Recently in Greg's Reviews Category

The ArcLight in Hollywood had a midnight showing of "Milk" which I attended with friends.The movie is superb and I'm just going to say it right here and now: Sean Penn will win a well-deserved second Academy Award for best actor for his astounding performance as Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California.

Penn is so good that I forgot it was Penn and that's not an easy thing to do. It was just Harvey up there on that screen, cheerful but determined, fighting for equal rights and leaving his mark on this world. Penn gives himself fully over to the role complete with mannerisms that never seem like caricature.

You cannot watch this movie, splendidly directed by Gus Van Sant and so well-written by Dustin Lance Black, and not feel an entire additional layer of emotion over the recent passage of Proposition 8. You can't. There are so many similarities to what was happening thirty years ago. It made me feel sick, as I sat there in the theater, to know that some people - many people - are still so intent on denying gays and lesbians their full equal rights. I hope people - in fact, every person who voted in favor of Prop. 8 - can learn from this film and if they see themselves in it, realize how shameful the entire measure was and is.

Okay, back to the film. Penn is a revelation but there is so much more going on here that makes this a great movie. James Franco as his lover is just perfect and the two actors do not shy away from the physical part of the relationship - no hesitation. Franco and Penn have wonderful chemistry from the moment they meet in a stairwell and Harvey says to him something flirty like: "You can't let me spend my birthday alone."

Emile Hirsch, robbed of an Oscar nomination last year for the Penn-directed "Into the Wild" may just get his due this year for his performance as Cleve Jones. Also, Diego Luna is just heartbreaking as Milk's last lover.

And then there is the amazing Josh Brolin. He alone made "W" worth watching (I caught it in Palm Springs last week) but as rival supervisor - and eventual assassin Dan White - Brolin does more with the role than I think most actors could have. In what screen time he has, he makes White a full character and not just the bad guy.

As for Harvey Milk, what a life worth telling on the screen - finally!

What a man who, at 40, realizes he's settled and hasn't done anything significant with his life. That changed in the next eight years of his life as he leaves New York and his job as an insurance executive for San Francisco. He then goes from local businessman in the Castro to political activist and finally, member of the board of supervisors.

Van Sant seamlessly weaves in actual footage from the 70s in San Francisco and new footage of Anita Bryant and other gay foes. I personally am quite pleased to see the horrible legacy of Anita Bryant up there on that screen. I was a gay kid who watched her in all those orange juice commercials and thought she was so beautiful. But inside, she was really quite ugly and this film reminds us of that.

A standing ovation to the director for his best work yet, to the writer for such a superbly-researched script, to the actors for giving themselves so completely to their roles, and to all involved for creating what I think is the best movie of the year.

Go, See. "Milk."

"
Breakfast With Scot" opens in theaters today after enjoying a successful film festival run. I first saw it back in Palm Springs back in January, long before Sarah Palin and all this hockey mom business started. You could say, I guess, that this is a movie about two hockey dad. But it's so much more.

Here is an encore run of my review of this wonderful film:

There are many movies on my agenda this weekend during the final days of the Palm Springs International Film Festival. Last night, I got into town just in time to see "Breakfast With Scot' which stars Ben Shenkman and my bigtime crush Tom Cavanaugh whose big blue eyes and sexy lips are made for the big screen.

They play a couple whose lives are turned upside down when Shenkman's nephew comes to live with them. The kid makes Justin on "Ugly Betty" seem butch. And that's the point of the film. Cavanaugh's character is a closeted former NHL star-turned sportscaster whose internalized homophobia leads to him trying to make the boy (perfectly played by Noah Bennett) into a hockey player instead of a jewelry and make-up wearing kid who favors colorful boas and singing Christmas songs in October.
This is a comedy and a good one. But it also has so much heart and it does such a wonderful job of addressing this whole issue of what to do with a sissy kid. Do you encourage the kid's true nature or try and make a man out of him? Cavanaugh's Sam thinks he's doing what's best but learns a lot of lessons - mostly about himself along the way.

Director Laurie Lynd appeared after the screening and told us that the film has had difficulty finding a distributor and is likely to go straight to DVD. I just hope it will be seen. How is so much absolute garbage distributed and a gem like this not is just a big mystery to me. It even had the blessing of the National Hockey League's Maple Leaves who allowed their team name etc. to be used in the movie.

Lynd said the film absolutely could not have worked without the performance of Bennett who beat out hundreds of kids for the role of the nephew. He is the heart of the film and the scenes he shares with Cavanaugh are enough to make a grown man cry.

Keep your eyes open for "Breakfast With Scot."

Related posts:
-- My interview with Tom Cavanaugh...
-- Chatting up Ben Shenkman of "Breakfast With Scot"
-- Video: Check out the new trailer for "Breakfast With Scot"--

Left the newsroom a little early to catch a 4:40 p.m. showing of "The Women." I loved the original movie but knew going in (I read the reviews) that this redo was not gonna be a classic.

I didn't hate it, didn't love it. Was kinda right down the middle.

Things I liked:
Annette Benning. Any movie with her is worth watching because she is one of our best actresses. She is terrific as Meg Ryan's magazine editor best friend and looks great in the designer clothes. The main quibble I have is no fault of Annette's. The script has her and Meg as best friends since college and Annette is clearly older by, it looks like, about 10 years. She is a very attractive non-Botoxed woman, but she's not in her early 40s anymore and can't pull it off without better lighting.

Meg Ryan. I thought I didn't like her anymore because of that trout mouth thing but I'm over it. She had to have those awful curls in the first half of the flick then does a makeover and looks terrific (and far younger than Benning. Sorry).She makes the most of the part but is limited by the script. Still, she's as watchable as she ever was and it's good to see her front-and-center again.

Supporting Actresses: Oh man, it is a glorious thing. The great Cloris Leachman is Meg's housekeeper and has some of the best laughs in the movie. Cloris is never bad, is always good but when she gets a terrific movie part like this or the one in "Spanglish," she nails the hell out of it. Then there is Candice Bergen as Meg's mom. Remember, they played mother and daughter in 1981's "Rich and Famous," Meg's first movie! Candice is perfect, perfect, perfect in a part that is perfect for her. And finally, there is Bette Midler who has about five minutes of screen time and is an absolute hoot! Watch for the scene where she pretends to be helping get a canoe into the lake. Also strong is Debi Mazar as the manicurist with a big mouth.

Things I did not like:
Debra Messing. An awful role and an awful performance. Beyond annoying and not at all believable. Belonged in a sitcom.

Jada Pinkett Smith. Love Jada but the role is crap! She's a lesbian so that's cool and I like when she is openly lusting after the hot girls (including Eva Mendes as the woman sleeping with Meg's hubby). But Jada is absolutely given nothing to do and in the climactic scene where Debra is giving birth to yet another baby, it shows that comedy is not Pinkett's forte.

Here's is the trailer:

Let's just get this out of the way: I am a huge Emma Thompson fan ...huge. So her presence in "Brideshead Revisited"{ was alone worth the price of admission. I also am quite fond of leading man Matthew Goode.

I've seen the classic TV miniseries adaptation of Evelyn Waugh's novel which starred Jeremy Irons and Anthony Andrews and and this movie version just doesn't compare. So much of the material had to be compressed to feature-length 135-minutes. And yet, it still seemed to drag on a bit in a way that the miniseries never did.

The drama, set in pre-WWII, tells the story of Charles Ryder (Goode) who becomes entranced with the Marchmain family and their grand estate, Brideshead. He becomes close to gay schoolmate Sebastian (Ben Whishaw) who is in love with him. But Charles falls in love with Sebastian's sister Julia (Hayley Atwell) and it all goes downhill - for the brother - from there.

Sebastian is initially so charming and fun and the two men have idyllic times together in what is a very romantic, but non-sexual, friendship. But Sebastian is an alcoholic whose Catholic mother (Thompson) pushes all his buttons to make him feel guilty and self-loathing. To see him become so destructive because of his broken heart and his domineering mother is sad and it made me feel badly. It reminded me of the days when all movies with gay characters ended tragically and I don't so much enjoy being taken there anymore.

But that's the novel, that's the story. Once Sebastian is all but out of the story and it focuses on Charlies and Julia, I kinda lost interest. I missed Sebastian's spirit even though Atwell and Goode are very appealing in their roles.

Out of four stars, I give "Brideshead" 2.5 stars. (**1/2)

Here is the film's trailer:

I've seen it! I loved it!

To have Carrie, Charlotte, Miranda and especially Samantha back in my life for two hours was just glorious. Went to a screening of "Sex and the City" last night in Hollywood and the excitement inside the ArcLight Theater was palpable. Once the lights went down and the music started, people cheered. And the movie hadn't even started yet!

I like that in the opening, each character is updated in a recap so that if you aren't familiar with the series, you can still see the flick and not be lost. It's probably for all those poor straight guys being dragged along by their girlfriends I guess because the women and the gay guys don't need any kind of recap!

It's all here: the clothes, the hair, the brunches, the puns ("I have to get over my Mexi-coma") the frank talk about sex, the Cosmos! I'm glad they waited four years to make the movie because it made me miss these girls and gave me time to get to know them better through the TBS reruns and the DVDs. Kim Cattrall, who is sublime as Samantha, was the holdout on an earlier planned film. She is worth waiting for. Everytime she is on screen, you know you are in for some fun. My favorite line in the entire movie was one she delivers to an unwaxed bikini-clad Miranda: "I could be on death row and not have that (wave of the hand to her unkept crotch area) ...situation."

There is bigtime Carrie and Mr. Big drama. Did you think we were through with that? It gives star Sarah Jessica Parker a chance to really do some terrific acting. She is first-rate and her Carrie Bradshaw is as interesting and wonderful as ever

The chemistry between Parker, Catrall, Cynthia Nixon (Miranda) and Kristin Davis (Charlotte) is as great as it ever was and it is a blast to be in their company once again. Please, please, please make an other one!.

As far as the other actors: Chris Noth is right at home as Mr. Big and he is terrific. The character has grown and made it easier to understand why Carrie would end up with him and not the wonderful Aiden (that character not in the movie). I won't spoil things and tell you whether Carrie and Big get married or not!

All the other familiar faces are on hand with Dave Eigenberg as Miranda's husband, Steve, and Jason Lewis and Samantha's man, Smith, getting the most screentime. The interesting thing is that since the series ended four years ago,Dave has became hotter than Jason! Somebody has been working out, so much so that he gets a naked rear-end shot and it is mighty fine. Mario Cantone is, of course Carrie's wedding planner and he makes the most of his screentime with delicious delivery of every line, His character seems a tad more mellow though and, I think, is now dating Stanford (Willie Garson).

The friend I took to the movie thought Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson was just awful as Carrie's assistant. I thought she was OK and was happy to see her on-screen again. The part wasn't exactly Effie in "Dreamgirls." I thought she was kinda sweet in the movie.

Anyway, go see it. You will love it.

What a great time at Outfest yesterday. That was, until I backed into a cement pillar in the parking garage as I was leaving the Director's Guild of America Theatre in West Hollywood. I wiull admit this to you: I had just finished gabbing with Matthew Rhys before heading to my car. I sat down and thought: "Could this day BE any better? An interview with Mario Lopez this morning and now Matthew Rhys at night?" Wow...BAM!!!! Backed right into it. My bumper had a crack but mostly, it scared the @#%* outa me.
But, I digress. This post is supposed to be about the screening of "Love and Other Disasters," a damned entertaining film starring Rhys, Brittany Murphy, Santiago Cabrera and Catherine Tate.
It is a gem, a movie that I think could do well commercially if it can get a distributor which I'm sure it will. It includes a hilarious scene featuring cameos by Gwyneth Paltrow and Orlando Bloom and is well-written and well-directed by Alek Keshishian and wonderfully acted.
Catherine Tate steals nearly every scene she's in as Talullah, the chain-smoking, alcohol guzzling, hashish brownie eating friend who's most stable relationship is with a creep from the phone company who is stalking her. And Michael Lerner, as a Harvey Weinstein like character, is a scream. The audience laughed at him and Tate and others...a lot. And they clapped at certain lines like when a hunky male photographer (Santiago Cabrera), who upstaged his older boss at a photo shoot, was asked by a Vogue editor what he thought of "All About Eve" because she considered him an Eve Harrington in male clothing: "I found it silly actually. The idea that Bette Davis could be the victim of anyone is absurd."
Rhys and Murphy play Peter and Jacks, a kind of Will & Grace type if pair (only they aren't annoying) who live together and work in London and navigate dysfunctional love lives. Jacks tries to set him up with a gorgeous guy (Cabrera) who she's sure is gay, but who really isn't and is in love with her. She's got a boyfriend she's broken up with but still sleeps with out of habit, and Peter's the kind of person who bumps into a hot guy in a hotel lobby and decides he is the love of his life...even though they have never met.
"I've never actually had a relationship...except in my head," he tells her as they watch "Breakfast at Tiffany's" together for the umpteenth time. He is despondent because he finds out hotel lobby guy has moved to NYC.
She tells him: I don't think it's healthy for you to have a long-distance relationship with someone you've never met."

Let me say this: Murphy, whose character worships Audrey Hepburn and styles herself after the 60s icon, is the heart of the film and she is dazzling. Her shaky English accent is explained away by saying her character was born in England but raised in the U.S. from the age of 5. Her chemistry with Rhys and Cabrera is terrific and in the end, the film's message is that love isn't like it is in the movies: "It's a process and not an event."
The film was shot on a budget of $9 million two years ago. The director told the Outfest audience about what a tough time he had casting the role of Jacks until he saw Murphy read: "She seemed to embody the character immediately...when Matthew's audition came in on tape, I was literally like 'He's Peter!' Of course he was really busy so I had to push the entire movie for him...but he was worth it."
I'll say.

I've been watching many Outfest 2007 screeners in recent days in anticipation of the LA gay and lesbian film festival which opens tomorrow. So far, my faves have included "The Curiosity of Chance," "East Side Story," "Back Soon," and "25 Percent" but the best of the bunch, so far, is "Shelter."

Written and directed by Jonah Markowitz, "Shelter" is a film that is ripe with commercial possibilities due to its superior production quality and first-rate performances by its cast. It's also written so well and has so much believable interaction between its characters. No false notes here. And then there are the surfing scenes which are terrific. Markowitz is making his directorial debut but he did supervise the surfing footage in "Blue Crush," the female surfing movie from 4-5 years back starring Kate Bosworth and Michelle Rodriguez.
The movie is set in San Pedro and follows two guys who fall for each other while doing what they love most: surfing. The younger guy is a frustrated artist named Zach - sensationally played by Trevor Wright - who is still struggling with his sexuality but begins to come out when he falls in love with his best friend's older brother Shaun, played by Brad Row of "Billy's Hollywood Screen Test" fame.
The two actors play the emotional scenes so well and they got for it in the love scenes as well. Clothes are shed, kisses are shared and they try and weather the rocky road ahead. Zach is a father figure to his adorable young nephew Cody, loves him so much, and is a crucial presence in his life since Cody's mother (Zach's sister) is a mess who constantly makes her brother choose between his family and his dreams.
I also enjoyed the performance of Ross Thomas (pictured, right), who plays Shaun's understanding younger brother, Gabe. Gabe has no reservations about his older brother's sexuality and the scene where he tells Zach that he is aware of the relationship is very tender. Zach is embarassed and doesn't want to talk about it but Gabe insists and in his goofy way, is the best friend you'd ever want to have. As he leaves to go back to college, he hugs Zach tight and says, "We're still bros, right?"
Markowitz wrote the screenplay for "Shelter" four years ago while staying with a friend in Seattle and shot the movie in three weeks. When I think of all the garbage out there that has so much time and money behind it, it's so wonderful to know that such good movies can be made with far less when you have someone behind it with vision and immense talent.
I promise you that "Shelter" will be one of the best films you see at Outfest 2007. It is the festival's dramatic centerpiece on Wednesday, July 18 at the Ford Ampitheatre.

Before I forget, as I walked out of the Arclight Theatre in Hollywood last night, Matthew Perry walked right past me. I had just posted about him a few hours earlier because TMZ had posted side-by-side picks of Perry and Matthew McConaughey jogging and Perry looked pasty and puffy and I defended him. So, I decided to turn around and check him out as he walked into the theater and, well, he is quite portly these days. Guess that's why he's jogging! But the hair was perfect as was that handsome face.
So, I was was at the ArcLight to see "Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix." I have loved every single "Potter" movie so I was quite excited about the fifth in the franchise. It didn't let me down. Loved it! While I miss the lighter moments that the previous films had, this film had a good story, moved along briskly and by this time, the cast inhabits their roles expertly.
The film follows the struggles Harry (Daniel Radcliff) is having as he tries to alert the wizard world about the return of He Who Shall Not be Named — the dark wizard Lord Voldemort. But complicating matters terribly is a real bitch named Dolores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton) who is senior undersecretary to the minister and begins teaching at the school. Staunton is just deliciously wicked in the role and more than makes up for the mere cameo roles given in this film to Oscar winners Maggie Smith and Emma Thompson.
Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) and Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) are back as Harry's best friends and the three become the leaders of Dumbledore's Army, a secret school organization designed to teach Hogwarts students practical defense against the dark arts after the curriculum at the ancient school is restricted and much of the staff fired. The trio of Harry, Hermione and Ron are growing up and since they have been the leads in all the "Potter" films, you feel like you are seeing them grow up...and you are! I really loved a new castmember, Evanna Lynch, who plays the eccentric Luna Lovegood. She is very odd but so irresistable.
I really missed seeing a spirited game of of Quidditch which is always a highlight for me in a "Potter" film but this is the darkest movie in the series yet so there is no time for fun and games. But there is time for Harry to get a kiss under the missle toe and to battle evil forces and to prove himself a hero once again.
The film opens on Wednesday and if you are a fan of the series, GO!