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By CHRISTOPHER WALLENBERG
Friday, May 25, 2007
A harbinger of Pride month in the Gay Apple is the kick off of NewFest, the annual New York Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Film Festival. This year’s 19th edition takes place from May 31 through June 10. The festival has grown every year and now encompasses more than 250 films from more than 30 countries, including 23 U.S. premieres and eight world premieres. As always, film fans have a diverse group of offerings to choose among—from dramatic features and gut-busting comedies to engaging documentaries, quirky five-minute shorts and daring experimental films. “We try to have something for everybody because the community is so diverse, and we want to reflect that diversity as much as possible in the films that we show,” says NewFest artistic director Basil Tsiokos.
The festival kicks off on May 31 with the Opening Night selection, “The Portrait of Dorian Gray,” by British director Duncan Roy. Based on the more explicitly gay first edition of Oscar Wilde’s classic novel—one that most people aren’t familiar with—the film is a modern-day reinterpretation of the story. David Gallagher, “7th Heaven”’s Simon Camden, shakes loose his wholesome boy image in this tale of the price one man pays to retain youth above all else. “Given the dark subject matter, it may be a hard thing for some people to watch,” Tsiokos says.
For this year’s festival, four focus areas considered of special interest to LGBT audiences have been established. First, there’s the Family Dynamics section. Tsiokos cites influential American photographer Lee Friedlander’s film “Out at the Wedding” as a film that best exemplifies this section. “Wedding” is a comedy about a straight woman who gets mistakenly outed as a lesbian at her sister’s wedding. Screwball hilarity ensues. “Outing Riley” concerns an average Joe from a tight-knit Irish Catholic family who finally comes out to his sister and three brothers.
The Religion section explores the intersections between faith and sexuality. Tsiokos says that one of the most interesting films they’ve seen in a long time is “The Birthday,” an illuminating documentary about the experience of transsexuals living in Iran. The Koran doesn’t say anything about transsexuality (unlike homosexuality), so the government has liberal policies toward its practice.
Hot on the heels of its successful U.S. premiere at Tribeca last month is “The Bubble,” Israeli filmmaker Eytan Fox’s follow-up to “Walk on Water” and “Yossi and Jagger.” His new film is the story of an apolitical Israeli boy whose sheltered existence is shattered when he begins a relationship with a young Palestinian.
The Then & Now section spotlights the lives of the oft-overlooked older generation of LGBT Americans. “Emile Norman: By His Own Design” is director Will Parrinello’s fascinating portrait of the gay artist Emile Norman, who despite success in the heady art world of 1960s New York, chose to eschew the commercial aspects of art and dropped out of the scene altogether. Now in his 80s and living in California, the iconoclastic Norman proves to be as vibrant and creative as ever.
On the flip side, Marc Huestis’ funny and entertaining documentary “Lulu Gets a Facelift” revolves around an aging San Francisco drag queen who decides to fight against the realities of aging by getting cosmetic surgery.
Finally, the Voices From the Front category features documentaries spotlighting LGBT people at the forefront of culture wars around the world.
Sebastian Cordoba’s “Through Thick and Thin” a timely documentary deals with the ability to sponsor one’s foreign-born partner for U.S. residency—a right currently denied to gay and lesbian people. Cordoba’s film profiles seven bi-national couples, who have struggled to stay together despite the immigration policies.
Other films in this category include Tom Murray’s documentary, “Tell,” which explores the U.S. military’s shameful Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy; and Mike Roth And John Henning’s documentary “Saving Marriage,” about the fight to preserve the historic decision to legalize gay marriage in Massachusetts.
A new festival category called NewFest LateNight features fun, campy romps best seen in late-night viewings. First up is “The Best of Lezploitation” a clip show of lusty inmates, sacrilegious nuns and lesbian vampires culled from the campy sexploitation films from the ’60s and ’70s. They were originally made for straight men but are now being enjoyed by the ladies.
In the world premiere of the outrageous romp “Starrbooty,” RuPaul returns to the big screen as a supermodel splitting her time between looking fabulous and fighting crime. “The audience is really going to love that one,” Tsiokos says.
The festival’s Centerpiece films are a pair of sexy romantic comedies from established gay directors. “A Four Letter Word” is Casper Andreas’ follow-up to his debut feature, “Slutty Summer.” In this spin-off of that first film, “gay cliché” Chelsea boy Luke (Jesse Archer) finds himself challenged by a fauxhawk-sporting activist co-worker and the guy he’s dating to try on monogamy for a change. This New York-centric film features an ensemble of other characters navigating sex, love, relationships—and even a nude yoga group!
For the Sapphic sisters out there, “But I’m a Cheerleader” director Jamie Babbit returns with another tongue-in-cheek comedy “Itty Bitty Titty Committee.” The film follows a young woman at a crossroads in her life (dumped by her girlfriend and rejected by the college of her choice), who gets herself mixed up with a radical feminist group called Clits in Action (CIA). When she falls for the group’s leader, things become more complicated—and entertaining—than she bargained for.
The Closing Night film, “Save Me,” is a moving and powerful story of redemption set within the ex-gay ministry movement. Starring gay film faves Chad Allen, and Robert Gant and directed by Robert Cary, the film is a far cry from stereotypical portrayals of religious zealots usually seen on film. The talented and often-underappreciated Judith Light (having a recent TV renaissance on “Ugly Betty”) delivers a nuanced and sensitive portrayal of a deeply religious woman dealing with her own conflicted feelings about homosexuality. “It’s a sensitively handled story. And it doesn’t set up a straw man argument,” Tsiokos said.
In addition, NewFest includes a number of can’t-miss special events, including panel discussions; a staged screenplay reading”; and a special presentation of “Schwartzwald: The Movie You Dance To” a film centered around the Black Party 2006.
For those looking to get a sneak peek of the some of the films at the festival, point your web browsers to the LGBT social networking site, GLEE.com. Thanks to an exciting new partnership, GLEE will launch its new Video Channel with selected trailers and streaming clips from some of the films at the festival.
NewFest, May 31–June 10, AMC Lowes 34th Street Theater, 312 W 34th St., tickets/schedule at newfest.org, 646-290-8136.
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