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DVD The Celluloid Closet (Special Edition)
Author Armistead Maupin (Tales of the City) wrote Lily Tomlin's narration for this superb documentary, based on a book by the late Vito Russo, about Hollywood's treatment of homosexual characters in the 20th century. Never pointing a finger at anyone in the film community, The Celluloid Closet presents clips from more than 100 mainstream features (including The Children's Hour, Advise and Consent, The Boys in the Band, and The Hunger) that speak loudly in their respective images of gays and lesbians. The film makes a persuasive case for patterns of sexual mythology in Hollywood, such as presenting homosexuals repeatedly as tragic, helpless figures redeemed only through death or as back-street monsters cavorting in the shadows. Things change, of course, and clips from more recent films by gay and lesbian filmmakers suggest a more vital, diverse, autobiographical approach. There are lots of great interviews with screenwriters (Gore Vidal), filmmakers (John Schlesinger), actors (Tom Hanks, Whoopi Goldberg), and others to enunciate the major themes. --Tom Keogh
Review(s): DVD The Celluloid Closet (Special Edition)
"Can we just not hate ourselves as much?"
This remarkable 1966 documentary addresses the portrayal of homosexuals in film, from the silent movies to the 1990"s, narrated by Lily Tomlin, with commentary by Whoopi Goldberg, Armistead Maupin (Tales of the City),Antonio Fargas, Barry Sandler and others. Many of the early black and white films, silent or talkie, featured comic scenes, two men or women spinning out onto the dance floor, a cowboy kissing his best friend, or partner, goodbye before he expires, the little woman looking on with approbation. There is a somewhat tacit agreement that all is not what it may appear on film.
Some of the first films to deal directly with the issue of sexual preference, did so with fear and loathing, a shame that is palpable in Lillian Hellman's "The Children's Hour" (1961) and "Advise and Consent" (1962). "The Boys in the Band" (1971) was one of the first films to openly discuss the lifestyle, an all male cast uttering scathing remarks about the realities of their world and the sources of their discontent. In contrast, "Cabaret" (1972) allowed acceptance and a degree of comfort with different preferences, Liza Minelli perfectly content in her role as foil. Screenwriter Barry Sandler, speaks about the acceptable negative language used in film when dealing with homosexuality, the phrases spoken with a sardonic twist, as well as the acceptable slang. There is one hitchhiking scene in "The Vanishing Point" (1971), where two men wait for a ride from a passing driver. The men exhibit all the stereotypes, language, dress and affectations and are quickly dispensed with by a macho hero.
1981 brought Pacino's "Cruising", turning the homosexual from victim to victimizer. In 1982's "Making Love", a story of two men, David Melnick says the audience left in droves during the love scene, unwilling to watch the scene play out. But "Personal Best" (1982) showed that romance between two women was more palatable to American audiences. Susan Sarandon and Catherine Deneuve played female lovers in "The Hunger" (1983), with soft-focus lenses and drifting veils; Sarandon doesn't think the film was ever taken seriously by the public. By the late 80's we had "The Color Purple" (1985) and "Torch Song Trilogy" (1988), followed by 1993's "The Wedding Singer", all featuring same sex romances.
One groundbreaking film is highlighted, "Philadelphia", which truly humanizes the plight of a gay lawyer with AIDS. This character (played by high box office draw Tom Hanks) exemplifies good citizenship, a man in a committed relationship, a functioning part of society, but taken down by an epidemic too long ignored because of the original population it affected. Ron Nyswanger hoped "Philadelphia" would broaden the public's perspective of the disease and its cost to all of society. And Tom Hanks remarks, "Love is spelled with the same four letters." Armistead Maupin believes that there is still a censorship of "real images", as movie characters are forced from the real and heroic to the "bizarre, guilt-ridden and angry". Produced and directed by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman, this film is a thought-provoking examination of sexual identity in American film, reflecting the cultural attitudes of each decade, the positive dialog still defined by the language of the bottom line. Luan Gaines/ 2005.
A bit outdated but good
"The Celluloid Closet" is based on the Vito Russell book. The documentary discusses the roles of gays and lesbians in Hollywood. Lily Tomlin narrates the documentary. I came across this film by accident and thought it was interesting to check out.
Overall, I was fascinated by they way Hollywood has treated homosexuality in their films going all the way back to the 1930s. Originally Hollywood couldn't even mention the word 'gay' without the film being censored but through out the years, little by little, gay and lesbian characters became more prominent in films. A lot of it not necessarily good with films like "Crusing" or even "Basic Instinct" which gives gays and lesbians that horrible image of being serial killers or that tragic characters that weren't meant to lead a long life on earth.
The film clips were my favorite. I loved seeing and hearing about the homosexual undertones in films such as "Spartacus" and "Some Like It Hot". I always thought that the gym scene in "Gentleman Always Prefers Blonde" was a bit on the homoerotic side, I was glad to see that was mentioned in the documentary.
After ten years, "The Celluloid Closet" is a bit dated because now gay and lesbian characaters have become more predominant in Hollywood and in a good way with shows like "Ellen", "Will and Grace", "Queer As Folk", and "The L Word". Also at the time of this documentary Lily Tomlin had yet to come out of the proverbial closet. Nevertheless the documentary still holds up pretty well because gays and lesbians still have a long way to go in Hollywood whether as characters or as actors.
Great film but the narrator mars the experience
The book Celluloid Closet is a favorite of mine, and the film would be one as well except that even now, years after it was made, the knowledge that Tomlin was closeted herself when she did the narration makes it hard to watch.
The ironies and hypocrisies in using Tomlin are a little distracting. They add a second layer of meaning to the narration that is a little sour.
Related DVD's The Celluloid Closet (Special Edition)
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