PHILLIP MORRIS News

The Jim Carrey - Ewan McGregor gay flick, I LOVE YOU PHILLIP MORRIS, has finally been picked up for US distribution by Roadside Attractions, with a planned release date of (cross your fingers!) Dec. 3 -- that would be a few weeks shy of the film's Sundance debut back in January 2009. Read the Indiewire article for more on this story.

Coming Soon

Michael, Adam, and Jessica are busy putting the finishing touches on the 2010 Festival lineup. We are almost there!

Once it's set, you will get regular updates including teasers, links, and all kinds of Festival goodies.

See you soon!

TKAAR comes to Rochester (finally!)

The underdog hit of the summer--The Kids Are All Right--opened at the Little Theater last Friday, and it is packing the theater! When I attended on Saturday, I don't think there was a single empty seat left in the house. Beyond box-office buzz, this film is striking up discussions and debates across the country while viewers try to decipher its messages and work this particular queer family into their psyches. There are many such debates springing up online. In fact, there are at least three different conversations about this film going on right now on my Facebook home page.

Here are a few of the more interesting full articles I have seen so far: (spoiler warnings for both links)

"An Indie Hit's Sex Message" (The Daily Beast)
"‘Lesbian marriage movie’ shakes up US cinema" (france24.com)

More importantly, what do you think about it?

Salt

Angelina Jolie + explosions + espionage=What I MUST see this weekend.

Full review forthcoming...

Fagbug Screening Tonight at the Little

ImageOut's presentation of 8: The Mormon Proposition (which you're all going to, right?) tomorrow night isn't the only Pride Week screening worth checking out. The Gay Alliance and Little Theatre are teaming up for a single showing of the documentary Fagbug tonight at 6:30. It's a really great movie, so don't miss your one-night-only opportunity to watch it on the big screen and meet the film's director, Erin Davies.

From the Little Theatre's site:

The Gay Alliance Anti-Violence Project and The Little Theatre welcomes filmmaker Erin Davies and Fagbug to Rochester Pride! Following the screening will be a Talkback with Erin. The Little Talkback Series is made possible through support from the New York State Council on the Arts.

On the 11th Annual National Day of Silence, Erin Davies was victim to a hate crime in Albany, New York. Because of sporting a rainbow sticker on her VW Beetle, Erin's car was vandalized, left with the words "fag" and "u r gay" placed on the driver's side window and hood of her car. Despite initial shock and embarrassment, Erin decided to embrace what happened by leaving the graffiti on her car. She took her car, now known worldwide as the "fagbug," on a 58-day trip around the United States and Canada. Along the way, Erin discovered other, more serious hate crimes, had people attempt to remove the graffiti, and experimented with having a male drive her car. After driving the fagbug for one year, Erin decided to give her car a makeover.

Erin's mission is to raise awareness about hate crimes and homophobia in our society, to give a voice for those who are silent, to inspire others to take a stand against bullies and to be an example of how to overcome obstacles in bringing a creative project to life.

Meet Erin and see the car that started it all!

Tickets for the screening are $6.

Happy Pride!

Rochester's Pride Calendar is busting at the seems this year! ImageOut will be at a number of events this week including the parade, festival, and picnic, and our own big night of course.

Join us at the Cinema Theater on Thursday night (July 15) at 7pm for an ImageRaisers special screening of 8: The Mormon Proposition

After the screening, a panel of local folks in-touch with the themes of the film will participate in a panel discussing Proposition 8, The involvement of churches in bolstering the legistlation, and the wider issues of sexuality and the Mormon church.

Tickets are $7 in advance ($8 at the door). Advance sales can be found at:

Corn Hill Fine Wine & Spirits, 260 Exchange Blvd
Equal=Grounds, 750 South Ave
Hedonist Artisan Chocolates, 674 South Ave
OUTlandish Video & Gifts, 274 N Goodman St
Parkleigh, 215 Park Ave


Get in some learning before the party weekend begins!

Little Theater Discount

Who doesn't love a deal?

Today only, Rochesterians can get a super deal for one of ImageOut's BFFs, the Little Theater. $9 for one movie ticket, specialty coffee, and a dessert. That saves you $10!

Groupon, an internet marketing and discount website, offers a different area deal each day. Be sure to check them out soon!

Make sure to read all of the terms and conditions while you are there.

Joan Rivers Documentary

Opening at the Little Theatre in downtown Rochester this weekend is JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK, one of my favorite documentaries from my film festival travels this season.
A couple of filmmakers, Ricki Stern and Anne Sundberg, followed the comedian for a year giving the audiences a look at the life and career of a truly hardworking woman. Today, most people know Joan if at all as an almost caricature-like poster child of plastic surgery and for her borderline tasteless jokes thrown at celebrities during red-carpet events. This film reveals a businesswoman who needs to, almost pathologically, keep her calendar booked with comedy gigs and such to maintain her lavish NYC lifestyle and to support her staff and dependents. Most importantly, the documentary shows us, the viewers, a very funny woman -- from her humble beginnings as a struggling act whose "revolutionary" writing and comedy style paved the way for the likes of Roseanne Barr and Kathy Griffin, up to her triumphant success as a reality star in Donald Trump's "Celebrity Apprentice." But beyond the laughter, we are introduced to a complex and interesting human being. I truly cried and laughed when I saw this film in Toronto a couple of months ago. And she totally gained my utmost respect.
The film premiered at Sundance last January. Since then, it has screened at various international film festivals. While technically not a GLBT film, I seriously considered it for ImageOut 18. Our audiences would have truly enjoyed it. But now I'm glad that Rochester will get a chance to see it anyway. And I recommend you do.

~MG

True Blood Season 3 - "Beautifully Broken"

I'm a little late getting this up, but it's time we talk about last week's episode of TRUE BLOOD, "Beautifully Broken". While not as fast-paced as the season premiere, I still enjoyed this episode, which further developed the season's various plots.

First and foremost, we were finally introduced to Russell Edgington, the vampire King of Mississippi, who we learn was behind Bill's abduction, having hired a group of werewolves to apprehend him proposition him into helping overthrow Queen Sophie-Anne. I loved the developments in this plot line, from the awesome opening sequence with Bill ripping apart the werewolves with his teeth (though I wish we could have seen a bit more of the fight), to the multi-course dinner with Edginton's husband, Theo ("Chilled, carbonated blood. It's cruelty-free. All willingly donated. Note the citrusy finish. This one only ate tangerines for a week"). Also, that final shot, with Bill launching a lantern at Lorena, causing her to burst into flames? Amazing.

The second major plot line involved Eric reluctantly providing Sookie with more information about the werewolves and included a pretty sweet flashback to Eric and Godric posing as SS officers and hunting werewolves. Any excuse to bring back Godric is a good thing in my book.

I'm not exactly loving that we're getting even more of Tara wallowing in misery, which has kind of become her default activity since season one. The one redeeming aspect was Lafayette's decision to take charge following her suicide attempt and drag her miserable ass to the mental hospital for a "Scared Straight" introduction to his crazy mother, and, more happily, allowed him to meet her crazy hot nurse, Jesus. I do like that by the end of the episode, Tara's storyline had taken a more positive turn with her introduction to Franklin, some sort of vampire detective who's apparently trying to dig up information on Bill's past. The pair's tag-team ass-whupping of some racist rednecks toward episode's end hint that their relationship could take a dangerous turn.

I'm intrigued to see where Jason's story goes, as his feelings of guilt morphed into jealousy of Andy's new role as town hero after he shouldered the blame for Egg's death. When he rode along with Andy on a routine call and ended up tacking a meth dealer, I got the impression that we may see a career change in Jason's immediate future.

Jessica continued to be a source a humor and pathos as she scrambles to figure out how to dispose of the body she's been squirreling away beneath the floor of her home. I LOOOOVED her scenes in Fangtasia this week as she grilled Pam for advice on the vampire "birds and the bees". Her scene with Hoyt, though, was a heart-breaker. Why can't those two crazy kids just find a way to make it work?!

Can't wait for tonight's episode, where Sookie's werewolf protector, Alcide is finally due to make an appearance. Why am I so excited? Um, because Alcide looks like this:
How's everyone else liking season three so far?

Summer is Here!

Happy first day of summer!

Like everyone involved with ImageOut, I love movies. However, summer in Rochester is not the best time to be inside a movie theater. I always have a hard time keeping up with new movies in the summer just because I'd rather be outside.

It only took a little bit of looking to find out that Rochesterians don't have to choose between enjoying the warm weather and catching some great stage and screen entertainment. Here are some ideas for this summer, and most of them are free!

The Rochester Community Players present Much Ado About Nothing as this year's Shakespeare at the Highland Bowl production. The show runs July 2 through 17 every evening except Mondays, Thursdays, and the Fourth of July. FREE!

Why no Thursday Shows? Well, that's because RCP switches gears to co-sponsor Movies at the Bowl. Family-friendly movies under the stars play throughout the summer on Thursday nights. FREE!

Highland Park isn't the only place to catch a movie outdoors. You can also catch a free flick at other area parks (Jaws at Ontario Beach Park is a past favorite) through August. The full schedule hasn't been released yet, but you can keep checking the Parks website for updates. FREE!

And if you are dying to keep up with the summer blockbusters, There's always the drive-in! Vintage Drive-in in Avon is only about a 30 minute drive from the city, and you can catch a double-feature of new movies for just $8.

True Blood Season 3 - "Bad Blood"

How this blog went so long without ever talking about HBO's TRUE BLOOD, I have no idea. Creator Alan Ball's follow-up to his hugely popular show Six Feet Under, True Blood is based on a series of novels by Charlaine Harris, about what would happen if vampires were real and decided to announce their existence to the world. The novels are a mix of romance and fantasy, focusing on the love life of a small-town cocktail waitress named Sookie Stackhouse who possesses the ability to read minds. Ball has chosen to only loosely follow the plot of the novels, and has expanded the show's world to become something unlike anything else on television. The mix of campy plotlines, over-the-top violence, gore, sex, and a healthy dose of gayness make it by far the most entertaining show on television right now. The second season, which aired last summer, is when the show truly found it's audience and grew to become HBO's most successful show since The Sopranos.

The third season of True Blood premiered on Sunday, and I had high expectations. I can't remember the last time I've been so excited for a new season of television. Thankfully, the premiere completely delivered. The episode, "Bad Blood", set into motion the various plotlines that will develop throughout the season, and it did it in a fast-paced, funny, and sexy hour of television.

In addition to being a lot of fun, this episode was possibly the gayest yet, featuring the most homoerotic scene of the series thus far (and that's saying a lot). Early in season one, we learned that vampire blood contains healing properties when drunk by a human. However, there is a side effect when this occurs; a strong bond is formed between the human and the vampire, often manifested in the human having intense sexual dreams about the vampire from whom they drank. Those who have been watched True Blood previously will recall that during last season's finale, a mortally wounded Sam drank a great deal of Bill's blood. Happily, the show isn't afraid to shy away from depicting said side effect, even when the act occurred between two men. Sam's dream about Bill was fantastic and pretty damn hot, if I do say so myself. I've included a clip below, for those who'd like to see for themselves.

Even with that plot twist, which I hope will be further developed throughout the season, True Blood promises to get even gayer this year, with an increased role for the hilariously droll lesbian vampire, Pam, a boyfriend for Lafayette, and a gay vampire king all coming up in later episodes.

New episodes will be on HBO Sunday nights at 9pm, and hopefully I'll be posting about each episode after it airs. So tune in, check back on this blog, and we'll do bad things all summer long.

Really, Mormon Church?

From RGJ.com (June 9, 2010): Mormon Church will pay fine for donations to campaign against gay marriage

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has agreed to pay a $5,538 fine to settle a complaint over its campaign contributions supporting California's ban on same-sex marriages, the executive director of the state agency that regulates campaign finances said Tuesday.

Roman Porter, who directs the California Fair Political Practices Commission, said an investigation revealed the Mormon Church was tardy in revealing about $37,000 worth of work its staff performed on behalf of Proposition 8 in the final weeks before the November 2008 election.

Read more here.


You can learn more about details of the Mormon Church's deep involvement with the campaign for Proposition 8 from ImageOut's Pride Screening of the documentary "8: THE MORMON PROPOSITION" at the Cinema Theatre on July 15 at 7pm. This screening will be followed by a panel discussion on the many issues raised in the film.

Save the date!

ImageOut, Exposed!

Thanks to the marketing effort of the people behind the film, JUST SAY LOVE (ImageOut 17), the Festival is enjoying some free international publicity. The poster for the film, which is featured in the May issue of The Advocate, proudly boasts of the film's selection at last year's ImageOut Film Festival and even thoughtfully quoted positive comments from my program writeup.

~MG

Ticked-Off Trannies!

There has never been a film I so wanted to book for the film festival without even seeing a single scene than TICKED-OFF TRANNIES WITH KNIVES. But who wouldn't with a title like that? I remember that cold March day when I checked out the Tribeca Film Festival website following the announcement of its lineup. I immediately fell in love ... and the film got me at "Ticked!" After watching the trailer, I was even more convinced that this film is a must-select for our October lineup.

That was more than a month ago.

Just days after the Tribeca announcement, a Facebook page was already launched condemning the selection of TOTWK for Robert De Niro's pet film festival project. All the hateful messages and protests followed soon after. Suddenly, the previously unknown indie cult-ish film is thrust under the heat of the media spotlight. Is it exploitative? Unrepresentative of transgendered women and their true struggles? Offensive? I honestly could not say since I have not seen the film yet. And at the time, I was also wondering whether the loudest screamers had seen the film themselves. After all, it hasn't been shown anywhere. I, of course, am willing to give the film the benefit of the doubt.


But since its premiere at Tribeca, the critics have not changed their negative position on the violent and exploitative nature of the film ... and they seem to be gaining in number. Q Cinema, the Fort Worth LGBT Film Festival, is now getting its share of flak after announcing that it will be screening TOTWK as well. I can't wait what the big spring and summer LGBT film festivals (NYC, LA, SF) are going to do with the film. I'm still very intrigued. Too intrigued, even. I cannot wait to see it myself. But the bigger question is: Will the film ever come to Rochester?

Stay tuned.

~MG

25 Must-See Indie Films

Check out this article from IndieWIRE for their choices of the 25 films you must absolutely watch this summer. There are a few of these titles that are screening in a couple weeks at the new 360|365 Film Festival right here in Rochester. Which films are you most excited about?

DEATH AT A FUNERAL 2010

So the (apparently shot-for-shot) remake of the 2007 Frank Oz comedy, Death at a Funeral, is getting decent reviews. Maybe it will be okay. It might make the original British film more accessible to US audiences considering the remake stars Chris Rock and some other brilliant comedians. I still cannot associate Neil LaBute with an almost slapstick comedy like this film is. But very much looking forward to James Marsden's performance.

~MG

Who's Afraid of PHILLIP MORRIS?

I'm not sure how many of you know or are aware of the "new" Jim Carrey-Ewan McGregor starrer, I LOVE YOU, PHILLIP MORRIS. Well, all I can say is if I could book it for the film festival right now, it will definitely be a Closing Night movie in October! I say "new" because it has yet to be released here in the U.S. but it debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2009. I was fortunate enough to see it in Berlin a couple of weeks later. It went MIA for more than a year amidst rumors of fear that the film is too gay. Well, it is a story of a con man (Carrey) who falls hard for another prisoner (McGregor) he met while incarcerated -- there's no amount of editing that could de-gay the movie. Sorry. In the last few weeks, it has gotten theatrical release in parts of Europe and Asia which got me very excited. I enjoyed the film so much that I would not mind seeing it again. But while it was scheduled to hit the US theaters on April 30, the release date has since been withdrawn and delayed indefinitely. Well, boo hoo! I hope the US distributor gets its act together. Or at least give the film to the queer film festivals!

UPDATE: It's being reported that the film's release date has been rescheduled for July 30th. We'll have to wait and see if this one sticks.

Here's the trailer:

~MG

THE RUNAWAYS Opens at the Little

Don't have movie plans for the weekend yet? THE RUNAWAYS, featuring Kristen Stewart as Joan Jett and Dakota Fanning as Cherie Currie, opens at the Little Theatre tonight. It has limited screenings this week so make sure to check for show times to save you the disappointment of making a trip to the theater for nothing. The film is a coming-of-age story about the teen rockers in the groundbreaking all-girl rock band from the 70s. So is there enough chemistry between Stewart and Fanning to explode a cherry bomb? Oh do tell ...

Support local LGBT arts!

ImageOut loves movies, but we also love our local theater groups with missions that reflect our own!

The Programming Committee will be hard at work screening potential films tonight (we've been at it for months already), but everyone else should check this event out!



From: Bread and Water Theater

Rainbow Theater Festival Kickoff Party!

Join the casts of Lambda Project: The Art of Pride, Ladies and Gentlemen and Nijinsky's Last Dance for a night of entertainment and fun.

Come out and watch selections from the three wonderful productions offered as part of this year's festival as well as meet and mingle with our exceptional performers and artists. There will also be several original performances that you will only be able to see at the kickoff!!!

A special thank you to 140 Alex Bar & Grill (formally Nasty D's and formally formally RJ's) for their gracious donation of their second floor for the kickoff.

1/2 OFF APPETIZERS AND BUY ONE GET ONE FREE WELL/CALL AND DOMESTIC DRAFT BEERS AND GREAT ENTERTAINMENT!!!

LOCATION: 140 Alex Bar & Grill @ 140 Alexander St., Rochester, NY.

PERFORMANCE: April 1st at 8pm.

NY LGBT Health Awareness Month

Are you aware that March is being observed as the NY LGBT Health Month all over the state? And the Rochester LGBT Health Coalition has coordinated a lot of important activities for the community to enjoy. Check out the schedule and take note of a couple of ImageOut sponsored events.


Wednesday, March 10th, 6:00pm-8:00pm, AIDS Care, 259 Monroe Ave.

Sponsored by: ImageOut, Planned Parenthood & AIDS Care/everybodysgood.com

“Diagnosing Difference”: Free repeat screening of the thought provoking documentary from ImageOut 2009 that explores the GID (Gender Identity Disorder) classification and how it impacts trans people’s lives. The film will be followed by a brief moderated panel discussion including trans-identified members of the Rochester community. Free & open to all. For more information, contact Erik at (585)210-4192.

Thursday, March 25th, 6:00pm & 8:30pm, Cinema Theatre (Corner of Clinton & Goodman)

Sponsored by: ImageOut

Free Film Screenings & Volunteer Interest Fair: ImageOut’s LGBT Health Month screenings are the star attraction for March 25 at the Cinema Theatre! Award-winning documentary, and ImageOUT 2009 hit, "Swimming With Lesbians" will be screened again for one night only engagement and preceded by the lesbian short film "UHaul Rap." This program will begin at 6pm. Following that, ImageOUT is pleased to present the Rochester debut of the feature film "Dare," an official selection of the Sundance Film Festival. This film will begin at 8:30. Both screenings are free and open to the public---no ticket required (but please arrive early as seats may fill up quickly!) Between the films, from 7:30pm to 8:30pm, we invite you to visit ImageOUT in the Cinema's cafe to learn more about volunteer opportunities with ImageOUT. For more information, visit www.ImageOut.org