Taking a look at the world of film through gay eyes - news, reviews, trailers, gay film, queer cinema and more
Taking a look at the world of film through gay eyes - news, reviews, trailers, gay film, queer cinema & more
All the news from film and the world of the gays
21 Jump Street was a far bigger success than anyone had expected, which inevitably means a sequel is coming. Now we can get a look at the film with a red band trailer.
22 Jump Street picks up where the first movie left off and finds partners Jenko (Tatum) and Schmidt (Jonah Hill) undercover at a local university. However, the partners get separated, with Jenko joining the football team and the Schmidt finding himself in amongst the art majors.
The film will be in cinemas next June. [Read more…]
Just yesterday we brought you a new image from Ryan Murphy’s HBO TV movie The Normal Heart, which is based on Larry Kramer’s acclaimed play about the early days of AIDS crisis. Now our attention has been drawn to the fact that the first footage from the film has debuted – even if it’s a bit blink and you’ll miss it.
The shots come as part of a montage of what HBO has to offer in 2014, which means it only has time for a couple of seconds from The Normal Heart, although that’s enough to show us Mark Ruffalo being hauled away by cops, Julia Roberts as a doctor, Jim Parsons looking a little lonely, Taylor Kitsch being upset and Ruffalo going nose-to-nose (in a cute way) with Matt Bomer.
You can watch the footage above, which should be lined up so it starts just before the Normal Heart footage begins.
Ruffalo takes on the lead role of Ned Weeks, who in the early 80s is one of the first people to raise an alarm about the new disease that initially was known as ‘Gay Cancer’, but later became HIV/AIDS. Big Bang Theory star Jim Parsons will be gay activist Tommy Boatwright, a role he previously took in a 2011 Broadway revival of the play.
Julia Roberts is Emma Brookner, a wheelchair bound doctor who is the only one of her peers in New York taking AIDS seriously. Matt Bomer is Felix Turner, a gay fashion journalist who becomes Ned’s lover. Jonathan Groff is playing an early victim of the disease called Craig, whose boyfriend, Taylor Kitsch, starts off as a closeted investment banker but eventually becomes an AIDS activist.
Larry Kramer’s play is considered one of the most important reactions to the early AIDS epidemic, written by someone who has on the front lines of the fight, such as co-founding Gay Men’s Health Crisis and ACT UP. He later wrote a follow-up, The Destiny Of Me.
HBO will air the movie next year. [Read more…]
Joan Fontaine, best known for her roles in Hitchcock’s Rebecca and Suspicion, has passed away aged 96, it’s been announced. Born in Tokyo to British parents, she was raised in California alongside her sister, Olivia de Havilland.
She started acting in the 1930s, getting her great breakthrough playing the lead role opposite Lawrence Olivier in the Best picture Oscar winning Rebecca. The film scored her an Oscar nomination, but it was the next year she won, getting Best Actress for Suspicion. She garnered a further nomination for 1943’s The Constant Nymph.
After he early 40s heyday, she never quite saw the same success again, although she did appear in the likes of Ivanhoe, Island In The Sun and The Witches.
Fontaine also famously had a fractious relationship with Gone With The Wind actress De Havilland, which is believed to have been made worse when they became the first sisters to be Oscar nominated in the same year. Fontaine won for Suspicion that year. Sadly they remained estranged.
Joan Fontaine – 22nd October 1917 – 15th December 2013 – RIP
One of the last great, British hell-raising British actors of the 1960s has passed away, as it’s been announced that Peter O’Toole has died aged 81. O’Toole had one of the great screen breakthroughs of all time, snagging the leading role in David Lean’s wonderful Lawrence Of Arabia. It took him from virtual unknown to major star in one swoop – even though he was always a bit circumspect about fame.
The Irish born but Leeds raised O’Toole was not one hit wonder though, becoming a true screen legend who could turn his hand to almost any role. That’s testified to by the fact he scored eight Oscar nomination, but he was always the bridesmaid as he famously never won a competitive one (he did pick up an honorary Oscar in 2003 though).
His great films include Becket, Man Of La Mancha, The Lion In Winter, Goodbye Mr. Chips, The Last Empeor and Venus. While he cut back on roles in recent years, he did appear in the likes of Ratatouille and the TV series, The Tudor. He officially announced his retirement in 2012, but he didn’t quite stick to that, as he will be seen in the upcoming Katherine Of Alexandria.
There was little doubt that The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug would top the US box office this weekend. The only question was how much it would take. There was a lot of disagreement going into the weekend, with some suggesting it could take as much as $80 million, while others thought it would struggle to make $70 million.
In the end it made a strong but not as spectacular as some had expected $73.6 million. It’s certainly not a disaster, and with a strong international showing it’s likely to end up grossing around the same as the billion pounds the first movie took worldwide. It’s also true that the film faced strong holdovers from Catching Fire and Frozen, which may have affected it opening, but it should make up some US ground over the coming week.
The only other new opener was Tyler Perry’s A Madea Christmas, which disappointed with $16 million. Most of Perry’s other Madea movies have had $25+ million openings, so despite the festive theme, it seems audiences aren’t that interested.
Take a look below for the US box office top 10 for the weekend of December 13th-15th.
| Rank | Title | Weekend Gross (millions) | Total Gross to date (millions) |
| 1 | The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug | $73.6 | $73.6 |
| 2 | Frozen | $22.1 | $164.3 |
| 3 | Tyler Perry’s A Madea Christmas | $16.0 | $16.0 |
| 4 | The Hunger Games: Catching Fire | $13.1 | $356.9 |
| 5 | Thor: The Dark World | $2.7 | $198.1 |
| 6 | Out Of The Furnace | $2.3 | $9.4 |
| 7 | Delivery Man | $1.8 | $27.9 |
| 8 | Philomena | $1.7 | $11.0 |
| 9 | The Book Thief | $1,6 | $14.8 |
| 10 | Homefront | $1.6 | $18.4 |
After their success with Behind The Candelabra, HBO will be hoping for some more next year with another gay-themed movie that ended up at the pay TV network after normal funding channels turned it down – Ryan Murphy’s The Normal Heart.
Now a new image of Mark Ruffalo in the movie has arrived, courtesy of Entertainment Weekly (and you can see the previously released one below).
The film is based on Larry Kramer’s acclaimed play about the emergence of AIDS. Alongside Ruffalo, the movie stars the likes of Taylor Kitsch, Julia Roberts, Matt Bomer, Jim Parsons and Jonathan Groff.
Ruffalo takes on the lead role of Ned Weeks, who in the early 80s is one of the first people to raise an alarm about the new disease that initially was known as ‘Gay Cancer’, but later became HIV/AIDS. Big Bang Theory star Jim Parsons will be gay activist Tommy Boatwright, a role he previously took in a 2011 Broadway revival of the play.
Julia Roberts is Emma Brookner, a wheelchair bound doctor who is the only one of her peers in New York taking AIDS seriously. Matthew Bomer is set for Felix Turner, a gay fashion journalist who becomes Ned’s lover. Groff is playing an early victim of the disease called Craig, whose boyfriend, Taylor Kitsch, starts off as a closeted investment banker but eventually becomes an AIDS activist.
Larry Kramer’s play is considered one of the most important reactions to the early AIDS epidemic, written by someone who has on the front lines of the fight, such as co-founding Gay Men’s Health Crisis and ACT UP. He later wrote a follow-up, The Destiny Of Me.
HBO will air the movie sometime early in 2014.
When the logo for Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar arrived a couple of days ago, it came with the news that a teaser trailer would be incoming very soon. Now it’s here!
As it’s Nolan, it’s still being a bit secretive about the actual plot of the movie, although it does suggest something pretty epic.
Here’s the current official synopsis: ‘Interstellar chronicles the adventures of a group of explorers who make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.’
Matthew McConaughy, Jessica Chastain, Anne Hathaway and Michael Caine star, with a November 2014 release date set. [Read more…]
Gregg Araki was at the forefront of the Queer Cinema movement on the 1990s, and indeed all his movies since then have had an LGBT tint. However things will be less overtly gay with his latest, White Bird in a Blizzard, which is due to premiere at Sundance. Ahead of that though we’ve got our first look at the movie with a trailer.
Based on Laura Kasischke’s 1999 novel, the film a young woman who loses control of her life when her mother disappears. Shailene Woodley plays the main role, with the likes of Eva Green (as the mother), Angela Bassett, Shiloh Fernandez, Christopher Meloni and Gabourey Sidibe co-starring.
The movie will screen at Sundance, but there’s no word yet on when it will be released to general audiences. [Read more…]
Next year is going to be buff and Greek, with 300: Rise Of An Empire and two Hercules movie, one starring Dwayne Johnson and the other with (a very shirtless) Kellan Lutz. Now a new trailer for the latter has arrived.
Here’s the synopsis: ‘In Ancient Greece 1200 B.C., a queen succumbs to the lust of Zeus to bear a son promised to overthrow the tyrannical rule of the king and restore peace to a land in hardship. But this prince, Hercules, knows nothing of his real identity or his destiny. He desires only one thing: the love of Hebe, Princess of Crete, who has been promised to his own brother. When Hercules learns of his greater purpose, he must choose: to flee with his true love or to fulfill his destiny and become the true hero of his time. The story behind one of the greatest myths is revealed in this action-packed epic – a tale of love, sacrifice and the strength of the human spirit.’
The Renny Harlin directed movie is out this January. [Read more…]
The Disney Channel has had a great idea, even if it’s going to be difficult to make it work in practice – they’re going to give it a good try though. They’ve announced they’re making a live-action TV movie called Descendants, based around the kids of Disney villains.
Casting is now underway on the film, with High School Musical helmer Kenny Ortega set to direct.
Here’s the incredibly intriguing synopsis: ‘In a present day idyllic kingdom, the benevolent teenaged son of the King and Queen (Beast and Belle from Disney’s iconic “Beauty and the Beast”) is poised to take the throne. His first proclamation: offer a chance at redemption to the trouble-making offspring of Cruella De Vil, Maleficent, the Evil Queen and Jafar who have been imprisoned on a forbidden island with all the other villains, sidekicks, evil step-mothers and step-sisters.
‘These villainous descendants (Carlos, Mal, Evvie and Jay, respectively) are allowed into the kingdom to attend prep school alongside the offspring of iconic Disney heroes, including Fairy Godmother, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel and Mulan. However, the evil teens face a dilemma. Should they follow in their nefarious parents’ footsteps and help all the villains regain power or embrace their innate goodness and save the kingdom.’
It will be difficult not to make it come across as cheesy and a bit cheap on a Disney Channel budget, but we’d imagine the House Of Mouse is already eying the merchandising potential, so they’ll probably put a lot of effort in. The hope is to have is ready to screen in early 2015.