Queer Beacon

Cake (2005) - LightShed 9

This vehicle for Heather Graham was not that good. I would not recommend it. However, the portrayal of gays is pretty good. In the movie, Heather Graham is a travel writer, who has to suddenly handle her family’s magazine empire (particularly, a bride and wedding magazine). Her love interests are both Taye Diggs and David Sutcliffe (yeah, busy girl).

Our token gay here is played by Keram Malicki-Sánchez (never saw him before), Heather Graham’s flamboyant gay assistant, who, by the end of the movie is even able to write a story on equal marriage for the magazine. Additional kudos for the movie are granted for a scene in which Heather Graham asks David Sutcliffe to dance with a tranny, and he dances with her, a sensual, close dance. Very nice. Straight guy dancing with a tranny. No problem.

Again, chick flicks rule!

Prime (2005) - LightShed 9

Seriously. Who was that Bryan Greenberg? Can your performance be any worse in your acting debut? I doubt it.  People agree with moi.  NO, I mean, no chemistry with Uma Thurman whatsoever (even though both are very hot individually). The movie tells us the story of a 37 year old woman (Thurman) who falls for a 23 year old (Greenberg). Greenberg is jewish, Thurman is not. Thurman is in therapy with Greenberg’s mom, played by Meryl Streep. After you stop trying to figure out what the hell Streep was doing in that flop, you kind of actually find the movie a little (but just a little) on the cute side.

Our gay here is played by Zak Orth (he has played small roles in several movies, including Melinda and Melinda – I really like Woody Allen and I pay attention). Our gay is Thurman’s acquaintance and had sort of a crush on Greenberg (the baby face Thurman falls for). There are nice gay remarks, like the one said by Thurman when Greenberg wonders how nice it must be to be rich, and have a great house in the Hamptons, and Thurman says only rich gays have that good taste in a house. Cliché, but I’ll take it.

I have been totally into most chick flicks. They always contain a little positive gay reference, even if small. Yay!

Jarhead (2005) - Shipwreck 2

The movie tells us the story of Jake Gyllenhaal’s character, a soldier who bored us to a near death experience in a movie portraying a war in Iraq.  The 'frontal' nude scene would have needed a far, far, greater candor to keep us awake (you can catch a glimpse of his booty here). Having said that, the movie was actually ok, once you buy into the fact that the point of the movie was precisely to show us the boredom involved in that war. Jake Gyllenhaal’s performance was quite decent.

Being a U.S. army movie, you expect nothing but homophobia and narrow mindedness, and Jarhead delivers just that. There were a few homophobic remarks (“you fucking faggot” type). Very cliché. Very offensive.

Shame on the movie.

King Kong (2005) - No Gay Content

Nothing. No Kong on Kong action (but with good eye candies according to some -- I disagree).  Here, Jack Black is a movie director with an ambitious film project to be shot in a far away island.  Adrien Brody plays the script writer for the movie, and Naomi Watts plays the lead actress.  I did not expect the movie to be good, but it was.  Very good.  Go see it.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) - No Gay Content

Nada. The movie was good (I still think the previous one was the best though).  Here Harry enters puberty, there is a lot of focus on girls, popularity, the works.  The movie felt a bit like a reality show, but it was good nonetheless.  They have so much diversity in the movie (people from everywhere, there are Indians, Chinese everything), why can't they include a gay?  Go see it anyway.

Derailed (2005) - No Gay Content

Nada. The movie is decent, but not that good.  Here Clive Owen and Jennifer Aniston are both married (not to one another) and have an affair.  Frenchie Vincent Cassel starts to blackmail them with a French accent.  Rent it, but not right now.  You can wait for one of those days when there's not much else in the videostore.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) - LightShed 9

The movie marks Robert Downey Junior’s return to the movies and is co-stared by Val Kilmer and his gay gut. Downey is a small time crook fleeing from police when he bumps into a different life. Something related to a movie audition that he manages to pull out. I actually liked the movie a lot. Crazy. Good crazy.

Our gay here (and not a token gay as he is a major part of the movie and plot) is played by Kilmer. Our gay is nothing less than a private dick who is hired to coach Downey’s character into acting more detective-like for a movie role. The portrayal of the gays was remarkably positive, and Kilmer did a great job into using few stereotypes while making it clear he really was gay.

The movie did not get a perfect score because the one scene where our gay would actually get some action (Kilmer kisses Downey to make the police go away and not see Downey’s criminal face) is followed by a “eww” type reaction from Downey, like he was disgusted for having been kissed by Kilmer.

But there are lots of nice scenes for the gays, especially when Kilmer calls Downey a fag-hag toward the end of the movie. Kudos!