Band camp. Deeeeeath. There was a heat index of 118 today, and I was lucky enough to be marching for 7 hours out in it. Band is pretty ridiculous, and I fail to learn just about anything from it anymore, but I'm sticking around just to finish it out in my high school career. Pffft, I'm such a tool.

By Jeff Walsh

"Almost Infamous" is the new documentary about The Kinsey Sicks from the same people that brought us the amazingly well-shot and entertaining "I Wanna Be A Republican" live concert. The movie recently had its world premiere at the 32nd annual San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival.

It's really two movies in one. The first half sets up the history and back stories of the group and its current and former members, whereas the second half is where it becomes the drag queen equivalent of Metallica's "Some Kind of Monster," where we see the group dealing with the strain of being a touring group about to have their own show in Las Vegas.

I've been a fan of the group for years, so seeing their history was more of a flashback for me than an educational experience. The only San Francisco show I didn't see was their first time singing publicly at Harvey Milk Plaza in the Castro (and, stupidly, the shows they shot for the first movie). But the documentary team got to dig in deep and really introduce us to the boys behind the Kinseys. We get to meet their families, and see how Irwin Keller's mother is the inspiration for Winnie, learn that Ben Schatz (as the lawyer who drafted Clinton's AIDS policies) gave Bill a copy of their first Dragapella CD the night before he was impeached giving him a good laugh during a serious time, and how Chris Dilley and Jeff Manabat had to fill the heels of the members who came before them.

05/27/2008

I recently saw a movie by the late Derek Jarman of the title, "Sebastiane."

Before Derek Jarman had died, he was found to be HIV-positive. He was open about homosexuality. He once regarded the British film industry as containing "hardly any room for us to kiss."

By Jeff Walsh

Pratibha Parmar is the writer, producer, and director the lesbian romantic comedy "Nina's Heavenly Delights," a fun story about food, family, and culture that opens in San Francisco this week and in other major U.S. cities throughout the year. Parmar was in San Francisco this week to promote the movie, as well as work on her next project involving The Color Purple author Alice Walker, so we had a chance to sit down in a café near the Bay Bridge for a chat the other day. We talked about the film, being vegan (she told me "there are meat dishes in the film just to appeal to a broad audience"), the Color Purple, and gay marriage. My review of her movie is here; the interview went as follows:

By Jeff Walsh

Eternal Summer is a Taiwanese film that explores the friendship of straight-laced Jonathan and the more rebellious Shane. They are first paired off by a teacher in grade school, with the hope that Jonathan will serve as a good influence. Ten years later, that pairing is still in effect as the two near the end of their high school years.

Everything changes when Carrie, a new girl in school, appears and goes after Jonathan. He doesn't return her romantic feelings, and we start to realize we are in what is very familiar territory on this site: the straight crush. Rebuffed, Carrie ends up going after Shane instead, which only intensifies Jonathan's longing and clarifies Shane's feelings for Jonathan. Are they shared? Will it work out? Can't say.

What I can say is that the movie really takes time to breathe and build big drama out of small moments. Motorcycle rides with Jonathan holding onto Shane don't advance the plot all that much, but we all have some idea how much they mean to Jonathan.

By Jeff Walsh

The Life of Reilly is a new film based on, well, the life of Charles Nelson Reilly, who is largely known for his voluminous game show appearances in the 1970s although he did have prior success as Broadway performer and television actor.

I was fortunate enough to see Reilly perform this show, then called "Save It For The Stage," in San Francisco. It was one of those shows where it probably went more than two hours, but if it hit four you'd never even look at your watch. He was an engaging performer working off a rich life with a loose script and clearly in his element. The show was also the first time Reilly ever publicly discussed his not-so-secret-but-never-confirmed homosexuality.

The film actually captures Reilly last performance of "Save It For The Stage," and the last time he appeared onstage before his death this past May. The film is a bit uneven, though.

By Jeff Walsh

Cut Sleeve Boys, which bills itself as the first gay British Chinese movie, is about two friends forced to look at their own lives as they grow older in the gay community after attending the funeral of a friend. Their friend had remained in the closet for his entire life, and his funeral doesn't represent the life of the friend they knew.

Mel is still hitting the clubs, but isn't as ready to settle down as his boyfriend Todd. He seems to fear the confinement of a relationship, but the alternative is to dwell in a world where who's hot changes as much as the fashionable clothes he wears.

Ash is very camp, but clear about his intentions. He wants a husband. After running into an old friend who is now a transgender with a hot boyfriend, he decides to turn to his old drag outfits and find a tranny chaser for himself.

The movie, which opens in San Francisco and Berkeley this Friday (and comes out on DVD on November 13), asks interesting questions, but the motivations behind most if not all of the characters is a bit murky.

I was talking about what I should do with my hair today while I was in the car with my uncle, my sister, and my brother. (We were going to see Spider-Man 3. But more on that later.) My uncle stopped by Target on the way to the movie, and he bought me some hair gel!

by StateOfTheOnion

I'll admit it; the only real reason I wanted to see Loving Annabelle, a film focusing on the taboo relationship between a teacher and a student, was for the high hotness factor. Well, the film did deliver in the hotness capacity, but it delivered in so many other ways as well. I was pleasantly surprised to find this film well constructed and, for the most part, very believable.

Annabelle, played by the talented Erin Kelly, is the daughter of an absentee-mother-type who is also a Senator. When she begins attending a Catholic boarding school she quickly makes a lasting impression among the students and the staff.

Annabelle is rebellious, tempestuous, and unapologetic (hot). Ms. Simone Bradley, played by Diane Gaidry, is quite the opposite. She is closeted and very tempered. Despite their differences, the two fall in love with one another. The film explores their relationship but manages to do so without being too preachy in favor of either side of the teacher/student relationship debate.

Okay this might sound lame in all but today i guess my mom knew i was feeling depressed so she was like im goin to myjers ya wana go .. Of course i was like no thanks and crawled back under the covers ..... When she gets back she calls me down stairs cuz she has something for me lo and behold its the neverending story 1 and 2 on dvd omg those are my 2 favorite storys EVER im excited YAY!!

My friend is really big into movies and sent me a trailer for "Red Doors."
Has anyone seen it, and if so, what did you think?

Below are the links if you're curious :p

Official Site:
http://www.reddoorsthemovie.com/

Trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-19sFPz5YaI

I hate my computer sometimes, It's angry at me. I kind of sort of want to kick it, except that might make it more angry, and since my other computer is half-way taken apart, I'd have to fix two. Anyways, my dad's unit changed, and since this unit is new and hasn't been to Iraq, theres a higher chance he could go on his third tour. That pisses me off.

Have any of you seen the movie But I'm A Cheerleader?

It's about a cheerleader, with a boyfriend, whose parents decide she's gay. They send her to a "correction facility" and she falls in love with a girl while she's there.

I absolutely love this movie, and I'm currently listening to the soundtrack so I had to promote it. Yay!

So, I was taking a walk and I suddenly remembered that I want my movie back from Sora (Well, actually, my dad does... He hasn't seen it all the way through, he fell asleep.), since I was right by her house anyways (She lives down the block from me.) I decided to go over there.

I just watched Princess Mononoke for the first time. And all I have to say is... Wow. It's a beautiful movie, in more than one sense of the word. I'm really picky about movies too. But I love this one. If you haven't seen it yet, watch it now!

And if you have seen it... Watch it again.

I also got volume 9 of Death Note. Supposedly it wasn't coming out until January. I'm not complaining though. I've already read it.. Of course. And I'm not going to spoil it.. I'll try anyways.