Big Gay Picture Show

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

Indoor Boys: Episode 1 – Should two gay friends have sex in the new web series?

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Many gay men have slept with one of their friends, and either enjoyed or regretted it. However, how do you broach the subject, and if you do, where on the spectrum between friends and lovers do you stand?

That’s what two gay guys are dealing with in the first episode of the new web series, Indoor Boys. As the name suggests, the series is set entirely in and around the young men’s house, with Episode 1 showing how the cocky Luke (Wesley Taylor) and more insecure Nate (Alex Wyse) may be interested in sleeping with one another – but there are some millennial issues to deal with.

New episode of the show will debut on HuffPost Queer Voices each Sunday. Take a look at the first, fun instalment of the show below. [Read more…]

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Dev Patel & Ben Stiller Teaming For Chippendales Male-Stripper Murder Movie

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It’ll surprise many to hear that the world-famous male striptease outfit, the Chippendales have been around since 1979. While they now known for being at the more reputable end of sexy entertainment, it hasn’t always been that way.

Deadline reports that Dev Patel and Ben Stiller are set to star in a movie about the early days of the outfit, when things got very dangerous and murky. In the movie, Patel will play Bombay-born immigrant Steve Banerjee, who turned an LA dive bar into Chippendales, which very quickly gained a huge following and legions of fan. Ben Stiller will be children’s show producer Nick DeNoia, who ‘recruited the musclebound G-string clad dancers, choreographed their routines and ran a touring company of strippers.’

However, the American dream soon turned soured, as ‘Besides DeNoia, early co-creators included Paul Snider, whose Playboy bunny girlfriend Dorothy Stratten helped come up with the signature cuffs and collars uniforms (before everything but the G-string came off). Snider would later murder Stratten and kill himself (a sordid tragedy chronicled in the Bob Fosse-directed Star 80). Lawsuits and disputes between Banerjee followed, leading to a violence-filled descent. DeNoia was murdered, shot in the face in his New York office. Banerjee would plead guilty of orchestrating that murder, and for an attempt to burn down rival clubs, and for hiring a hit man for other murders including another former Chippendales choreographer. Hours before he was to be sentenced to a long prison sentence for murder, arson and racketeering in 1994, Banerjee was found hanged in his jail cell, his death ruled a suicide.’

It’s quite a story, and could make one hell of a movie.

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Something Like Summer (Outfest Review) – Lovers become frenemies in the gay-themed, coming-of-age musical

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I’m still surprised there aren’t more gay-themed musicals, but we’ve got a new one with Something Like Summer. It’s not a typical musical, as rather than taking place in a hyper-real world, it tells a story of love and loss that occasionally jumps from the real world to a stage, where the main character breaks into song. It’s an unusual way of doing it, and the first couple of times it’s a little jarring, both because its slightly unexpected and because the musical sequences are quite spaced apart.

However, they’re catchy songs, sung well and after you get used to it, they add real charm to the movie.

Something Like Summer, based on Jay Bell’s popular novel, follows Ben (Grant Davis) over the course of 12 years. It starts when he’s an out gay high school student with a crush on popular jock Tim (Davi Santos). After they literally bump into one another, they start a fledgling relationship. However, Tim is still unsure of his sexuality and wants to stay in the closet, as he’s afraid of what will happen if anyone finds out. [Read more…]

Personal Shopper (Blu-ray Review) – Things get creepy and possibly paranormal for Kristen Stewart

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Personal Shopper got a strange reaction on its Cannes debut. It was booed at the critics screening, but then got a standing ovation at the official showing. It eventually won Best Director for Olivier Assayas. Even when it was released in cinemas, the reviews were incredibly polarised. Some said it was a ‘masterwork’, while others thought it was total mess. As so often with these things, the truth is somewhere in the middle.

Maureen (Kristen Stewart) is working as a personal shopper/assistant for a rich, snooty celebrity in Paris. However, she also has some psychic ability, and is trying to connect to her twin brother Lewis, who died in France from a congenital condition that could also kill Maureen. [Read more…]

Boys For Sale (Outfest Review) – Life as a male prostitute servicing gay men in Tokyo

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If there’s a stereotype about being gay in Japan, it’s that the subject is taboo and hidden. However, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a large, vibrant LGBT community in the country. Boys For Sale looks at one aspect of that – the ‘Urizens’ – the equivalent of rent boys, who work in Tokyo’s main gay district, Shinjuku 2-chome.

The documentary mixes interviews with a variety of urizen with anime style representations of what they’re talking about. It’s a very effective way of presenting their words, as it helps bring it to life in ways just listening to their voices probably couldn’t. [Read more…]

A Quiet Passion (Blu-ray Review) – Terence Davies & Cynthia Nixon explore the life of Emily Dickinson

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Filmmaker Terence Davies early work was intentionally autobiographical. The likes of The Terence Davies Trilogy, Distant Voices Still Lives and The Long Day Closes looked at growing up working class in Britain in the 1940s and 1950s, touching on the overwhelming effects of Catholicism on him, as well as his own difficult relationship to being gay. Although his work then hasn’t been so explicitly based on himself, there have always remained very distinct echoes of the director in the subjects he’s chosen and the way he’s approached them.

That continues with A Quiet Passion, his biopic of 19th Century American poet, Emily Dickinson. Davies personal connection to the material is apparent from the first scene, where a young Emily is being asked to pick between two strict ideas of where she and a group of other young women stand in relationship to Christianity. However, she stands alone, unable to say where she should be. Once again Davies is fascinated by the push and pull of religion, of someone who wants the world while simultaneously limiting themselves to a small part of it, as well as the strictures of society for those who both desire to fit in and reject it. [Read more…]

Disney Announces The Lead Actors For Guy Ritchie’s Live-Action Aladdin

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Disney and director Guy Ritchie have apparently had a few issues finding the right actor for the lead role in their planned live-action take on Aladdin. It’s taken them months, but they’ve now reached a decision.

At the House Of Mouse’s D23 expo, they’ve revealed that relative newcomer Mena Massoud will take the title role, with Power Rangers’ Naomi Scott as Jasmine. They join the now confirmed Will Smith as the genie.

Apparently over 2,000 actors auditioned for the role of Aladdin, with Disney looking at the likes of Dev Patel and Riz Ahmed, before deciding that Massoud was their man. The young star has previously been seen in the likes of TV’s Saving Hope, and he’s also got a role in the upcoming Jack Ryan television series.

Disney is hoping to start shooting Aladdin next month in the UK, but there’s still got plenty of work to do before then. That’s not least that they need to find someone to play the villain, Jafar, as well as various other roles. (H/T THR)

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Heroes Actor Thomas Dekker Officially Comes Out As Gay & Married

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29-year-old Thomas Dekker has been acting since he was a kid, but is best known for appearing in TV’s Heroes, and as a young John Connor in The Sarah Connor Chronicles, as well as films such as the Nightmare On Elm Street remake.

A situation that occured during Dekker’s time on Heroes re-emerged last week when Hannibal creator Bryan Fuller was accepting an award. He recounted a story of how during his brief time as a producer on that TV show, an actor’s management threatened to pull them from the show if their character came out as gay. As a result, Fuller said, “The character became straight, and the actor came out as gay.”

Although Fuller didn’t name the actor, many were quick to realise this was a situation involving Dekker. There was one issue with what the producer said though, as the actor had never officially come out as gay.

Thomas has now decided to address that, releasing a statement on Instagram that reads, ‘My sexual orientation once again came into question this week when a prominent gay man used an awards acceptance speech to “out” me. While he did not mention me by name, the explicit details of his reference made it easy for the public and media to connect the dots. While it is an odd situation, I thank him because it presents a prime opportunity for me to publicly say that I am indeed a man who proudly loves other men. In fact, this April, I married my husband and I could not be happier. I have never lied to the press about the fluidity of my sexuality but this man claiming that I came out is not true. Because I have not “officially” until this moment. I simply refuse to be robbed of the glorious joy that belongs to me. To say the words myself. “I’m gay”. Those words are a badge of honor that no one can steal. Sexuality and who you love is a deeply personal and complicated thing. For some of us, it takes time to cultivate, discover and conclude. It is not something anyone should ever be ashamed of and certainly not something anyone should be rushed into. I agree with many who believe it is an important responsibility for LGBTQ persons with a platform to come out. It has the power to change minds, challenge beliefs and make others feel understood and supported. It can strengthen the progression of our community and help disarm those who discriminate against us. It is a brave, powerful and important thing to do but it is also a deeply personal decision. One that should only be made when you are ready. If we are to stand strong in the gay community, our mission should be support, not exclusion; love, not shame. I choose not to look back on the past with a regretful heart but rather focus on the future with a hopeful one. A future where myself and all others can feel free to express their true selves with honor and dignity. I embrace you, any of you, with open arms, kindness, faith and patience. For all of you who have supported me, before and now, I thank you from the bottom of my fledgling heart. Be proud of who you are. No matter how long it takes.’

Although he hasn’t been officially out, Dekker hasn’t shied away from appearing in LGBT-themed roles and films, including Gregg Araki’s Kaboom!, the TV movie Cinema Verite, 2014’s Lost In White City and the recently released (in the US) Do You Take This Man.

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First Look At Steven Spielberg’s Upcoming Ready Player One

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Steven Spielberg is a very busy man. He’s recently finished shooting Ready Player One for release early in 2018. While that film is in post-production, he’s making The Papers with Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep, which is due out around Christmas.

Now we’ve got our first look at Ready Player One, via EW.

The movie is based on Ernie Cline’s novel. Here’s the synopsis: ‘In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he’s jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade’s devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world’s digital confines—puzzles that are based on their creator’s obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them. But when Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade’s going to survive, he’ll have to win—and confront the real world he’s always been so desperate to escape.’

Tye Sheridan, TJ Miller, Mark Rylance, Simon Pegg and Olicia Cooke star. It’ll be in cinemas during March 2018.

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Freak Show Clip – Take a look at the Outfest Closing Night Film, starring Bette Midler & Laverne Cox

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We haven’t seen Bette Midler in a movie since Parental Guidance in 2012. However, she’s returning with Freak Show, which will be the Closing Night movie at this year’s Outfest LA LGBT Film Festival this Sunday. The movie has recently been picked up for release by IFC Films in the US, who have released the first clip.

Here’s the synopsis: ‘Billy Bloom (Alex Lawther), once lived a fabulous life in Connecticut, with his equally fabulous mother, Muv (Bette Midler). But when he is suddenly shipped off to his father’s (Larry Pine) Southern mansion, he finds himself a fish out of water.

‘With his closet of extravagant and flamboyant attire, Billy is completely different from the cheerleaders, bible belles and beefy quarterbacks at his new high school. Yet despite the well-meant advice of his father and his housekeeper Florence (Celia Weston) that he should just throw on some blue jeans, Billy is determined to be himself – even if that does mean wearing face glitter to school.

‘With Muv missing in action, Billy experiences a culture clash the likes of which he has never known before – and his only allies come in the form of handsome football player and schoolboy crush Flip Kelly (Ian Nelson), and a chatterbox girl he calls Blah Blah Blah (AnnaSophia Robb)… because when she talks that’s all he hears.

‘When Muv finally comes to visit, Billy thinks his troubles are over, but he is in for a shock that shakes him to the core. Just when it seems life can’t get any worse, his finds himself up against ultimate mean girl Lynette (Abigail Breslin) in a battle of tolerance versus ignorance. Billy’s indomitable spirit rises once again to challenge the conservative traditions of Grant Academy, taking him on a journey that will lead to extraordinary and hilarious results.’

Take a look at the ‘Atlantastic’ Freak Show clip below. [Read more…]

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