In honor of pride this month, Out magazine has complied a list of twenty-five of the most important, groundbreaking and influential films featuring stories about the LGBTQ communities. Some of the films selected range from "Un chant d'amour", a 1950 silent short from French novelist, Jean Genet; "Querelle", based on a story by Genet and the last feature from German bad boy, Rainer Werner Fassbinder; Marlon Riggs' meditative 1989 semi-documentary on black gay identity, "Tongues Untied"; "The Birdcage", the delightful American version of "La Cage aux Folles"; and the obvious selections of "Brokeback Mountain", "Paris is Burning", "Carol" and the 2016 Best Picture Oscar winner, "Moonlight". These are all amazing films and you should make it your mission to see each one.
It's only been seventeen years in to the 21st century, so it seems like a perfect time to evaluate the best films so far. Manohla Dargis and A. O. Scott, chief film critics of the New York Times, have taken a look back and selected their picks for the best films so far this century. Their list is certainly interesting with an eclectic selection of cinema with films ranging from Paul Thomas Anderson's 2007 drama, "There Will Be Blood" which sits at the top of the list to "Boyhood", "Inside Out", "The 40 Year Old Virgin", and Best PictureOscar winners, "Million Dollar Baby", "The Hurt Locker" and last year's "Moonlight". I've seen seventeen of the films chosen and while I agree with a large number, I 'm less enamored about a few of the others like "Mad Max: Fury Road" and the Coen Brothers' "Inside Llewyn Davis".
The Times also enlisted six prominent filmmakers; Antoine Fuqua ("The Magnificent Seven"), Sofia Coppola ("The Beguiled"), Paul Feig ("Ghostbusters"), Denis Villeneuve ("Arrival"), Brett Ratner ("Rush Hour") and Alex Gibney ("Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief") to add their picks of their favorite films from this century.
And finally, I decided I might as well add my two cents. So here is my selection of the twenty-five best films from this century (and they are in alphabetical order since it would be much too difficult to rank them in order of preference):
"20 Feet From Stardom" (2013)
"The Artist" (2011)
"Beasts of the Southern Wild" (2012)
"Boyhood" (2014)
"Bridesmaids" (2011)
"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" (2000)
"Drive"(2011)
"Elephant" (2003)
“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” (2004)
"Ex Machina" (2015)
"I Am Not Your Negro" (2017)
"The Incredibles" (2004)
"Mulholland Dr" (2001)
"Once" (2007)
"Pan’s Labyrinth" (2006)
"The Pianist" (2002)
"Requiem For a Dream" (2000)
"Shame" (2011)
"A Single Man" (2009)
"Talk to Her" (2002)
"Tangerine" (2015)
"There Will Be Blood" (2007)
"United 93" (2006)
"The Wolf of Wall Street" (2013)
"Y Tu Mamá También" (2002)
Beginning today, and running through March 7th, is the 2017 Outfest Fusion LGBT People of Color Film Festival. A week of screenings, workshops, panels and the One-Minute Movie Contest will be held in venues across Los Angeles like the Arena Cinelounge, Highland Theatres, the Egyptian Theatre, the West Hollywood City Council Chambers and the California African-American Museum where the Closing Night Fusion Gala will be held.
A preview of the second season of the popular web-series, "Cheetah in August", created by Anthony Bawn, will kick off the fest in West Hollywood. The show focuses on August "Cheetah" Chandler (Andre Myers), a young, African-American, former athlete who struggles with his sexual identity, causing problems for him with his family and friends, and seeks the help of Dr. Thatcher Anderson (Jonathan Medina), a therapist.
A special presentation of an unaired episode of the Fox musical-drama series, "Star" will be shown with creator, Lee Daniels and stars, Ryan Destiny, Brittany O'Grady, and Miss Lawrence in attendance.
There will be several short film series, "The LatinX Files", "No Place Like Home: Queer Asian Shorts" and "Black Queer Magic".
Other feature film screenings include a couple of international classics from 2001; "Y Tu Mama Tambien" from Mexico and "Lan Yu" from China. And this year's surprise Oscar-winner for Best Picture, "Moonlight" will be screened and a discussion held at the Egyptian on March 3rd.
For the complete listing of films, ticket purchases and additional information, please click below:
It's hard to believe another year has come and gone. So that also means it's time to look back at the year in cinema and reflect on which films had strongly made a lasting impression upon me. I came to realize there were quite of few extraordinary films that I saw in 2016 which made the selection process a little challenging (which is actually a good thing). Here are my favorites of the past year, in no particular order, that left me in a thrilling state of pleasure, desolation and amusement:
"MOONLIGHT"
Barry Jenkins wrote and directed "Medicine for Melancholy", a lovely, very low-budget romantic drama involving an African-American couple back in 2008. It was a revelation and one of my favorites of that year. I couldn't wait to see what he would do next. Well, it took a ridiculously long eight years but Mr. Jenkins is finally back and his latest drama manages to be even more impressive. "Moonlight" tells the story of Chiron, quiet, troubled and possibly gay, beginning when he was boy, then through his teens and up until he is a young man. With him being bullied relentlessly at school and his mother (Naomie Harris) falling deeper in to crack addiction, Chiron (played seamlessly by Alex Hibbert, Ashton Sanders and Trevante Rhodes) finds guidance and solace from an unlikely source; a local drug dealer (an excellent Mahershala Ali) who teaches him the way of the world with kindness and generosity. Poignant and unpredictable, "Moonlight" is a remarkable coming-of-age story handled with insightful artistry.
"MANCHESTER BY THE SEA"
Despite Sam L. Jackson's snap judgement to dismiss this drama as simply "award fodder", "Manchester By The Sea" really is an exceptionally well-made and moving film. The unexpected death of his brother (Kyle Chandler) brings Lee (Casey Affleck) back to Boston to deal with his teenage nephew (Lucas Hedges) who has been left in his care. He had departed from his hometown to escape a tragic past and this visit forces these long-buried painful memories to the surface. Writer/director Kenneth Lonergan has spent much of his time writing for the stage largely due to the difficult time he had with his second feature as a director "Margaret". Let's hope the rapturous praise for this outstanding film will allow him to make another very soon.
"THE LOBSTER"
I saw "The Lobster", the delightfully weird romantic-comedy from Yorgos Lanthimos ("Dogtooth"), at the AFI Fest back in 2015. But it wasn't released in the U.S. until 2016 otherwise it would have certainly found a place on this list that year. With being single a crime, David (Colin Farrell) is sent to the Hotel where he has only has 45 days to find a new partner otherwise he will be turned in to an animal of his choice. After deciding upon a lobster, he sets out to find someone yet many strange people and situations stand in his way. Then there's the "loners" who hide out in the woods where guests at the Hotel can hunt down with a tranquilizing gun, earning them an extra day in their search. "The Lobster" is one movie that works much better to simply experience than try to get too caught up in the details.
"INDIGNATION"
Most people probably have not even heard of "Indignation" let alone actually seen this powerful film but they really should. James Schamus, the long-time screenwriter and producer ("The Ice Storm", "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", "Brokeback Mountain") and one-time head of Focus Features, made his debut behind the camera with a 2008 Phillip Roth novel and has crafted an exceptionally captivating and deeply moving drama focusing on class, religion and sexual repression. Set in the 1950's during the early part of the Korean War, Marcus Messner (brilliantly played by Logan Lerman), a Jewish, middle-class young man begins college in Ohio, in part to put some distance between him and his overbearing parents (stage vets, Danny Burstein and Linda Emond) in New Jersey. He becomes enchanted with a beautiful and wealthy blonde student (Sarah Gadon) but her highly unorthodox behavior throws him while he clashes with the school's dean (Tracy Letts) over the emphasis of religion in academic life. A tragic and complicated story beautifully translated by a first-class film maker.
"LA LA LAND"
Damien Chazelle's romantic musical fantasia, "La La Land" is a wonderful valentine to that city of desires, dreams and heartbreak; Los Angeles. Mia (Emma Stone) is a struggling actress looking for a break. Sebastian (Ryan Gosling) is a jazz pianst who dreams of opening his own club. After a slightly hostile first encounter, they warm to each other and fall in love. But their challenging careers create tension in the relationship. With original music and lyrics from Justin Hurwitz, Benji Pasek and Justin Paul, Chazelle has paid loving tribute to the classic Hollywood musical but has brought his own modern and colorfully unique spin on the genre. Stone and Gosling have a marvelous chemistry and make a perfectly imperfect song and dance team.
"THE 13TH", "I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO"
These two fascinating documentaries compliment each other with insightful and thought-provoking observations in to the current state of race relations in America. African-Americans and the U.S. criminal justice system is the focus of Ava DuVernay's disturbing "The 13th". After slavery was abolished with the signing of the 13th Amendment, there was an exception made for a punishment for a crime. This doc reveals how systematically over time the "war on drugs" has been used to incarcerate a growing number of African-Americans while keeping them locked up for an excessive period of time.
"I Am Not Your Negro" uses James Baldwin's uncompleted novel about his close relationships with fellow influential figures of the civil rights era, Medgar Evers, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X as a starting point. Then director Raoul Peck takes the eloquent and astute writer's words (with an effective voice over by Samuel L. Jackson) and archival television footage to examine his views on the complicated social and political issues regarding race in this country. It also looks at how, in many different ways, there's has still been very little progress made on this subject to this day.
"THE HANDMAIDEN"
Park Chan-wook, the South Korean film maker best known for his ultra-violent action thrillers laced with black humor like "Old Boy" and "Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance", has softened his approach (somewhat) with his latest, "The Handmaiden". Inspired by the Victorian era novel, "Fingersmith", the director has reset his story to Japanese-occupied Korea in the 1930's and told in three parts from different perspectives. A wealthy heiress (Kim Min-hee) is the mark for a con man (Ha Jung-woo) and his young accomplice (Kim Tae-ri). However, nothing is what it appears to be with unexpected twists, shocking turns, some steamy bedroom antics and a brief moment of gruesomeness makes this one of the most intriguing and well-written romantic dramas of the year.
"THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN"
"The Edge of Seventeen", the razor-sharp and hilariously funny teen comedy from writer/director Kelly Fremon Craig, fits perfectly next to other classic coming-of-age comedies like "Fast Times at Ridgemont High", "The Breakfast Club" and "Mean Girls". Hailee Steinfeld plays Nadine, a highly dramatic senior who rushes to her high school teacher (Woody Harrelson) to proclaim she's going to kill herself. Then she proceeds to tell him all of the entangled and embarrassing events that has lead to this moment. Some of this includes her best friend (Haley Lu Richardson) suddenly dating her older brother (Blake Jenner), her difficult relationship with her mother (Kyra Sedgwick) and she has a big crush on a fellow student (Alexander Calvert) who doesn't know she's alive while another classmate (Hayden Szeto) has his own secret crush on her. This little film surprises with plenty of charm and wit.
"20TH CENTURY WOMEN"
Much like his last film, "Beginners", writer/director, Mike Mills finds inspiration from his family with "20th Century Women" which the lead character is loosely based upon his mother. Set in 1979, Santa Barbara, California, Dorothea (Annette Bening), a divorced, chain-smoking, radical mother feels she can't properly guide her teenage son, Jamie (Lucas Jade Zumann) in to manhood on her own. She decides to ask for help and that comes from two other modern-thinking women; Abbie (Greta Gerwig), a fuchsia-haired, punk-loving photographer and Julie (Elle Fanning), a young, sexually-liberated, free-spirited friend of her son. And there is a male figure in the home, William (Billy Crudup), Dorothea's handyman and occasional lover but Jamie doesn't really connect with him. This film thrills with it's eccentric sense of drama, romance and humor.
Honorable Mention: "10 Cloverfield Lane", "Arrival" (and this would have made My Favorite list except for my trouble with the ending), "City of Gold", "Jackie", "Lion", "Louder Than Bombs", "Loving", "Midnight Special" (I had the same problem with the ending of this film), "Paterson", "Weiner Dog", "The Witch", "Zootopia"
The summer of 2016 may best be remembered for a glut of uninspired and unnecessary sequels, remakes and high-concept films that nobody wanted to see. The studios continue to shovel endless mediocrity in to theaters then seem shocked when audiences don't bite. While a few made some money, the vast majority of them received critical and box-office failure. With that now behind us, it's time to move on to the season of fall, where we will be offered fare that is much more creatively inspired and thoughtfully challenging. There are quite a few coming soon that look quite promising but I have narrowed down to the films that have particularly piqued my interest.
All release dates are subject to change:
"AMERICAN HONEY"
Release date: September 30, 2016
British writer/director, Andrea Arnold won the Jury Prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival for the third timewith her latest drama, "American Honey". With an explosive performance by newcomer, Sasha Lane, the actress stars as a teenage girl who gets swept up with a group of young misfits traveling across the Midwest selling magazine subscriptions to make quick cash. This also gets her involved with some heavy drug use, tender romance and violent crime. Riley Keough, Shia LaBeouf and several real-life street kids co-star.
"MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN"
Release date: September 30, 2016
The title "Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children" pretty much says it all. The film is based on the best-selling YA book about an orphaned teenage boy (Asa Butterfield) who ends up going to live at a home made up of strange children with some peculiar talents, run by a caring headmistress, Miss Peregrine (Eva Green). But there is a band of evil creatures called the "Wights" that are seeking out these children to destroy them, lead by the treacherous Mr. Barron (Samuel L. Jackson). And who better to bring this dark fantasy to life than Tim Burton, the man who has enchanted and unsettled audiences for years with his own peculiar brand of gloomy film making.
"THE BIRTH OF A NATION"
Release date: October 7, 2016
Actor Nate Parker and his debut project as a writer and director "The Birth of a Nation" has been all over the news of late but it's not been directly about the movie. Despite all of the unsettling circumstances surrounding Parker, I plan to see his film for two reasons; I have no problem separating the art from the artist and I don't believe in continuing to condemn someone who has been acquitted of a crime. As for the film, Parker also stars as Nat Turner, a slave who was taught to read so he could preach from the Bible to his fellow slaves to keep them obedient. However, Turner soon becomes aware of what he's doing and begins to encourage his people to violently rise up against their oppressors.
"MOONLIGHT"
Release date: October 21, 2016
Inspired by the play "In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue" by Tarell McCraney, "Moonlight" follows Chiron, an African-American man through three key stages of his life; childhood, adolescence and adulthood. Beginning with life on the tough streets of Miami with his crack-addicted mother (Naomie Harris) as a nine year old to struggling to suppress his true sexual desires as a teenager to trying to find acceptance for who he is as a young man. Three different actors play Chiron at each period with Trevante Rhodes, a former Track and Field athlete turned actor, playing him as an adult. This is the long-awaited second film from writer/director Barry Jenkins who made one of my favorite films in 2009, "Medicine For Melancholy".
"AMERICAN PASTORAL"
Release date: October 21, 2016
Another actor making his directorial feature debut is Ewan McGregor and he's tackling the work of a major American novelist. "American Pastoral" is based on the Pulitzer Prize winning book by Philip Roth and features one of his best known characters. Seymour "Swede" Levov (McGregor) is a very successful businessman with a former beauty queen wife (Jennifer Connelly) and lovely teenage daughter (Dakota Fanning). His seemingly perfect life begins to unravel when his daughter becomes involved in an act of political terrorism. Following the sublime "Indignation" from James Schamus, this will be the second film of Roth's distinctive work this year.
"DOCTOR STRANGE"
Release date : November 4, 2016
One of my favorite Marvel comic books as a kid was "Doctor Strange" so I'm quite thrilled that a movie about him has finally been made. Benedict Cumberbatch is perfectly cast as Stephen Strange, a top neurosurgeon whose career comes to an end due to a tragic accident. In search of healing and enlightenment, Strange travels to Asia where he encounters the Ancient One (the one and only, Tilda Swinton) who guides him on a course of the mystic arts. With Rachel McAdams, Mads Mikkelsen, Benjamin Bratt and Chiwetel Ejiofor.
"LOVING"
Release date: November 4, 2016
Following the amazing sci-fi, supernatural thriller, "Midnight Special" released earlier this year, writer and director, Jeff Nichols is back with a completely different type of film, "Loving" tells the true story of Richard Loving (Joel Edgerton), a white man and his wife, Ruth (Ruth Negga), an African-American woman who dared to marry while living in the deeply segregated South. They were arrested and sent to prison in Virginia in 1958 for violating the state's anti-miscegenation laws. The Lovings fought the charges and took their case all the way to the Supreme Court.
"ELLE"
Release date: November 16, 2016
I don't know how well "Elle", the latest film from the controversial director of "Basic Instinct" and "Showgirls", Paul Verhoeven, will be received here in Puritanical America but I, for one, can't wait to see this. One reason is for the appearance of Isabelle Huppert, one of cinema's greatest actors. The other is how Verhoeven, known for his fascination with sex and violence, will handle this disturbing story of a business executive (Huppert) who is attacked and sexually violated. She manages to track down the perpetrator of the horrific crime with a plan to enact revenge. Or does she have something else in mind?
"NOCTURNAL ANIMALS"
Release date: November 18, 2016
Fashion designer, Tom Ford surprised everyone with his assured debut as a film director with his 2009 feature, "A Single Man". He finally has found some time away from his busy day job to make a follow-up film. Based on the novel, "Tony and Susan", "Nocturnal Animals" is about Susan (Amy Adams), an art gallery owner, who is given a manuscript from her ex-husband (Armie Hammer), asking for her opinion. The book tells the violent story of a family vacation that turns deadly (which is visualized in the film) and triggers in Susan memories of some dark events that occurred during their marriage. An impressive cast includes Jake Gyllenhaal, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Michael Shannon, Isla Fisher and Laura Linney.
"ALLIED"
Release date : November 23, 2016
"Allied", the new film from Oscar-winning director, Robert Zemeckis, is in the spirit of those World War II romantic thrillers from the '40's. Two of Hollywood's current glamourous movie stars, Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard play an assassin and French spy who fall in love during an assignment to kill a German official in Casablanca. Yes, the film is a little too obvious but it still looks great.
"FENCES"
Release date: December 16, 2016
For his third film as a director, Denzel Washington brings to the big screen "Fences", the first feature of the work by the acclaimed playwright, the late August Wilson. Washington and his co-star, Viola Davis recreate the roles they each won a Tony for during the 2010 Broadway revival of this Pulitzer Prize winning drama. Based on the screenplay draft by Wilson (with a light polish by fellow playwright, Tony Kushner), it tells the story of a former Negro league baseball player, who now works as a trash collector, as he struggles to provide for his family while trying to accept what has become of his life.
"JULIETA"
Release date: December 21, 2016
I remember clearly the first film I ever saw by Pedro Almodóvar. It was "Law of Desire" way back in 1987 during a trip to Toronto. I was a young man from the Midwest, completely shocked and mesmerized by the high drama, droll humor and uninhibited sexuality featured on the screen. And I became a hardcore fan ever since. That was actually the Spanish director's fifth feature at the time and with, "Julieta", this will be his twentieth production. This new melodrama, which uses several short stories by Alice Munro, is about a middle-aged Julieta (Emma Suarez) who desperately wants to make contact with her long-estranged daughter that she hasn't seen or heard from in over ten years. So the mother decides to write a letter to her child, revealing all the painful, dark secrets that she has kept hidden from her.
