Gay and Lesbian

An actor trying to keep the truth about his love life under wraps discovers feelings he doesn't want to hide in this frothy comedy. It's the mid-'50s, and Guy Stone (Matt Letscher) is a very successful movie star. Tall, good-looking, and boyishly charming, Stone has a reputation as a ladies' man with a very active love life. However, the truth is a bit different: while Stone is indeed enjoying more romantic misadventures than he can keep track of, he happens to prefer the company of men. When a scandal sheet gets wind of his sexual proclivities, Stone's manager (Veronica Cartwright) and the head of his studio (Victor Raider-Wexler) decide some camouflage is in order. Stone's handlers arrange for him to marry Sally (Carrie Preston), a sweet and naïve secretary from the studio who is entirely unaware that the man of her dreams is gay. As Stone tries to make the best of his sham marriage while feeling twinges of guilt about the toll it may take on Sally, he meets Rick Foster (Adam Greer), an author whose most recent novel is being adapted into a script for Stone. To Stone's surprise, he find himself falling seriously in love with Foster and discovers that Foster, like himself, has a few secrets that could put his Hollywood career in jeopardy. Straight-Jacket was directed by Richard Day, who also wrote the screenplay which was adapted from his off-Broadway play of the same name. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

A masked killer crashes a lavish masquerade party in director David DeCoteau's modern updating of Edgar Allan Poe's classic tale. It's time for the biggest gay party of the year; unfortunately the host has chosen the site of the infamous Ravenswood Massacre to stage his blowout gala. Now, as the guests roll in for a rollicking evening of debauchery and excess, the body count begins to multiply. With each passing hour more victims turn up, leaving the frightened survivors to wonder who will die next. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Ray Yeung's comedy Cut Sleeve Boys tells the story of two Chinese/British gay men named Mel and Ash. The two middle-aged friends attend the funeral of a former acquaintance named Gavin, and begin to question where they are in their own lives as a result. Mel starts to wonder how much longer he can maintain his endless string of plastic surgeries to maintain his looks. Ash decides to try life as a transvestite in order to find a man who will stay with him. Soon a secret from Gavin's past complicates matters for the two protagonists. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

A sports star's career takes a sudden roller coaster ride when he makes a very unexpected announcement in this comedy from Iceland. Ottar Thor (Bjorn Hlynur Haraldsson) is a well-known soccer player whose life off the field isn't as successful as his career in football. Thor's marriage to a one-time beauty queen ended in a bitter divorce, his 13-year-old son Magnus (Arnmundur Ernst) would rather play video games than talk to his dad, and his obnoxious father and brother have moved in to his home. One day, while talking to a reporter after a game, Thor mentions that he's gay without really thinking about what might happen, and suddenly his world is turned upside down. The owners of Thor's team, as well as his fellow players, turn against him and kick him off the squad, while his family is more than a bit taken aback. Still eager to play, Thor takes up an invitation to join a semi-pro team coached by a friend, which already has a few gay players. Thor's presence on the team, and the media circus over his decision to come out, put a new spotlight on the gay footballers, and several more decide to move out of the closet and onto Thor's team. Suddenly Thor is a sports star again with a winning record (though a few victories come from forfeits, since some clubs are unwilling to take the field with a queer team), and his old team decides to challenge them to a special match...that just so happens to coincide with Gay Pride Day. Meanwhile, Thor decides to act on his attraction toward one of his teammates, but discovers that his dreamboat isn't much of a catch off the field. Eleven Men Out (aka Stratkarnir Okkar) received its North American premier at the 2005 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide