Monthly Wallpaper - August 2013: Film Noir

Hard-boiled private dicks, irresistible femme fatales, desperate men on the run, and a whole lot of cigarette smoking. And let's not forget the shadows, shadows everywhere. These are the hallmarks of Film Noir, a wholly unique genre of Hollywood filmmaking that dove into the gutters of the 1940s and 50s and emerged with some of the truly greatest crime and mystery dramas of all-time.

This August, the Movie Dearest Calendar Wallpaper salutes the anti-heroes, shady dames and cold hearted killers of the best of Noir cinema, all in glorious black and white.

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Reverend’s Reviews: Something Old, Something New on Home Video

Way back in 1986, Oscar-winning director Francis Ford Coppola was pretty washed up in Hollywood. His expensive 1982 musical One from the Heart had tanked, and his subsequent adaptations of S.E. Hinton’s young adult novels The Outsiders and Rumble Fish didn’t do much at the box office. Seeking to reinvent himself, Coppola went so far as to drop the “Ford” from his name in the titles for his next project, Peggy Sue Got Married. A gentle time-travel drama without special effects, the film was a modest hit and garnered three Academy Award nominations, including Best Actress for Kathleen Turner’s wonderful lead performance.

This week’s debut of the film on Blu-raydoubles as the movie’s first home video release ever in its original widescreen format, giving viewers a chance to see all of Jordan Cronenweth’s Oscar-nominated cinematography for the first time since its theatrical run. Peggy Sue Got Married was also one of the first features to be shot digitally (following the pioneering Coppola’s One from the Heart), although the process is rather quaintly referred to as “electronic cinema” during the closing credits.

In addition to Turner, who replaced the notoriously difficult Debra Winger, the cast includes such stars then-in-the-making as Nicolas Cage (giving the first of his many odd but ultimately endearing performances), Helen Hunt, Joan Allen and Jim Carrey, as well as terrific turns by veterans Barbara Harris, Maureen O’Sullivan and John Carradine. Jerry Leichtling and Arlene Sarner’s alternately funny and moving screenplay takes a decidedly metaphysical-psychological approach to time travel, which Coppola reinforces through tone and the film’s nostalgia-drenched art direction. There are few scenes in any movie as touching as the one here where time-warped Peggy Sue answers the phone in her parents’ home and unexpectedly hears the voice of her long-dead grandmother (O’Sullivan). Her subsequent emotional breakdown and its handling by her mother (Harris) are beautifully rendered.

Peggy Sue Got Married is a must-see for a new generation of moviegoers and deserving of consideration as a contemporary classic. In fact, I recommend re-watching it every decade or so, as I have done. Older generations’ personal experiences of “browsing through time” reveal how truly and rarely perceptive Coppola’s low-key effort remains.
Reverend’s Rating: A-

Some additional new home video releases that are mostly worth one’s while:

Vanishing Waves
A trippy, sexy sci-fi thriller reminiscent of such 1970’s classics as The Man Who Fell to Earth and A Clockwork Orange. Lukas (played by Marius Jampolskis, who somewhat resembles American actor Zach Braff) is the guinea pig among a team of researchers working to communicate with a comatose woman, Aurora, via sensory deprivation and alpha wave synchronization. The experiment arguably works too well initially as Lukas and Aurora (the very good Jurga Jutaite) bond sexually. Trouble starts to brew as Lukas keeps the full details of their unconscious conjugal exploits secret from his fellow scientists. There is plentiful male and female nudity on display in this thought-provoking, award-winning Lithuanian film, which is beautifully directed by Kristina Buozyte (The Collectress). Peter von Poehl’s electronic-classical fusion score is also a standout.
Reverend’s Rating: B+

White Frog
Family secrets, Christian fundamentalism and Asperger’s Syndrome collide in this sensitive, generally impressive drama from gay director Quentin Lee (The People I’ve Slept With, Drift). Booboo Stewart of Twilight Saga fame is great as Nick, an AS-afflicted high school student who is bereft following the sudden death of his beloved older brother, Chaz (a too-brief appearance by Glee’s Harry Shum Jr.). Nick and his conservative parents, played by B.D. Wong and Joan Chen, find their grief compounded once they learn that Chaz was gay. Nick discovers support as well as compassion towards his late brother when he starts hanging out with Chaz’s friends. The drama seems forced at times, despite or perhaps due to an assist from Tony-winning playwright David Henry Hwang, but White Frog is undeniably moving and inspiring.
Reverend’s Rating: B

Cloudburst
This lesbian dramedy co-starring Academy Award winners Olympia Dukakis (Moonstruck) and Brenda Fricker (My Left Foot) was a big hit on last year’s GLBT film fest circuit, wracking up more than 30 festival awards. I missed it then, but upon watching the newly-released DVD have to wonder what all the fuss was about. Sure, Fricker and Dukakis are fine and enjoyable, even if the latter is uncomfortably saddled with some shocking expletives. But the usually reliable writer-director Thom Fitzgerald (The Hanging Garden and the superb AIDS drama 3 Needles) disappoints with a simplistic yet heavy-handed and even illogical script that pretty much spells everything out in advance. Case in point: Hunky, hairy Ryan Doucette plays a hitchhiking, possibly gay professional dancer with daddy issues. What else is new? Reverend’s Rating: C+

Review by Rev. Chris Carpenter, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and Rage Monthly Magazine.

Reverend's Interview: Brooke Shields, Doing Her Time

She began modeling when she was a mere eleven months old, and parlayed her childhood success into a successful acting career that has included movies (Pretty Baby, The Blue Lagoon, The Hot Flashes), TV series (Suddenly Susan, Army Wives) and Broadway (Grease, Wonderful Town, The Addams Family). Brooke Shields’ next step will be making her directorial debut with this summer’s Hollywood Bowl production of the prison-set musical classic, Chicago. She recently spoke with me about her latest gig.

How did this opportunity to make your directorial debut at the iconic Hollywood Bowl come about?
Rob Fisher (who will be conducting Chicago) was my musical director on many different things and he convinced me to sing in Carnegie Hall in The Sound of Music, soprano and everything. It was really great. He seems to have faith in me. So he called me and said, “Listen, I really think that you will be able to (direct Chicago); you know the show and love the show.” Then we took it to the Hollywood Bowl people. I’ve never really had a mentor, but Rob is great at pushing me beyond my comfort zone.

Can you announce any casting at this point? Any possibility of you playing a part or will directing keep you busy enough?
I think it would probably be suicide or I would implode if I did (laughs). I believe in giving my all to everything I do, so directing will be more than enough. We don’t have any lead cast members yet but are very close with a few. I can’t wait to announce soon. I have been able to bring back a lot of the alums of all ages from past productions for the ensemble, which is great because they are already so familiar with the show. [Editor's note: the cast includes Les Misérables' Samantha Barks as Velma Kelly, Ashlee Simpson as Roxie Hart, True Blood's Stephen Moyer as Billy Flynn, Drew Carey as Amos Hart and Xena herself, Lucy Lawless, as Matron Mama Morton.]

You performed in Chicago in both New York and London. Did you gain any particular insights that you feel will guide or help you in directing this LA production?
Even at the end of six months or the year or whatever, I was always able to discover something new. It’s such a tightly-crafted book but it has a lot of depth to it. Once I stopped trying as a performer or took the cartoon out of it and trusted the material, that’s when it happened. You just have to really listen and stay in the material as much as possible.In terms of directing, what amazes me so far is that you so often get “no” as an answer as an actor but now I get to hear “yes.” I’ve never worked with set designers or lighting designers, and now they want your ideas and then come back with amazing designs. What’s so wonderful (about directing) is you actually get to have a creative dream.

Many actresses “of a certain age” complain about opportunities drying up but you really seem to be flourishing. Do you agree? If so, what’s the secret to your longevity?
Go where the water’s warm (laughs). I would love to say there’s a master plan. For me, it’s about remaining open to the variety of opportunities. If a movie or TV thing doesn’t work out, then I look at what’s going on in theatre and vice versa. There are truths about growing older in Hollywood but it doesn’t do any good to complain about it. I say “Why not?” a lot instead of saying “I’m only gonna do this” or “I’m not gonna do that.” I’ve been at it a long time. It’s a body of work built of opportunities you say “yes” to.

You also have a new movie coming out this summer, The Hot Flashes, which I’ve seen and found delightful. It could become a sleeper hit. What was the experience of making that film like, especially with such a great cast (that also includes Wanda Sykes, Daryl Hannah, Virginia Madsen and Camryn Manheim)?
It’s a sweet movie. We all enjoyed each other so much, and worked so hard at learning to play basketball (laughs). Hours and hours and hours of practice. [The movie is about a group of former high-school players who reunite 30 years later to save a deceased friend’s legacy.] We’re all over 40 and the director [Susan Seidelman of Desperately Seeking Susan and She-Devil fame] took a chance on us that, I think, paid off. There are groups like the one in the film all across the country, many of them organized around certain causes like breast cancer.

Any special message or words for your gay and lesbian fans?
They’ve been the most loyal from day one. I’ve never felt turned on by them but appreciated and encouraged and inspired by them. I’m very thankful for their continuity of support throughout my career.

Interview by Rev. Chris Carpenter, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and Rage Monthly Magazine.

Reverend’s Report: Hot Guys and More at Outfest 2013

Between the dual finales of Outfest and Comic-Con on Sunday, most industry folks here in Los Angeles are suffering withdrawals this week. The enthusiastic receptions accorded many of the GLBT films screened during Outfest combined probably couldn’t equal gay fanboys’ excitement over director Zack Snyder’s Comic-Con announcement that Superman and Batman will appear together in his 2015 Man of Steel sequel. Talk about a dynamic duo!

Though not superheroes, the gay amateur sleuths played by Marc Anthony Samuel and Brian McArdle in Hot Guys with Guns are worth watching. Written and directed by Doug Spearman (Noah’s Arc), this Outfest premiere spins an amusingly sordid mystery around Hollywood sex parties. Someone is drugging and robbing these parties’ A-list attendees, and it falls to a struggling actor-waiter and his ex-boyfriend to figure out whodunit. The screenplay, while not without its excesses, is generally a hoot and the film’s attractive, gay-list cast includes Spearman’s fellow Noah’s Arc alum Darryl Stephens, Jason Boegh, Kevin Held and Trey McCurley. Particularly good is the James Bond-ish opening credits sequence and theme song!

Similarly imperfect but entertaining is Anna Margarita Albelo’s Who’s Afraid of Vagina Wolf? Albelo plays an unsuccessful, single, lesbian filmmaker who understandably experiences a midlife crisis. She becomes inspired to direct an all-female remake of Mike Nichols’ classic movie of Edward Albee’s play Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolfe?

Lesbian acting icon Guinevere Turner (Go Fish) takes over for Elizabeth Taylor and won a special Outfest award for her performance (see the full list of award winners in the comments section below). Hilarious supporting turns are rendered by True Blood’s Carrie Preston and gay fave Drew Droege, the latter of whom seemed to appear in virtually every LA-based feature and short film screened during Outfest. This women’s-interest film with crossover appeal was co-written by Michael Urban, who wrote the memorable 2004 satire Saved!

One of the big Outfest award winners this year was Test, Chris Mason Johnson’s assured look at the incursion of AIDS among a group of professional dancers in 1985 San Francisco. One of them, Frankie, grapples with the decision to take the new HIV antibody test at the same time he is called upon to fill in for one of the dance company’s soloists. His tense relationship with a sexy fellow dancer gradually gives way to respect and even love. Some of Johnson’s metaphorical points are belabored, especially those involving a mouse infestation in Frankie’s apartment, but the film is ultimately evocative and affecting and the dance sequences stunning.

My two favorite men’s features from Outfest 2013 were among its more bittersweet, international offerings. Bwakaw, by Jun Robles Lana, was the Philippines’ official entry for last year’s Academy Awards. It focuses on an elderly gay man, Rene (a beautifully cantankerous yet sensitive performance by Eddie Garcia, who has starred in nearly 600 movies and TV shows during his long career), whose only friend is a stray dog he reluctantly takes in. The dog, Bwakaw, helps open Rene’s heart to other relationship possibilities, including with a tough, married taxi driver (well-played by Rez Cortez). Things don’t always turn out successfully — having Kleenex handy is highly recommended — but Rene learns much along this lovely, unsentimental journey.

Out in the Dark, my other fest fave, is a provocative Israeli-Palestinian co-production about the plight faced by a pair of gay lovers from those two disparate nations. Palestinian student Nimr (Nicholas Jacob) and Israeli attorney Roy (Michael Aloni) meet cute one night in a Tel Aviv nightclub. As things heat up between them, they are confronted by a host of obstacles including anti-gay immigration officials, their self-righteous parents’ disapproval, and some vicious gangsters. Once Nimr’s student visa is revoked and his family disowns him, Roy must make a dramatic sacrifice to save him. Co-written by Michael Mayer and Yael Shafrir and directed by Mayer, who was named one of Outfest’s “5 in Focus” filmmakers to watch, Out in the Dark is a timely and bracing romantic-drama. Watch for it.

Reverend’s Ratings:
Hot Guys with Guns: B
Who’s Afraid of Vagina Wolf?: B
Test: B+
Bwakaw: B+
Out in the Dark: A-

Review by Rev. Chris Carpenter, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and Rage Monthly Magazine.