Get Mighty Real with Ten Out and Proud Films
Have a friend who’s fresh out of the closet ? Here’s a list of ten terrific gay and proud films to help you celebrate. Most of these are available on Netflix or you can rent them on Amazon Instant or Itunes to create your own Out and Proud Film Festival at home.
In & Out
Kevin Kline plays drama teacher Howard Brackett, who does not have any idea that he is gay until a former student makes a very public comment about his sexuality. Although he has all of the stereotypical “tells” of being a gay man, including an affinity for Barbra Streisand, a great sense of style, and no sexual attraction to women, it did not even occur to Howard that he could be gay, but through the course of the film and self-discovery, he finds out that he is. This one is quite sweet, particularly with the whole town rallying behind Howard because they love him no matter what his sexuality, and Tom Selleck doing a turn as a very un-stereotypical gay man who is quite secure in his sexuality.
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My Own Private Idaho
Shakespeare’s Henry IV set in the world of gay street-hustlers? River Phoenix? Gus Van Sant directing? Yes to all of these things, which come together to make one of the essential movies of not only gay cinema and indie cinema, but also one of the great films of the 90s. This is the poignant performance that really shows what River Phoenix might have given us much more of.
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Dog Day Afternoon
Rarely did films before the late 80s portray gay characters as regular folks just trying to get along in the world. Although it’s a bit difficult to describe Al Pacino’s character in Dog Day Afternoon as “regular”, it has nothing to do with his being gay and trying to steal money to buy a sex change operation for his male lover. It has to do with his feeling put down by the system. And rarely in films from before the late 80s did gay characters not have to suffer needlessly to pay for their “crime” of being gay. Pacino pays, but he also commits a crime- however, being gay isn’t it. Groundbreaking and a classic.
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But I’m a Cheerleader
Natasha Lyonne became a bit of a joke (if she’s thought of at all), unfortunately, but her performance in this flick proves she can be in on the joke as well. A young girl who is (seemingly) fine has parents who throw her into a “deprogramming” center in order to slap the gay right out of her. Wackiness ensues, but in a sincere way which stresses the wackiness of even the idea of “deprogramming”.
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Chasing Amy
Another quintessential gay movie from the indie world of the early 90s, Amy could not be more different in tone to Idaho if it tried. A romantic comedy about a straight guy with a straight (or is he?) best friend who gets jealous when he falls in love with a gay (or is she?) girl, Chasing Amy was the first “adult” themed film that Kevin Smith made, but lost none of his dialogue spark and zing in the translation.
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I Love You, Phillip Morris
Jim Carrey and Ewan McGregor in a gay comedy? What’s not to love about that? Based on the true story of a man who fell in love with another man while in prison and does anything and everything to get him out of jail and start a life for them together, this is actually a very sweet love story. We’ve all seen Jim Carrey do the dramatic thing, but this is a nice balance between his manic characters and his serene ones. And Ewan – well, he’s made love to an 80 year old man on film (see The Pillow Book), so Jim Carrey shouldn’t be too much of a stretch for him.
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La Cage Aux Folles/The Birdcage
The gay owners of a transvestite nightclub try to conceal the truth about themselves when their son brings home a girl from a conservative family. Sounds like a the premise of a horrible sitcom, but it actually is the start of some very clever comedic moments. The original 1978 version of La Cage gave birth to the stage musical and the Robin Williams remake The Birdcage, which is also worth a gander. Particularly if you don’t want to deal with those pesky subtitles.
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Mysterious Skin
Before he was meeting Summer and Autumn, Joseph Gordon-Levitt surprised everyone with his role as a gay hustler who goes through the ringer due to some early childhood abuse. Definitely not for everyone and very tough to watch in some places, this film does show the fucked-up places abuse and the hustling life can take you. It also shows the true range that Gordon-Levitt has, particularly after being on that awful alien sitcom for like 20 years.
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Brokeback Mountain
“Brokeback” became a different form of speech after this movie. Instead of a proper ame, it became an adjective. People had “Brokeback” moments. Or something was just “Brokeback”, and everyone knew what it meant. A film like that doesn’t come along every day, and this one showed how much people had changed – in a good way – in order to embrace this flick about two cowboys who fall in love while rustling cattle, but are unable to be together because of the time and place in which they live. It’s just a good old fashioned tragic love story, bottom line (no pun intended). And Heath Ledger. Let’s not even go there. So closed off emotionally he can barely move his mouth when he speaks. Ah, Heath. We hardly knew ye…
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