Gay, Lesbian, & Transgender Films at Ames Public Library
Today is 11/21/2008
And the Band Played On (DVD DRAMA AND) 140 min. 1993.
From 1978 when San Francisco gays began dying from a strange disease to the identification of the HIV virus, this is the story of the science, the investigation, and the political infighting of the scientific community that hampered early medical research. Starring Matthew Modine and Alan Alda as dueling epidemiologists, there are small, moving, performances by Richard Gere and Lily Tomlin.
Angels in America (DVD DRAMA ANG) 353 min. 2003.
In this six-part, made-for-television series, Tony Kushner adapted his political epic about the 1980s AIDS crisis. In Manhattan, Prior Walter tells his lover Lou that he is ill; Lou bolts. As disease and loneliness ravage Prior, guilt invades Lou. Attorney Joe Pitt is pushed by Roy Cohn toward a job at the Justice Department. Both Pitt and Cohn are in the closet. Pitt's wife Harper is strung out on Valium, aching to escape her marriage. An angel invites Prior to be a prophet in death, and he must choose.
Another Country (DVD DRAMA ANO) 90 min. 1984.
Based on the award-winning play by Julian Mitchell, this film explores the effect of British public school life in the 1930s on Guy Bennett (Rupert Everett) as his homosexuality and unwillingness to "play the game" turns him eastward towards communist Russia.
Before Night Falls (DVD DRAMA BEF) 133 min. 2000.
A look at the life of Cuban poet and novelist, Reinaldo Arenas (1943-1990), from his childhood in Oriente province to his death in New York City. Victimized by the Cuban government that banned his books and jailed him for a crime he didn’t commit, Reinaldo is persecuted in his stand against censorship and oppression. He flees to America, continuing to fight for personal expression and producing a stirring body of work. Featuring a dual performance by Johnny Depp, this is a tribute to the power of art... and one man’s passion for life.
Big Eden (DVD DRAMA BIG) 117 min. 2000.
New York artist Henry Hart returns to the town of his childhood to care for his grandfather. He must come to terms with his relationship to Dean Stewart, since high school the object of his unrequited love. But Pike Dexter, the Native-American owner of the general store, is falling in love with Henry. The townspeople conspire to bring Henry and Pike together.
Boys Don’t Cry (VIDEO DRAMA BOY) 118 min. 1999.
Hilary Swank stars in a film based on actual events. Brandon Teena is the popular new guy in a tiny Nebraska town. He charms the young women who have never met a more sensitive and considerate young man. Life is good for Brandon; however, he has forgotten to mention one important detail: he was actually born a woman. When his best friends make this discovery, Brandon's life is ripped apart by betrayal, humiliation, rape, and murder.
Brokeback Mountain (DVD DRAMA BRO) 134 min. 2005.
This 2005 Oscar winner for best picture is based on an Annie Proulx story. Set in 1963 Wyoming, Ennis and Jack work together herding sheep. What might have been uneventful turns into love, lust, and complications that will span nineteen years; through marriage, children, and the grip of societal confines and the expectations of what it is to be a man. At the center of the film are moving performances by Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal.
Broken Hearts Club (VIDEO COMEDY BRO) 94 min. 2000.
In West Hollywood, we meet Dennis, a photographer preparing for his twenty-eighth birthday. He laments, “I can't decide if my friends are the best or worse thing that ever happened to me.” They include Benji, the punkish innocent; Howie, a grad student; Cole, the actor; Patrick, the cynical quipster; and Taylor, resident drama queen. Providing sage advice and steady work is Jack, the patriarch whose restaurant is a haven for them all. When tragedy strikes, the friendships are tested. Stars John Mahoney, Zach Braff, and Dean Cain.
By Hook or By Crook (DVD DRAMA BY) 98 min. 2001.
Shy, a small-town butch with a messiah complex, heads to the city to a life of crime. She meets her match in Valentine, an adoptee searching for her birth-mother. The two lonely grifters join forces on a journey through the skid-row streets of San Francisco and learn the true meaning of poise under pressure and the importance of friendship.
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