The Breaking Glass Pictures DVD release of the 2018 Hong Kong drama "I Miss You When I See You" follows the pattern of similar gay-themed Breaking films. The sad global truth is that teen (and older) boys who like other boys have it rough much more often than living a fairy tale (no pun intended) that precedes their (often) happy ending.
The following YouTube video of a highly stylized trailer for "Miss" showcases the art-house quality of this film about an "its complicated" relationship.
"Miss" opens in the 1999 school year of adolescents Jamie and Kevin. The former is a popular well-adjusted kid, and the latter is an awkward loner. The proper context for their character and friendship is a less extreme (and even more homoerotic) version of Zack Morris and Screech Powers, who have high-school sleepovers, of "Saved by the Bell" fame.
Opening scenes revolve around Jamie sneaking out of class to meet Kevin in a boys' room stall apparently only to discuss the new book in a pulp fiction series. We also see that their classmate named Wong is a wang.
The action then moves ahead 12 years as Jamie travels to Australia to visit Kevin at the long-term residential facility where he lives due to his depression. This leads to a boys' night out that is a treat for both guys.
Unbeknownst to Jamie, his visit prompts Kevin to follow his friend back to Hong Kong. The two become co-workers at the tutorial center that Jamie owns and operates with former classmates. They also become roommates at the apartment of Jamie. The especially creepy behavior of Jamie in the apartment shows that he has fond memories of a tender moment that experiences interruptus soon before his high-school-era move to Australia.
The rest of the story is that Jamie apparently is fully converted as his present-day relationship with girlfriend Elaine indicates. However, female intuition and a valid reason for asking Jamie to either fish or cut bait creates tension. One aspect of this is the price that giving the heart what the heart wants can cost.
History also is starting to repeat itself in the form of Kevin increasingly bonding with a troubled male student, who openly admits to being hot for teacher. This leads a a very bizarre and uncomfortable sitch for characters and audience alike dinner for Kevin, Jamie, Elaine, and the student. A more sweet aspect of this is that the boy feels real love, rather than merely lust, for his "daddy."
The artistry of "Miss" continues with a relatively anti-climatic climax. There are no tears and recriminations; Jamie, who is facing Kevin moving back to Australia, seemingly ends up with the one with whom he is fated to share his life until someone younger and cuter comes along.
Time constraints are behind not watching the almost-always included and always insightful and entertaining "making-of" featurette and cast and crew interviews in Breaking releases. The good folks at Breaking must determine if this warrants the still-used Chinese punishment of a bare-bottom caning. If so, it requires learning how to say "please Sir, may I have another" in Mandarin.
Being a HUGE fan of the public and private personas of writer/director/monologist/activist/chihuahua-lover/son of a preacher man/righteous dude Del Shores of (reviewed) "Sordid Lives " fame provides a good perspective for sharing thoughts on the Breaking Glass Pictures DVD of the 2012 Shores one (awesome) man show "Del Shores: Sordid Confessions." One spoiler is that this hilarious nowhere-ready-for-primetime special is far raunchier than the other Shores performances, all of which are subjects of posts on this site, that are available on DVD.
Shores discussing in "Confessions" that he is observed mentally filing away a sordid tale during a lunch largely sums up his style. His material is funny because it tells the truth about what fools these white-trash mortals be. This is especially true as to the latest (reviewed) Shores project "Six Characters in Search of a Play."
A sincerity and a willingness to name names when warranted are another large part of the appeal of Shores. A prime example of this is a "Confession" about working with gorgeous young actor Randy Harrison during the tenure of Shores as a writer on the Showtime gay-themed drama "Queer As Folk."
Shores gives Harrison credit for being co-operative on the set but dishes about this thespian regularly publicly criticizing the writing on the series. Shores discussing the writers getting their revenge evokes thoughts of a QAF scene in which a nearly naked Harrison is drugged and placed in a sling during an orgy. The only personal criticism of Shores is that the writers do not have that incident lead to what should have been the inevitable conclusion.
The raunch element particularly comes out (no pun intended) as to Shores, who has two wonderful daughters with his compassionate ex-wife, discussing his "slut" period in the wake of his marriage to a sordid man who majorly dun him wrong. The highlight of this part of the show is the tale of taking a relationship with a man glacially slow from the gay perspective only to discover that this guy has a cringe-worthy defect that will prompt every gay viewer to immediately Google images of that condition.
Being the righteous dude that he is, Shores still tries to please this Mr. Right (as opposed to Mr. Right Now) despite the seeming impossibility of turning a corner.
Additional hilarity ensues as Shores confesses his macro and micro (no pun intended) fetish regarding short people as to whom he uses the non-pc term "midgets". The account of one such man with a long "third leg" but short temper provides additional entertainment regarding this topic.
The big picture this time goes back to the same era as the filming of "Confessions." A timely post on a DVD of a stand-up performance by British comedian Russell Brand SLAMS Brand for "sins" that include his act being an extended highly whiny therapy session as to which Brand not only saves the co-pay for that treatment but likely makes millions from folks who pay him to endure that almost unbearable catharsis.
Shores openly and constantly admits that his "Mama's Family" style upbringing has provided him a career. The difference between him and lesser performers is that he knows how to tell his Bible Belt tales in a way that both entertains and lets us feel his pain.
Breaking does its usual stellar job as to DVD extras. We get a "behind-the-scenes" feature that includes Shores showing his inner circle what comes between him and his Calvins. This bonus further provides an inspiration for December 7 birthday gifts.
A more "naughty" extra is footage of the photo shoot of the "Confessions" poster, which also is the DVD cover. This both allows hearing the beloved dogs of Shores and proves that he is hands-on regarding getting things right in a manner that makes one want to scream "me too".
Expert purveyors of thought-provoking documentaries Icarus Films and Bullfrog Films continue their long-standing beautiful friendship with the April 21, 2020 DVD release of the 2018 non-fiction movie "The Sequel." This one is a study of the life of futurist David Fleming. The Fleming opus "Lean Logic: A Dictionary for the Future and How to Survive It" is sadly relevant in this era in which it seems that COVID-19 ain't ever goin' nowhere.
The message of "Sequel" is similar to (reviewed) fellow recent Icraus Film "System Error." "Error" both studies capitalism and provides reason to think that the good run for that model is reaching its end.
Like all good documentaries, "Sequel" stars strong; crystal-clear images of earth from space soon lead to a group of students in an Ewok-caliber forest (sans redwoods) getting an awesome ecology lesson. A measuring tape is used to represent the history of the earth from its beginnings to the present; major events get a 25-words-or-less explanation, and our highly industrialized society is seen at the end of the tape (i.e., rope).
We next hear from friends, colleagues, and devotees of textbook academic Fleming. The Great Man himself also enlightens us about the entertaining story that leads to the writing of "Logic." There is no doubt that Fleming pours his heart into that tome.
The basic idea is that we need a sea change in an effort to stop the polar ice caps from flooding us and/or to prevent another plague-level disaster from making humans either extinct or an endangered species. Another way of stating this is it is the end of the world as we know it, and it is up to us as to whether we feel fine.
A segment on the failure of Greece to rebound from its massive economic downfall is a particularly impactful example. The images of modern-day poverty and the dismal statistics as to the lack of wealth of the nature seem to be what will soon be the case in America.
The bottom line is that modern events show that the guy who literally wrote the book on the subject is right; whether we heed is message may well be a matter of life or death.
The Virgil Films DVD release of the 2017 documentary "Maynard" joins the ranks of the numerous documentaries on prominent individuals in the Virgil catalog. Reviews of many of these can be found in the Virgil Films section of this site.
Watching the film shows the political star power of the talking heads and the incredible accomplishments of the subject. The notables who sing the praises of this guy who truly made a difference include Bill Clinton, Al Sharpton, and Jesse Jackson.
The story of Maynard arguably begins with grandfather John Wesley Dobbs, who was a high-ranking Mason. It also seems that his father, whose profession as a minister increases the impact of a traumatic event, is a strong influence on this first black mayor of Atlanta. This career politician literally being a boy genius who enrolls in college at 14 further helps set him on the road to success.
A common theme among family, friends, colleagues, and admirers is that Maynard does not hesitate to strive for greatness. This includes beginning his political career with a 1968 failed long-shot bid for Senate. We also hear how this goes over at home at a time early in his marriage.
Our story continues with Maynard becoming the Number 1 of the Atlanta mayor but not being a good company man. A subsequent challenge to the boss for the corner office does not do anything to endear our young lion to his employer.
The tenure of Maynard as mayor alone warrants a documentary if not a Hollywood biopic. We learn of the handling of a personality clash with the mayor and a related cheating scandal regarding a police exam. This is not to mention Maynard serving during the mass disappearances and killings of young black boys in his city.
On a more positive note, we see how Maynard leads the effort to expand the airport that now bears his name. Clinton and others discuss how this man uses his trademark tenacity to make this happen.
One of the more amusing stories relates to the means by which Maynard persuades banks to place black people on their boards of directors. This issue truly proves the golden rule within a couple of meanings of that phrase.
Of course, the surface message of "Maynard" is that the subject is a trailblazer. This includes successors discussing the challenges that any Atlanta mayor who cares faces. The deeper lessons are that everyone should be judged based on his or her merits and that JFK is right in extolling folks to do the right thing because it is hard.
The Breaking Glass Pictures DVD release of the 2018 gay-themed drama "Marilyn" joins the long list of docu-dramas that prove that you cannot make up this stuff. A "making-of" DVD special feature fully explains how fact and fiction merge in this tale of a teen boy whose interest in cross-dressing contributes to the woes of his hard-knock life.
The accolades for "Marilyn" include a "Best Feature Film" award at the 2018 Milan International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival.
The ways in which our titular teen (nee Marcos) is not like the other boys in his rural town begins with his caretaker father Carlos and his older brother doing most of the heavy lifting while Marcos spends much of time inside with his mother and dreams of taking computer classes.
Extremely blatant cattle rustlers already are making the demanding life of Carlos even more challenging when the arguable climax of the film occurs. Marcos fulfills his grandest desire by taking advantage of the anything goes Carnival spirit by having the time of his life attending that event dressed in drag. He obtains his titular nickname courtesy of a song to which he particularly shakes his groove thing.
The party fully ends with a foreshadowed confrontation by a local bully and his gang. Their brutal attack on Marcos is one of seemingly countless cases of boys who like boys being subject to unwarranted hostility, especially in small communities. Another sad aspect of this is that Marcos is relatively resigned to his fate until the pack fully asserts its dominance.
Marcos not returning home until the next morning further strains life back on the ranch, It also arguably sets up a downward spiral that leads to an extended reversal of fortune for the family.
The one bright spot for Marcos is mutual love at first sight regarding new friend with benefits and convenience Federico. Sadly, what should be a reasonable expectation for Marcos regarding the "meet the parents" moment does not go well. The arguable point here is that the timing of Marcos is not great regarding reminding his family about his not-so-embraced sexual orientation fresh off of that being a factor regarding the aforementioned stressful existence.
The final moments of "Marilyn" are very impactful and fully make the real story worthy of a film. It is tragic to see things get to the point that prompts Marcos to act as in the manner that he does, It truly should have been avoidable.
The always special Breaking DVD extra this time is a 30-minute making-of feature. It begins with clips of the film and the thoughts of director Martin Rodriguez Redondo. Redondo discusses how he learns of the story, why he does not tell the story in pure documentary form, and his efforts at authenticity.
We next hear from star Walter Rodriguez. An especially interesting aspect of that casting is Redondo commenting that he almost did not select Rodriguez to play Marcos because that actor gave an animated audition. A compelling aspect of the film is the numerous scenes in which a miserable Marcos and his equally unhappy family simply sit and stare without any expression on their faces.
The strongest endorsement of the film comes from the real Marilyn, who offers a wonderful perspective on the film.
All of this amounts to a well-produced and acted movie that speaks to most audience members either as a coming-of-age story, the tale of a rural gay teen having a very rough life, or a family on a fast ride to rock bottom.
Virgil Films contributes to its growing impressive non-fiction catalog (see "Virgil Films" section of this site) with the DVD release of the 2015 film "The Uncondemned." This documentary about three young Americans who are adequately woke to get involved in prosecuting a rape case in Rwanda adheres to the good documentary model of putting a human face on a larger story to teach viewers much more than we learn in news accounts.
The accolades for "Uncondemned" include a Social Justice award and a separate "Film of Conflict and Resolution" honor at the 2015 Hamptons International Film Festival.
The following YouTube clip of an "Uncondemned" trailer compellingly introduces both the human faces and the larger events.
Primary subject American attorney Pierre-Richard Propser promptly provides proper perspective. He recalls being aware of the genocide and the other atrocities in Rwanda in 1994 but seeing nothing but O.J. coverage on American newscasts. This compels this prosecutor to do a form of Peace Corps service by offering his services to the overwhelmed judicial system that is seeking to put the accuseds on trial for their charged offenses.
We similarly see recent law-school graduate Lisa Pruitt offer her services as an investigator, Her rude awakening in the form of an indication that no good deed goes unpunished fortunately is not the end of the story.
The human faces of the story also include the numerous women who very bravely volunteer to testify at the trial of a mayor who is facing war crime charges for his role in a series of rapes. Witness JJ steals the show for many reasons in addition to beer apparently being the only beverage that she drinks.
The O.J. element re-enters the film in the form of copious footage of the trial of the mayor. We see the same adversarial legal tactics and reversals for both sides that make "The Trial of the Century" so fascinating,
All of this ends with the verdict. The courtroom drama this time is that any outcome is noteworthy. A conviction clearly shows that the new sheriff in town will not let the sins of the recent past go unpunished. A finding of not guilty will show that justice massively has not prevailed.
