ABCs at the Movies: The Doubles Round!

[Ellemeno]

From IMDb: In 2004, Log Cabin -- the Gay Republican Club -- was put to the test. President Bush's unequivocal opposition to gay marriage presented them with a stark choice, whether to be good Republicans and support the President, or stand up for their civil rights as gay Americans. This decision afforded them a historic opportunity to affect the election but it also opened schisms that threatened the unity of the Log Cabin itself. In GAY REPUBLICANS politics get personal as the Log Cabin wrestle with an issue that goes to the core of their identity. Written by Wash Westmoreland (the writer and director of this documentary)

[oilgun]

Synopsis
Lisa Cholodenko wrote and directed this lesbian-themed drama, winner of the 1998 Sundance Film Festival's Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award. Ambitious photography magazine associate editor Syd (Radha Mitchell) has a ho-hum relationship with James (Gabriel Mann). Investigating a ceiling leak, she enters the apartment of her neighbor, retired photographer Lucy Berliner (Ally Sheedy), who lives with former Fassbinder actress Greta (Patricia Clarkson), a heroin addict. The friendship between the worldly Lucy and the naive, insecure Syd ripens into an affair, one destined to change the lives of both women. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

[southendmd]

IMDb:  In their first live concert film, the Kinsey Sicks -- America's Favorite Dragapella Beautyshop Quartet -- reveal the shocking news: they have gone Republican. In this mock GOP fund-raiser, Rachel, Winnie, Trixie and Trampolina, the four gifted singers and comedians who comprise the quartet, defend their conversion to conservatism. They sing -- literally! -- the praises of corruption, tokenism, greed and all things nuclear (both families and bombs). The Kinsey Sicks have been a cult phenomenon for over a decade.

 From Off-Broadway to Vegas and beyond, the larger-than-life Kinsey Sicks have developed a loyal following among comedy fans, music aficionados and lovers of biting political satire. Their hilarious, intelligent writing and their finely spiced menu of thought-provoking original songs and wicked parodies have won them a Lucille Lortel Award nomination for Best Musical and a Drama Desk Award nomination for Best Lyrics. They have won numerous a cappella awards and the New York Times has praised their "voices sweet as birdsong."

Here's a clip, "We Arm the World":

[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2kZKI7pSHs[/youtube]

[Fran]

From IMDb:  The world is a scary place, and serious contemplation of that could be enough to cause anyone to shut down. So, what happens when, in the face of the AIDS tragedy, one handsome, young gay man decides that he'd rather be celibate than risk it all? Worse yet, what happens when he then meets the man of his dreams who turns out to be HIV positive? Rent this little gem to find out.

[memento]

IMDB: In high school, Matt and Ryan were best friends. More than friends, actually. But in the ensuing ten years, they've lost contact. So when Matt receives an invitation to Ryan's wedding he's surprised - especially that Ryan is marrying a woman! Matt interrupts his ideal alternative lifestyle to return to his hometown. He plans to rescue his former love from whatever "she-devil" has trapped him into this huge mistake. On the other hand, Ryan's perky fiancé Alex takes quite the liking to Matt. Is she very cunning, disarmingly ditsy, completely adorable - or all three? As Matt tries to rekindle the old flame, Ryan is intent on putting out any sparks. Ryan dismisses their old romance as just a high school thing, but Matt realizes Ryan may still be the love of his life. All the while, Matt must deal with "his new best friend" Alex, the two families, and a hometown he thought he'd left entirely in the past. As the wedding day fast approaches (like a meteor hurtling toward ground zero), old feelings resurface and secrets are revealed. Each of them must balance the past with the present, and make a choice that will determine the rest of their lives: the boundaries of love, sexuality and identity are never constant.

[southendmd]

IMDb:  "Loggerheads" interweaves three separate but related stories that take place in different parts of North Carolina. On Mother's Day 1999, Mark, a young drifter with an interest in endangered loggerhead turtles, begins a relationship with motel handyman George. On Mother's Day 2000, Mark's adoptive mother Elizabeth wonders what has become of her estranged son. On Mother's Day 2001, Mark's birth mother Grace quits her job to begin a search for the child she gave up years before-a search that ultimately brings the stories together.

[Fran]

From Focus Features:

A tale of obsession and deception, and the struggle for love and faith in a world where both seem impossible. The film charts the emotional and physical hothouse effects that bloom one summer for two young women: Mona, behind a spiky exterior, hides an untapped intelligence and a yearning for something beyond the emptiness of her daily life; Tamsin is well-educated, spoiled and cynical. Complete opposites, each is wary of the other's differences when they first meet, but this coolness soon melts into mutual fascination, amusement and attraction. Adding volatility is Mona's older brother Phil, who has renounced his criminal past for religious fervor -- which he tries to impose upon his sister. Mona, however, is experiencing her own rapture. "We must never be parted," Tamsin intones to Mona, but can Mona completely trust her?

[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rFYnGLSfZg[/youtube]
Trailer:  2:08

[oilgun]

Synopsis
NINE LIVES is the provocative film debut from writer/director Dean Howell and writer Michael Kearns (INTIMACIES, T-CELLS & SYMPATHY, ROCK). A cross between Schnitzler's LA RONDE and Altman's SHORT CUTS, we zoom in on nine individuals whose lives intersect - emotionally, sexually and dangerously - over the course of one day.

[southendmd]

From Argentina

IMDb:  Although cliche ridden, this film offers a rare chance to focus upon a gay relationship in which the people involved are free from any feelings of guilt, and offer us a positive outlook for the two lovers. It's a pity it is so hard to find on video...

[Fran]

From IMDb: 

If you're looking for the best movie about being gay during the height of the AIDS epidemic, skip "Longtime Companion" and watch this film. Funny, sad and true to life. Well-written, well-acted...check out Kathy Kinney and Steve Buscemi at the beginning of their careers.

The movie is never preachy or sappy. And there are some Bronski Beat tunes used to very nice effect.

The true crime is that AIDS claimed writer/director Bill Sherwood before he could make another film. This was his only movie -- a perfect example of how this disease has robbed the world of a generation of talented individuals.