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

Jeremy Irvine Will Have A Gay Rights Struggle In Stonewall For Roland Emmerich

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Jeremy-IrvineA few days ago Roland Emmerich announced that he was planning to shoot his gay rights drama, Stonewall, this Spring. But at the time we had no idea who would star.

Now Deadline reports that War Horse and Great Expectations star Jeremy Irvine has landed the lead role in the movie.

While the movie is set during the run up to the 1969 Stonewall Riots, it’s not a simple retelling of what happened during June 1969, as Jon Robin Bates’s script is a larger story of how modern gay rights activism emerged and how that boiled over onto the streets at New York’s Stonewall Inn. He’s previously described it as being, “About these crazy kids in New York, and a country bumpkin who gets into their gang, and at the end they start this riot and change the world.”

Irvine will play a young man whose political awakening happens against the backdrop of the riots which have since become a touchstone for the gay rights struggle.

In the last couple of years Irvine has gathered many fans who like both his talent and his face, and plenty of those will be very happy at the prospect of him playing a gay character – we’ll certainly be first in line when the movie comes out.

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Mark Rylance Is Going Through The Looking Glass As Johnny Depp’s Dad

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mark-rylanceMark Rylance is undoubtedly considered one of the best stage actors currently working in Britain, winning Oliviers, Tonys and a BAFTA TV award. However he hasn’t been seen in that many movies considering his stature, and there have been even fewer big Hollywood movies.

That’s about the change though as Variety reports that he’s signed up for Through the Looking Glass, Disney’s sequel to Alice In Wonderland.

He joins returning cast members Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter and Mia Wasikowska, as well as newcomer Sacha Baron Cohen. So what character is Rylance playing? Well, he’s due to be the Mad Hatter’s father – despite the fact he’s only four years older than Johnny Depp.

It’s not know how Hatter Sr. will fit into the movie, as plot details are being kept under wraps. The hope is to shoot this summer with James Bobin directing.

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Matt Damon May Be The Martian, But Director Drew Goddard Is Out

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matt-damonAbout a year ago, Cabin In The Woods’ helmer Drew Goddard attached himself to direct The Martian. However in recent months he’s become very busy agreeing to direct the pilot episode of Netflix’s Daredevil series, and signing up to be at the reigns for Spider-man spin-off Sinister Six.

As a result he dropped off The Martian due to Fox being unwilling to wait for his schedule to free up. However the project is still alive and kicking with the news, via TheWrap, that Matt Damon is circling the sci-fi flick.

Based on the e-book by Andy Weir, The Martian ‘follows an astronaut who becomes stranded on Mars and must figure out how to survive long enough to return to Earth.’

The movie has been described as a cross between Apollo 13 and Cast Away. Interestingly it also seems that those behind the film are keen to say it’s very different from Gravity, as the premise is bound to make some people wonder whether this film will end up as Cuaron’s film’s poor cousin.

Damon’s involvement apparently revolves around whether they can get a director interested who the actor is happy to work with. Fox wants to move forward quickly, and is currently looking for the right helmer.

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Matt Bomer, Jim Parsons, Mark Ruffalo & Taylor Kitsch Are Looking Good As They Talk The Normal Heart

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normal-heart-thr10On May 25th, Ryan Murphy’s film version of Larry Karmer’s seminal play about the beginning of the AIDS epidemic in New York, The Normal Heart, debuts on HBO in the US. This week THR chronicles the long journey to get the play to the screen – an odyssey that’s been going on ever since it debuted on stage in 1985.

Along with the piece are plenty of quotes from the film’s stars, including Matt Bomer, Jim Parsons, Mark Ruffalo & Taylor Kitsch, as well as a great photoshoot, where they’re all looking pretty awesome.

As the article relates, it wasn’t too long after The Normal Heart caused a sensation on stage in 1985 that Hollywood came sniffing. That included Barbra Streisand, who tied up the rights for years, often seeming as if she was going to nearing the point she’d get it on screen, but never quite doing so. Others attached or interested at various timse include John Schlesinger, Kenneth Branagh and Ralph Fiennes. It eventually took Murphy and HBO to do it –  as Ryan says, “Larry had his heart broken so many times, I promised him I would not stop until it got made.”

Normal Heart’s journey to the screen is a truly fascinating tale, which is as much about changing attitudes to HIV and gay people as it is about the difficulties of Hollywood (and the fact Kramer isn’t always the easiest of collaborators).

It’s also interesting to note that while making the movie for HBO is seen by some as having to settle for the poor relation of cinema, the pay-TV network actually gave Ryan Murphy a larger budget (around $18 million) than he probably would have had if it had been an indie feature.

There are plenty of good nuggets about the actual movie in the article too, such as Matt Bomer’s need to lose weight to play an AIDS victim. He left his family for a few weeks that were “really monastic and solitary — to create the physical reality of what Felix [his character] was going through.”

However he was happy to do it as, “The piece meant so much to me. People like Larry and the Gay Men’s Health Crisis and ACT UP were the catalysts for the gay rights movement, and we stand on their shoulders.”

Ruffalo adds, “The play served as an agitprop theater piece when that kind of politics and strategy really needed to be employed. The movie opened up a much more humanistic and universal tale about love, mostly about love.”

And while it’s taken 30 years to get the movie made, Jim Parsons feels it’s a good time for a film version. He says, “We’re at another really right time for this story. I felt it doing the play [on Broadway] and I feel it now that the movie is about to come out. Time has been very good to Larry’s script. This story has only gotten richer.”

Head here to read the full story and take a look at some of the great pics from the cast shoot below. [Read more…]

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A first look at Casa Valentina – Harvey Fierstein’s new play gets a preview

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To some Harvey Fierstein is just the gravelly voiced guy who pops up in the likes of Independence Day and Mrs. Doubtfire to add a bit of slightly camp humour. However to others he is a gay legend.

He’s won four Tonys for both plays and musicals, created and starred in the groundbreaking Torch Song Trilogy, wrote the book for the stage versions of La Cage Aux Folles and Kinky Boots, and is a leading gay rights champion.

Now he’s returning with a new play, Casa Valentina, and we can take our first look with a new video that’s arrived online.

Here’s a bit more info about the play, ‘From four-time Tony Award winner Harvey Fierstein comes Casa Valentina, his first play in almost thirty years and his first-ever collaboration with Manhattan Theatre Club. Two-time Tony Award winner Joe Mantello directs this funny, fascinating world premiere based on actual events. Back in 1962, most men went to the Catskill Mountains to escape the summer heat, but others took the two-hour drive to escape something else entirely: being men. Nestled in the land of dirty dancing and borscht belt comedy sat an inconspicuous bungalow colony that catered to a very special clientele: heterosexual men whose favorite pastime was dressing and acting as women. It was paradise for these men—white-collar professionals with families—to spend their weekends discreetly and safely inhabiting their chosen female alter egos. But when they got the opportunity to share their secret lives with the world, these “self-made women” had to decide whether the freedom they would gain by emerging from hiding was worth the risk of personal ruin.’ [Read more…]

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Caesar Is Back In New Dawn of the Planet of the Apes Images

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dawn-of-the-planet-of-the-apes-pic11Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes has gotten slightly lost in the mix of big summer movies, but the same was true of the first film, which surprised many when despite relatively little buzz became a big hit.

However Fox is making sure we don’t forget about it completely as a slew of other big films are released over the coming few weeks.

Now 10 new images have arrived, along with commentary from Andy Serkis.

Here’s the synopsis: ‘A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth’s dominant species.’

Take a look at the new pics below.

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The humans have been wiped out from a deadly simian virus, with the highly intelligent ape Caesar ( Andy Serkis) leading an ape nation in a take over of the entire planet.

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Andy Serkis reveals Caesar has grown quite a bit since the last time we saw him in 2011’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes. “We see him as a statesman and a leader and someone who has galvanized all of these apes. We see the beginning of their world.”

Director Matt Reeves comments on Caesar’s care-worn face. “You can see a real haunted quality.”

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Andy Serkis says Caesar is not a fan of guns in the movie. “Caesar’s ethos is that apes do not like guns. He’s trying to find a peaceful accord with the humans who show up. He’s an empathetic character.”

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Director Matt Reeves explains the story, with the few human survivors in need of electricity while the apes sort out their anti-human agenda. “In this story we are dealing with the razor’s edge of peace. Caesar struggles with the question of peace and how do you act as a father and a leader.”

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Andy Serkis says there was an “ensemble cast” of other actors portraying primates in the film, all using motion-capture performances in outside locations such as New Orleans and the woods of Vancouver. In this story the apes have a major advantage: They don’t need the creature comforts the humans require.

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Koba (Toby Kebbell) has a strong hatred for humans after his time in captivity, but he respects Caesar’s leadership.

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The Apes have the capability of hydropower on their land in the Muir woods. The big question, Matt Reeves explains, is… “Can they coexist?”

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Matt Reeves reveals that while Caesar and Koba have had their differences, Caesar is clearly the Alpha Male. “All of the apes follow Caesar with tremendous allegiance and respect. He is their king and sort of their father.

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Malcolm, played by Jason Clarke, tries to make peace with the Apes. Both Malcolm and Caesar are fathers with wives. Says the director,

“The film centers around the notion of family. It’s the survival of family and what lengths you will go to in order to protect them.

Andy Serkis continued, “Caesar not only has a wife, but also an infant son and a teenage son. This film centers around the notion of family – the survival of the family and what lengths you would go to, to protect them when life is extremely hard and tough.”

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Do the humans stand a chance? Maybe, maybe not explains Matt Reeves, “We all know it doesn’t become ‘Planet of the Humans and Apes,’ it becomes ‘Planet of the Apes’. But this is that one moment where there is hope for the humans.”

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Wish I Was Here Teaser – First look at Zach Braff’s Kickstarter-funded, star-studded flick

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Zach Braff found a lot of success and a little controversy when he turned to Kickstarter to fund his second directorial outing, Wish I Was Here. He raised the money though and now the film is on its way – and to prove it a teaser trailer has arrived.

The film ‘tells the story of a thirty-something man who finds himself at a major crossroads, which forces him to examine his life, his career, and his family.’

Braff stars in the film and has lined up some great company, including Kate Hudson, Mandy Patinkin, Josh Gad, Joey King, Jim Parsons, Ashley Greene, and his old Scrubs chum, Donald Faison.

The film is due out in the US on July 25th, 2014. [Read more…]

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Cate Blanchett Is Getting Archaeological For The Dig

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Cate-BlanchettFresh from her Oscar win, Cate Blanchett is lining up some new movies, with the latest one she’s in talks for sounding like it could be pretty interesting. Screen International reports that she’s up for The Dig, from Danish director Susanne Bier.

The film, ‘explores the story and characters behind the 1938/9 excavation of Sutton Hoo, whose sixth and seventh century riches included a 27-metre ship and which is the likely burial site of King Raedwald of East Anglia.’

It’s one of the greatest archaeological discoveries in British history, with many of the treasures found still amongst the most famous object in the British Museum. However the dig took place in the shadow of the run-up to World War 2. Blanchett will play amateur archaeologist Edith Pretty, one of the driving forces behind the find, who used it to occupy her time after the death of her husband.

She drafted in famed excavator Basil Brown to help uncover the Sutton Hoo ship burial. It was Pretty who actually owned all the treasures after they were dug up, but she gifted them to the nation, which at the time the biggest gift to the British Museum by a living donor.

Tamara Drewe and Byzantium writer Moira Buffini

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Amy Poehler Joins Tina Fey In The Comedy The Nest

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tina-fey-amy-poehlerThere’s no doubt that Amy Poehler and Tina Fey are great friends, having hosted the Golden Globes together, and co-starring in the likes of SNL and Baby Mama. Now they’re getting back together for The Nest, according to Showbiz411.

Fey has been attached to the film for over a year, which is about two thirtysomething sisters who discover that their parents are selling their childhood home.

They spend one final weekend together in the house, bonding and feuding before realising that they both need to grow up. Poehler and Fey will play the sisters.

Paula Pell, who served as a writer on 30 Rock and Saturday Night Live, wrote the screenplay, while Jason Moore (Pitch Perfect) will direct.

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52 Tuesdays (BFI Flare Review)

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The premise of 52 Tuesdays – Sophia Hyde’s directorial debut – is interesting. It’s a film showing every Tuesday during one year in the life of an increasingly estranged family (hence the title).

The family in question consists of James, a transgender man beginning his transition to live fully an a man; his daughter Billie who’s a rebellious and sexually curious teenager with a video camera; and a largely distant father who has a beard. Oh, and Charlie, a sexually ambiguous brother/uncle/party boy. [Read more…]

Celluloid Director Lloyd Eyre-Morgan Plans Gay-Themed Series, Outings

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outings-pic3It’s always great to hear from filmmakers about what they’ve got in the works. It was a pleasure then to get a message from Llloyd Eyre-Morgan, the man behind the recent gay-themed Brit flicks Dream On and Celluloid, about his upcoming series, Outing.

He writes: ‘I’m just writing to tell you about my upcoming project OUTINGS Series 1 – it’s a new independent three-part gay series created by myself and Rob Ward, (who has seen success with his play Away From Home which tackles homosexuality and football – which was covered by major UK newspapers during it’s run http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/reviews/theatre-review-away-from-home-247-festival-new-century-house-manchester-8729822.html)

‘We’ve both developed the show together about gay life in your mid 20’s. It follows three characters – Kane, Kiegan and Tim – and we’ve tried to be as honest as possible from our own views and experiences being gay and in our 20’s. I particular  focussed on the awkwardness of gay sex in my episode (we wrote two episodes each and came together to write the final)

‘The show should be available later this year. I’m hoping to get a DVD release on the show and also we are currently in talks with some independent television channels in America.’

We’re looking forward to seeing more as the release approaches. Take a look at a few pics from the series below (click on them for larger version).

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More Scenes from a Gay Marriage Trailer – Take a look at the sequel to Matt Riddlehoover’s fun gay-themed flick

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Matt Riddlehoover’s movie, Scenes From A Gay Marriage, proved a great success – so much so that a sequel is now on the way, aptly titled More Scenes From A Gay Marriage.

If you’ve been wondering what’s happened to Darren and Joe, More Scenes picks up two years after the original left off, and it turns out things have gotten a little meta. Leigh, Darren’s ex, has made a gay-themed film (starring Charlie David and Rett Terrell) about how Darren (Matt Riddlehoover) and Joe (Jared Allman) met and fell in love. As a result of the film’s success, Darren and Joe begin to question whether their domestic partnership is as exciting or romantic as what led up to it.

Thashana McQuiston reprises her role as Luce, Darren’s sharp-tongued gal pal, and Rodiney Santiago (Logo’s A List) co-stars as a sexy masseur… who rubs Darren the wrong way.

You can take a look at the trailer above, and head over to the movie’s website to keep up to date with news about the film’s release, plus you can enjoy a few pics from the film below (click on them for larger versions). We’re certainly liking that this is not a movie that’s afraid of a bit of chest hair! [Read more…]

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