nominated.

And there was some movie-related specials in the mix: AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Cheers: America's Most Inspiring Movies, Boffo! Tinseltown's Bombs and Blockbusters, Star Wars: The Legacy Revealed, TCM's Brando, and of course The 79th Annual Academy Awards, hosted by our gal Ellen DeGeneres, who received a nomination herself. The Golden Globes and Tony Awards were also singled out.

And by far the oddest nominee? How about Justin Timberlake and his five (!) co-composers for the song "Dick in a Box" from Saturday Night Live. Too bad they don't perform the nominated songs on the show like at the Oscars. (And no, the song title was not censored on the official nominees list, available here.)

Links via DSC.Discovery.com and Emmys.com.

Why We Should Not Boycott Hairspray

The Three Faces of Edna

Movie Dearest continues the weeklong countdown to the new movie musical Hairspray, opening nationwide this Friday.

When I first saw John Waters' original Hairspray in 1988, I fell in love with it. The film’s energy and sassiness drew me in, but it was the universal theme that "what you look like on the outside cannot keep you from making a difference in this world" is what struck a chord within me and stayed with me through its subsequent adaptations.

I am, of course, not alone in my affection for the material. Audiences, regardless of age, gender, race or sexuality, embraced the original movie and stage versions, making them a cult classic and mainstream sensation, respectively. So the unexpected call for the gay community to boycott the new Hairspray by Washington Blade editor Kevin Naff due to John Travolta's involvement in Scientology caught me off guard (as it also did Travolta, Waters and Adam Shankman, the remake's director).

Mr. Naff's ascertains that Travolta should not have been cast in the role of Edna Turnblad because of its gay icon status (Edna was previously portrayed onscreen by Divine and onstage by Harvey Fierstein, who are the real gay icons in this scenario). This goes beyond the questions many of us had regarding the casting in the first place: mainly, could Travolta even pull it off? Instead, Naff's rather glib article (which is not even all that original; who hasn't complained about remakes?) focuses on Travolta's personal life as a Scientologist and that controversial religion's reported stance on homosexuality.

Before I go on, I will say that I am not going to get into the whole debate on what Scientology is or is not. Religion? Cult? So not going there. Which leads me to my point: should our entertainment choices be dictated by what we know (or, let's be realistic, think we know) about the people who create the movies, TV shows, books, music, et al we watch, read, listen to and, ideally, enjoy?

Does this mean that we should not watch, say, John Wayne's or Barbra Streisand's movies because of their strong political beliefs? How about if I don't like a filmmaker's religious heritage, race or sexual orientation? As you can see, if you start pruning it all down, weeding out this one or that one because of this incident or that scandal, all you end up with is a blank screen.

Naturally, we all have been influenced in our opinions concerning this actor or that director by what we have heard about them, and that (along with a healthy dose of our own morality) certainly informs what choices we make in what we watch, buy, et cetera. And that is how it should be. We all have our own personal standards and, more importantly, we all have our own sense of what we do or do not want to see.

With almost twenty-years invested in the property, I want to see the new Hairspray, and I am not going to throw the baby out with the bathwater, as they say, because of one person's involvement in the project. Nor should I be shamed for doing so, and neither should you.

Links via WashBlade.com, Hollywood.com and NYDailyNews.com.

Dennis Hensley's Brokeback Memories

Dennis Hensley is one of my favorite writers. I totally dig his style and frequently find myself laughing aloud so much that Big Edie wonders what's so funny on "that there computer box". Naturally, his book "Screening Party" will be featured here in an upcoming "Off the Shelf", and you may also know him from his screenplay for Testosterone or his appearances on the first season of Kathy Griffith: My Life on the D-List.

Dennis also writes for various online sources such as PlanetOut, where he recently relates his trip up north for the Calgary Gay Rodeo and, more importantly, the actual filming locations for Brokeback Mountain. This newest of gay meccas even inspired this video recreation of that film's most iconic scene. And no, not the part where Heath Ledger spits into his hand.

Click here to purchase Brokeback Mountainon DVD from Amazon.com.

Links via DennisHensley.com, PlanetOut.com, FindingBrokeback.com and YouTube.com.

Poster Post: Audrey in Peril

Japanese poster art for the 1963 Stanley Donen romantic thriller Charade, starring Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn.

Click here to purchase Charadeon DVD from Amazon.com. Click here to by Charadeposters from Amazon.com.

Link via Imdb.com.

Trick or Treat ... or Both?

My pal Robrt Pela (Monica Breedlove’s second cousin) sent me the link to this news with the subject line "Mother of GOD!", and boy, was he right.

TVShowsOnDVD reports that S'more Entertainment is releasing The Paul Lynde Halloween Special on DVD October 2nd. The 1976 television special has not been seen since it originally aired, yet it has attained over the years a sort-of cult-like status for those who remember it.

This venture, which makes you wonder what TV execs were smokin' back then, not only stars everyone's favorite gay warlock uncle (pictured), but also features a plethora of gay faves such as Betty White, Florence Henderson, Roz "Pinkie Tuscadero" Kelly and both Margaret Hamilton as "the Wicked Witch of the West" from The Wizard of Oz and Billie Hayes as "Witchiepoo" from H.R. Pufnstuf.

Wait, there's more: the special not only had wholesome Donny and Marie as well, but it also marked the "primetime television debut" of rock band KISS, a full two years before their equally craptastic KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park.

Yeah, I know, my head just exploded too from the thought of all this queer pop culture colliding at once in one space and time. It is amazing that the medium of television didn't just stop existing at that point, for this ... this was surely nirvana.

Now, there are a lot of scary things about this show, not the least of which is that it is all set in a circus, but the scariest is this: I think actually I saw it.

I would have been eight-years-old at the time, and my two older brothers (who couldn't have been more different from me) were very into KISS (see, I told you), so I'm sure we watched it. I have a vague memory of Lynde doing some sort of interview with the rockers and, when asking them how they came up with the name of the band, he said something along the lines of "What, did your mothers tell you to kiss and make up?" (Yep, that was the level of the humor in it.) Again, I'm not entirely sure if it was Lynde who asked that question, but really; who else could it have been?

Any one out there who can confirm this exchange from the show in the comments section below will be greatly exalted. If not, I guess I'll just have to wait until October 2nd to see for myself. As I'm sure you will too.

Come on, how can you resist it?

UPDATE: Turns out, my memories were correct, and here's the proof.

Click here to pre-order The Paul Lynde Halloween Specialon DVD from Amazon.com.
Links via PhoenixNewTimes.com, TVShowsOnDVD.com and Imdb.com.

Awards Watch: The Women

2007 is more then half over (can you believe it?), and already there are some front-runners for the big prizes this movie year.

Sure things in their respective categories at this point are Michael Moore's health care doc Sicko, Disney/Pixar's animated hit Ratatouille, and two strong contenders for Best Actor: Don Cheadle in Talk to Me and Christian Bale (finally) in Rescue Dawn.

But the big surprise is in the usually hard-to-fill Best Actress race. There are no less then four women gaining much-needed buzz:

• Marion Cotillard as chanteuse Edith Piaf in La Vie en Rose.
• Julie Christie as an Alzheimer's victim in Away from Her.
• Angelina Jolie as Mariane Pearl, wife of slain reporter Danny Pearl, in A Mighty Heart.
• Sigourney Weaver as a mother traumatized by her daughter's disappearance in The Girl in the Park.

Of course, very few people have actually seen most of these movies, but there is no doubt that this year's race is on.

Links via Imdb.com and LaughingPlace.com.

Women We Love: Myrna Loy

Myrna Loy was the epitome of class.

During her long, amazing career she starred in everything from melodramas (The Rains Came) to screwball comedies (Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House) to social commentaries (The Best Years of Our Lives) to extravagant musicals (The Great Ziegfeld) to all-star blockbusters (Airport 1975) to a long-running series of romantic who-done-its (The Thin Man, et al).

Yet, in all that time and with all those performances, Loy was never once nominated for an Oscar (the Academy made up for it with an honorary award in 1991), nor has she ever been as canonized as such peers as Davis, Crawford and Hepburn.

However, all one has to do is watch one of her pictures on TCM or on DVD (such as the upcoming box set collecting her non-Nick and Nora movies with frequent co-star William Powell, available August 7) to see how graceful, how witty, how classy she truly is; if you do, I guarantee she will be elevated to your own list of favorite screen actresses.

Click here to pre-order Myrna Loy and William Powell Collectionon DVD from Amazon.com.

Link via Imdb.com.

Best of the Fests: OutFest 2007

Greg Hernandez over at Out in Hollywood is turning out a fine series of articles covering this year's OutFest (the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Film Festival that continues through July 23), including on-the-scene pics of such notable attendees as Alexis Arquette, Judith Light and Reichen Lemkuhl.

So what are the movies to watch out for in the future at your local theater or (more likely) DVD store? Highlights of the fest per Greg:

• The Curiosity of Chance: This comedy, set in the 1980's, tells the story of how an out teenager fits into his new high school.
• East Side Story: Romantic complications arise for Diego and his closeted boyfriend when a hot couple moves into the neighborhood.
• For the Bible Tells Me So: A documentary on how the religious right uses the good book against us; directed by Dan Karslake.
• Kiss the Bride: From Latter Days director C. Jay Cox, a soon-to-be-married straight guy finds his pending nuptials in question when his high school boyfriend shows up. Trick's Tori Spelling co-stars as the bride.
• Love and Other Disasters: A romantic comedy about a professional gal (Brittany Murphy) who plays matchmaker for her friends, including her gay pal played by Brothers & Sisters' Matthew Rhys.
• Save Me: (starring Chad Allen and Robert Gant), a romantic drama set in an ex-gay ministry. This looks to be another Brokeback Mountain, but with out gay actors in the leads.
• Shelter: Is, as Greg puts it: "the first gay surfing flick, which is great because, duh, dudes in wetsuits." Billy's Hollywood Screen Kiss star Brad Rowe is one of the surfers.

Also of note is the screening of the recently restored gay classic Parting Glances, the first film in OutFest's Legacy Project, which is doing the all-important job of preserving GLBT films for the generations ahead to experience.

We'll check back in with Greg as the festival continues.

Links via InsideSoCal.com, OutFest.org and Imdb.com.