Kate Davis Movies

Filmmakers Kate Davis and David Heilbroner team up to explore the Stonewall riots, an event that served as a sharp turning point for gay rights in the United States. The setting was a Greenwich Village gay bar called the Stonewall Inn; the date was June 28, 1969. It was a time when homosexuality was still seen as a dangerous mental illness, and raids on gay gathering spots were commonplace. When New York City police raided the Mafia-run establishment, they figured the patrons could be herded into paddy wagons without a fight -- they were wrong. Over the course of the next three days, gay protestors clashed with police in an uprising that made headlines across the world. In this film, participants from both sides of the conflict offer firsthand testimony about the social climate of the era and the riots that sparked a revolution. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Filmmakers Kate Davis, David Heilbroner, and Franco Sacchi aim to clarify the abstruse relationship between Christian Zionists and Jews while encouraging dialogue between dissenting groups with this documentary examining the possibility that a substantial American voting block is attempting to create a self-fulfilling prophecy of international holy war. By speaking with Evangelicals in their homes, at conferences, and even during a tour of the site in Israel where they believe Jesus Christ will return to Earth, the filmmakers intertwine Jewish and Christian Zionist perspectives to explore the unique alliance between Evangelical Christians and Israel that could lay the groundwork for the battle of Armageddon. Interviewees include Connecticut evangelicals James and Laura Bagg, McAlester, OK-based Evangelicals Tony and Devonna Edwards, and Salem, OR-based doctor H. Wayne House, each of whom believe we are living in the end times, and that they will all be raptured into the heavens when Christ returns and humanity enters into a violent seven-year period known as "The Tribulation." ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Three victims of botched cosmetic surgery tell their stories in the one-hour made-for-cable documentary Plastic Disasters. Young professional Tony, the least serious case, finds himself in danger of permanent deformity after a faulty rhinoplasty and several increasingly risky corrective surgeries. The once-beautiful Lucille, meanwhile, finds herself looking far older than late middle age after a series of procedures, including two face-lifts and a nose job, leave her with folds of sagging skin all across her face and neck. Lucille also claims that she's unable to breath or swallow properly, though she is unable to obtain medical confirmation of these symptoms. Both patients' problems pale in comparison to those of Mona, a Florida retiree whose cut-rate liposuction indirectly leads to the loss of both legs during a lengthy near-death illness. Between interviews and footage chronicling its subjects' ongoing medical tribulations, Plastic Disasters provides statistical context and a brief history of cosmetic surgery. Spearheaded by producer/directors Kate Davis and David Heilbroner, the film premiered June 5, 2006, on HBO. Davis previously won an Emmy for Jockey, an earlier HBO project. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi

Pucker Up takes a look at the little-known world of championship caliber whistling. The movie offers a wealth of footage from the International Whistling Convention and Competition in North Carolina, giving a history of whistling as well as offering a look at several of the competitors. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Kate Davis' digitally shot documentary chronicles the last year in the life of Robert Eads, a female-to-male transsexual dying of terminal ovarian cancer in the backwoods of rural Georgia. Broken up into seasons, the feature introduces viewers to a community of transsexual persons (many of whom have received poor medical care), including Maxwell, Robert's best friend and sparring partner, and Lola Cola, a male-to-female transsexual who has become Robert's life partner after a lengthy friendship. Often regarded as the patriarch of this small but tight clan, Robert finds that his cancer is accelerating; his loved ones all lend support, including his son, his parents, and his beloved granddaughter. When Robert can no longer care for himself, Lola decides to care for him full-time. The two prepare for the annual Southern Comfort conference, a yearly event created for transgendered individuals, where Robert and Lola have been selected to lead a panel, all while Robert's health is in jeopardy. Robert's final wish is granted when he is able to attend the event, joined by his nearest and dearest friends and Lola, his devoted lover. ~ Jason Clark, Rovi

In this dreamy, gay-themed indie, the debut from writer/director Ira Sachs, two young Southerners from very different backgrounds come together, move apart and continue on their separate paths -- with surprising results. Inarticulate, handsome Lincoln Bloom (Shayne Gray), son of an affluent Jewish family in Memphis, TN, cruises the gut looking for gay sex but also leads a second existence hanging out with his rowdy high-school friends, including Monica (Rachel Zan Huss), his dainty blond girlfriend. One night, Lincoln enjoys wordless sex with Ming Nguyen (Thang Chan), aka John, the immigrant son of an American G.I. and a Vietnamese woman. Another night, after an encounter with a businessman whose unusual predilections bewilder him, Lincoln meets John a second time in an adult bookstore. The slightly older man matter-of-factly convinces Lincoln to hang out with him; the two grab some beers and set out on the Mississippi in Lincoln's dad's boat. Along the way, John shares his life story and sense of frustration at not belonging in either his homeland or America; Lincoln isn't quite sure how to respond. After an entire day of hanging out together at various port towns along the river, the pair get in trouble with the police, resulting in a violent falling out. Lincoln returns to Memphis in his boat, looks up Monica, and faces his father's wrath. Meanwhile, John makes his way home as best he can, settles back into his routine as a disgruntled, sometimes ostracized layabout, and finally seeks out another sexual encounter -- one with a decidedly unexpected conclusion. Memphis native Sachs cast the semi-autobiographical The Delta with non-actors after trawling the pool halls and watering holes of his hometown for several months. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi

Using archival footage of sex-instruction movies from the silent era to the present, documentary filmmaker Richard Broadman makes a case that the more things change, the more they stay the same -- at least in the area of romance between the sexes. Also included are interviews with Boston-area men and women of all ages. The documentary also captures images of the "dating scene" at local bars and dating services. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi