I love finding little gems in my search for things to write for AfterEllen.com. How About You is a perfect example. How did I miss advance notice of a Vanessa Redgrave film?

How About You is an Irish comedy set in an upscale retirement home. Four of the residents (played by Redgrave, Brenda Fricker, Imelda Staunton and Joss Ackland) are so grumpy and demanding that they are the lone residents stuck in the home for the Christmas holidays.

The owner of the facility leaves her younger sister Ellie (Hayley Atwell) in charge, much to the chagrin of all involved. … continue reading

Dee Rees, the out writer/director who brought us the award-winning short film Pariah, is one of 12 finalists for the 2009 Sundance/NHK International Filmmakers Award.

Dee Rees 

photo credit: Fred Hayes

One recipient each from Europe, Latin America, the United States, and Japan will be selected by members of an international jury to receive a cash prize of $10,000 and a guarantee from NHK to purchase the Japanese television broadcast rights upon completion of their project. The winners will be announced on Jan. 22, 2009 at the Sundance/NHK International Filmmakers Award reception at the Sundance Film Festival.

Pariah is a coming-of-age story about an African-American lesbian teen who struggles with her sexual orientation in the face of a conservative family. The film has already won awards at Outfest, the Chicago International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, and The San Francisco International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. Rees originally wrote Pariah as a feature length, semi-autobiographical piece, and she is, along with her partner and Pariah producer Nekisa Cooper, currently working to make it into a feature film.

She recently told AfterEllen.com, “It’s such a huge honor to be included as a NHK finalist and I’m just completely blown away. The Sundance Institute has been more than generous with us and their support has been so critical in making Pariah the best that it can be and getting it out into the world." … continue reading

In real life, she's an actress, supermodel, fashion designer and singer. On screen, she's played Joan of Arc,

a genetically enhanced zombie-killer,

and a Fifth Element.

What challenge could there possibly be left to tackle? … continue reading

Could there really be hope that Lesbian Vampire Killers will be more funny than offensive? I'm holding out for it, especially after ShockTillYouDrop.com came away with a positive experience after viewing the promo reel at the American Film Market this week.

Alas, because the film is still in post-production, sales rep AV Pictures Ltd. didn't have complete product to show, but they did have a preview reel. And it looked great.

Until we get to see a trailer or a peak at the promo reel ourselves, we'll just have to continue wondering about the quality of the film based on one singular photo, which does not appear to feature any of the lesbians or vampires, or lesbian vampires.

(From L to R: Mathew Horne, James Corden, Paul McGann and Myanna Buring)
… continue reading

This summer, some friends on a Rosie cruise sent me a text early on the first day.

“Guess who we just met in the bathroom?”

“Rosie? Kelli? Julie Goldman? That chick from Annie?”

“Sharon Gless.”

“Wait. She’s not gay.”

“I don’t think she cares.”

And that, friends, is exactly why we love Sharon Gless.

Gless is a lesbian icon. From Cagney & Lacey days, when all of us had slash-fiction fantasies whether we wrote them down or not, through playing Michael’s mom Deb on Queer as Folk, to her latest turn as the annoying-but-lovable Madeline on Burn Notice, whenever Sharon Gless is on a show, lesbians are watching. … continue reading

She may have moved to Los Angeles, but she's still an Aussie, through and through. Bisexual singer Missy Higgins is award-winning in her homeland, where she's maintained a successful musical career since she was 18 years old. Now she can add "film actress" to her résumé, as she's been cast alongside Oscar-winner Geoffrey Rush in the new film Bran Nue Dae.

… continue reading

The movie is an adaptation of a hit musical of the same name, and will begin shooting this Friday. Higgins has never acted before, and told an Australian newspaper she is a bit "terrified."

This opportunity felt like something I just couldn't pass up on. I feel very honored to be working alongside such an incredible cast and crew and I know it's going to be a lot of fun.

With the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince still more than eight months away, fans are searching for a patience spell until the movie finally starts showing in a theater near you. Over the weekend, the international teaser trailer gave Muggles everywhere a taste to help tide them over. So go ahead and put away the wand, Hermione. Maybe we'll be able to hold out until July without using magic.

… continue reading

The best testament to Michelle Williams' acting ability may be that I had to look up her character’s name from Dawson’s Creek. It was Jen — Jen Lindley.

Williams broke out of the teenage bad-girl role fairly quickly when she was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress role for Brokeback Mountain. Her performance was heart wrenching.

While her talent took a temporary back seat to her relationship with Heath Ledger in the wake of his death, independent film Wendy and Lucy promises to remind us why she got that Oscar nomination.

Williams plays Wendy Carroll, an unemployed woman who heads to Alaska with her dog Lucy in hopes of finding a good job at the Northwestern Fish cannery. Since she has no money, Wendy travels and lives in her worn-out Honda until it breaks down and Lucy disappears. … continue reading

Talk about your truth in advertising. The poster for the new lesbian film I Can't Think Straight indeed has just that effect on a gal. Hello.

International filmmaker and novelist Shamim Sarif, who previously wrote and directed the lesbian drama The World Unseen, helms this story of two women from different backgrounds who fall in love and then must reconcile their relationship with traditional expectations. Lisa Ray (The World Unseen and Water) and Sheetal Sheth (also from The World Unseen and Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World) play the opposites who attract — and do so quite attractively, I might add.

Lisa Ray and Sheetal Sheth

Lisa is Tala, a London-based Palestinian, who is getting ready for her elaborate wedding in Jordan when she meets Sheetal's Leyla, a young British Indian woman. Tala is Christian, Leyla is Muslim. Tala is outgoing, Leyla is shy. You can see where this is going. And if not, let the new trailer explain. … continue reading

The most frequently spotted lesbian in show business isn't Lindsay Lohan — it's in-demand, workaholic actor, Jane Lynch.

According to imdb.com, Lynch's new film, Spring Breakdown, which also stars Amy Poehler, Rachel Dratch and Parker Posey, is due out this month.

Spring Breakdown is not your typical co-eds in bikinis kegger. Poehler, Dratch and Posey play thirty-something dork friends who never had their cool moment in the sun. When one of them is sent to keep an eye on her boss's (Lynch as a conservative Senator) daughter during spring break, the trio decides it's never too late to have a misspent youth.

Or, a prolonged one. (When mine is over, I'll let you know.) Amy, Rachel, Parker and Jane. It's almost too much funny. And yet, the film is going straight to DVD, and not to a theater near you. … continue reading

What's in a name? Well, if you're a movie, your title can mean box-office gold or puzzled looks from people standing in line at the local multiplex.

Titles like Bitch Slap and Lesbian Vampire Killers, coming soon to a theater near you, make me crave popcorn and Raisinets, while others either evoke no reaction or leave me wondering what the hell the film is about. Operation Dumbo Drop sounds like another flawed plan from the Bush administration; 3:10 to Yuma is a bus schedule, as far as I'm concerned; I don't know Gigli, nor do I think I want to, and don't get me started on Free Willy.

Meanwhile, self-explanation is a good thing. Lesbian Vampire Killers tells me all I need to know and now has a new tag line: "What more could you possibly want?"

Well, let's see. How about Naked Lesbian Vampire Killers? Or Naked Lesbian Vampire Killers With Enormous Breasts? Or Naked Lesbian Vampire Killers With Enormous Breasts Who Dig Writers?

The film, which is due out March 2009, focuses on two hapless guys trapped in a Welsh town where all the women folk are under the thrall of a vampire curse. Apparently, there's a male sacrifice on the moors and a pack of evil lesbian vampires. There is a God. … continue reading

Beyoncé was born and bred to be a star. She's managed to emerge from being one-fourth (and, later, one-third) of Destiny's Child to be a household name (the "Knowles" isn't even necessary). It's not just because of her music, though: Beyoncé has crossed over into films, and since her turn as Foxy Cleopatra in Austin Powers 3, her movies have come to utilize both her musical and acting talents. Her new role is no exception, as she's signed on to star in the biopic as Eartha Kitt, the legendary vocalist.

Having recently played the Diana Ross-based character in the film adaptation of Dreamgirls, it seems Beyoncé's singing skills are just as (if not more) important when it comes to her casting (see: Carmen: A Hip-Hopera, The Fighting Temptations and the upcoming Cadillac Records, in which she plays Etta James). … continue reading

Movies with two female leads are rare. Movies with two female leads in which they aren’t fighting over a man are rarer still. And movies with two female leads in which they aren’t fighting over a man and are under the age of 50 are the rarest of all. So it was with this kind of Halley's Comet anticipation that I watched the new trailer for Sunshine Cleaning featuring Amy Adams and Emily Blunt. I was not disappointed.

The film, from the producers of Little Miss Sunshine (find a word that works and stick with it, I guess), is a sometimes comedic, sometimes dramatic look at two sisters — single mom Rose (Amy) and her slacker sister Norah (Emily) — who start a crime-scene cleanup business together to make money. Alan Arkin (another hold-over from Little Miss Sunshine) plays the sisters’ father.

While the set-up may sound a bit grim, the trailer left me smiling. … continue reading

From the Queen of Mean Regina George, to the saucy 1940’s beauty Allie Hamilton, Rachel McAdams is an actress who can generally get me to watch just about anything — even a Rob Schneider movie.

But when I read about her latest release, The Lucky Ones, I worried it would fall into the slew of weird Iraq War movies popping up recently (with really awful, new-metal soundtracks). After watching the trailer, though (which fortunately features a Sarah McLachlan song rather than Kid Rock), I found myself actually wanting to check it out.

McAdams joins a cast including Tim Robbins and Michael Peña as Colee, an injured Iraq War vet heading to Las Vegas to return her boyfriend’s guitar to his family after he dies in the war. She ends up in an impromptu road trip across the country with two strangers, as they all realize that, despite their injuries and absence, the world has gone on without them. … continue reading