Apologies. I can’t seem to get the formatting correct, even after we seem to be virus-free. My dear friend Uncle Barb has been working on this with me and she suggests moving this to another blog. So I’m dropping the “the” and creating,
I hope you will follow me over there as I continue to blog about film and television.
Once you click on reelcharlie, you can follow me via email or RSS.
So I created a new site, deleted the old site and renamed this site, so there you have it. I’m back, although now I’m in the middle of a huge home improvement project, so posts might be sporadic for some time to come. I’ll still post as often as I can. Funny how the idea of your site getting a virus can throw you off from posting. Each step was a chore getting the energy up to complete. Special thanks to my dear friend Uncle Barb for taking a weekend and diagnosing the problem and offering a solution. Thank you Barb! Love you!
In case anyone has tried to look at The Reel Charlie since Friday, March 8, 2013 it’s been infected with some sort of virus. I’m in the process of recreating the site. Hold on faithful viewers!
Philip
Director Ringo Le and Producer Quentin Lee (Drift, Ethan Mao) have set up a Kickstarter campaign to finish their indie film, Big Gay Love starring Jonathan Lisecki (Gayby) and Nicolas Brendon (Buffy the Vampire Player). From their Kickstarter page,
Big Gay Love is a comedy about a chubby gay man who overcomes discrimination based on his looks to find love on his own terms!
The devastating effect of our physique-obsessed culture is explored in the comedy Big Gay Love. In the movie, Bob (played by Jonathan Lisecki of Gayby) appears to have it all – a great job, fabulous friends, and is about to become a first time homebuyer. But his success hasn’t come without a price for Bob has become the chubby gay man everyone adores, but nobody desires. When true love does find Bob in the form of a chef named Andy (Nicholas Brendon), he doubts if the relationship could be real for his years of living in insecurity has gotten the best of him. To keep up appearances with his friends, Bob considers going under the knife to fit in and be perfect. But underneath it all he longs for something more.
Big Gay Love is a love letter for everyone who’s ever wanted to be accepted for themselves regardless of their color, shape, or size.
Read more, watch the trailer, and donate to their Kickstarter campaign here.
In honor of International Women’s Day, New York Women in Film & Television is fundraising to restore a fantastic series of shorts from the 1980′s, Seven Women Seven Sins. From their indiegogo page,
Who We Are
The Women’s Film Preservation Fund (WFPF), founded by New York Women in Film & Television, aims to contribute to an understanding of the importance of women in film history and to increase awareness of the necessity for film preservation. WFPF is committed to preserving films and footage that represent diverse voices, visions and techniques regardless of vintage.
WFPF, the only fund of its kind in the world, has saved over 100 films in the last 15 years. The cost to preserve a single title can range from $10,000 to over $100,000. Past support has enabled us to do amazing work but so many films are still being lost. Donate to this exceptional fund and help us bring the essential role of women in cinema history to light.
Don’t let another important film vanish!
About the Project: Seven Women Seven Sins
Seven Women Seven Sins (1986) represents a quintessential moment in film history. The women filmmakers invited to direct for the seven sins were amongst the world’s most renown: Helke Sander (Gluttony), Bette Gordon (Greed), Maxi Cohen (Anger), Chantal Akerman (Sloth), Valie Export (Lust), Laurence Gavron (Envy), and Ulrike Ottinger (Pride). Each filmmaker had the liberty of choosing a sin to interpret as they wished. The final film reflected this diversity, including traditional narrative fiction, experimental video, a musical, a radical documentary, and was delivered in multiple formats from 16, super 16, video and 35mm.What We Need: Our Goal
We want to restore this film before it disintegrates completely and is lost forever! We will need to create new elements for preservation and digital mastering of the 16mm film. Once the film has been preserved we can provide access to the film through screening prints and DVDs for public viewing. We need your help to finish what we started.
Read more about the project and donate here.
Women Make Movies has a copy of the film for sale.
from the Bridegroom Movie Facebook page,
We are pleased to announce that “Bridegroom” has been selected to premiere at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival in New York City, April 17th-April 28th. We are incredibly honored to be shown at Tribeca, a film festival that has become one of the most respected and well-known cinematic festivals in the world. The wonderful thing about getting into a popular film festival like Tribeca is the exposure it will give our film. This will help spread our message and show as many people as possible that everyone deserves the right to be who they are and love who they love.
Tribeca is a public festival and we invite and encourage everyone to join us at one of our four screenings. Tribeca will announce their exact schedule very soon and tickets go on sale March 11th. Visit TribecaFilm.com for more information and to purchase tickets.
Thank you for your continued support!
Sincerely,
Linda Bloodworth Thomason
And
Shane Bitney CroneTo see the official Tribeca announcement please visit the link below.
http://www.tribecafilm.com/news-features/2013_Tribeca_Film_Festival_Viewpoints.html
Great Pinterest page profiling female film directors. So far 570 pins. I started at the beginning (bottom of the page) and found Sarah Polley, Lisa Cholondenko, Barbra Streisand, Julie Delphy, Antonia Bird, Barbara Kopple, Su Friedrich, Kimberly Reed, Barbara Hammer, and Donna Deitch. Who are some of your favorites listed?
Hat tip to Pariah the movie’s Facebook page.
One of Weekend‘s breakout actors Tom Cullen will be wooing Lady Mary next season on Downton Abbey according to the buzz online. From Towleroad,
Tom Cullen, who won acclaim in Andrew Haigh’s 2011 film weekend, will be joining Downton Abbey, according to Metro UK:
His character, who is tipped to be widow Lady Mary’s new love interest, is described as ‘an old family friend of the Crawleys who visits the family as a guest for a house party’.
But he may find himself a love rival in the form of dashing aristocrat Charles Blake, played by Smash star Julian Ovenden.
Spike Lee’s landmark 1989 film, Do the Right Thing about racism and intolerance unfortunately still rings true after all these years. Has much changed? Has the racial hatred shifted a bit to accommodate undocumented aliens, people of Middle-Eastern decent, Muslims, and LGBTQ folks? Are we living in a post-race era now that Obama has been re-elected? I don’t think so. The themes of racial tension, intolerance, ignorance, and injustice remain strong. The only thing that’s changed is the gentrification of New York and its boroughs. And perhaps there has been a slight shift in which group gets the worst thrown at them. Otherwise, the chaos and violence of Spike Lee’s masterful film sadly remain true. We screened this for Black History Month at the University in February. A small group of film-goers spent several hours visiting the 1980′s Brooklyn neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant and met Lee’s Mookie who walks the line between the African-American, Hispanic, and Italian factions. Do the Right Thing‘s outstanding ensemble cast includes Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Danny Aiello, John Tuturro, and Rosie Perez. The genius of Spike Lee’s film is that it pulls you in with an almost whimsy, then from out of nowhere, the action takes a dark turn and the grave reality of the neighborhood dysfunction rears its ugly head. Violence and destruction bulldoze through the final scenes of the film. You are left wondering whose side is right? Does everyone have a point? Is everyone partially right? Does violence ever solve anything? There’s very few inherently good folks or bad folks. Most of the characters are like the real world, complicatedly somewhere in-between. Which is why this film stays with you for days after and makes you ponder your own actions as you navigate the world. 5 out of 5 for one of my favorite directors. If you’ve already seen Do the Right Thing, consider revisiting it again or try one of the many other brilliant films from Mr. Lee’s oeuvre. My favorites include Crooklyn, He Got Game, Summer of Sam, Bamboozled, 25th Hour, and Inside Man.
The most recent incarnation of the classic tale of rising/falling star is already a trip back in time to the mid-70′s and a tour de force for Barbra Streisand. Streisand’s character Esther Hoffman gets plucked out of obscurity by bad boy rocker John Norman Howard played to perfection by Kris Kristofferson. The balance of Esther’s innocence to John Norman’s spiraling addictions and the stars’ obvious chemistry is what continues to make this remake work. And work it does. I had forgotten how much I listened to this soundtrack when I was in high school. I can still sing every song by heart. I cried when Evergreen came on and had chills when Esther takes the stage for the very first time to become a star. This is a classic tale of the perils and impermanence of stardom. Could this be remade a fourth time? Who would play the parts? The 1976 version was directed by Frank Pierson who went on to helm Ron Nyswaner’s (Philadelphia) Soldier’s Girl for Showtime. This is Streisand at her peak and essential viewing for anyone who loves music in film, doomed romance, or just wants to see another outstanding film from the 1970′s. 5 out of 5. Watch closely now.
