Limited runs and special events:
@ Beverly Arts Center Cinema, 2407 W. 111th, (773) 445-3838: Shattered Glass – Feb. 4; The Killing – Feb. 11; My Life Without Me – Feb. 18; Autumn Spring – Feb. 24
@ Chicago Filmmakers, 5243 N. Clark, (773) 293-1447: Film Studies: The Films of Guy Sherwin and Barbara Meter. Guy Sherwin and Barbara Meter in person. Feb. 7; Al-Jazeera Exclusive – Feb. 15; Star Spangled To Death – Feb. 21, 22, 28 & 29, Mar. 6, 7; Third Party: Political Alternatives in the Age of Duopoly - Mar. 13; Speaking Of...: Recent Video by Jacqueline Goss (Jacqueline Goss in person) – Mar. 27
@ Gene Siskel Film Center, 164 N. State Street, (312) 846-2800: 'Directed by Dorothy Arzner': The Wild Party – Starring Clara Bow and Fredric March – Feb. 7 & 9; Sarah And Son - Starring Ruth Chatterton and Fredric March – Feb. 9 & 12; Honor Among Lovers – Starring Claudette Colbert and Fredric March - Feb. 14 & 19; Working Girls – Starring Judith Wood, Dorothy Hall – Feb. 21 & 23; Merrily We Go To Hell – Starring Sylvia Sidney and Fredric March - Feb. 28 and Mar. 3
@ The Red Line, 228 W. Chicago: 'Inspiration Lounge Party' fundraiser to benefit the film Mama Said – Feb. 8, 4-8 p.m. By former Chicagoan Yasmina Cadiz. Guest appearance by Patty Ortega. See Web site www.xChromosomefilms.com .
@ University of Chicago/Film Studies Center, Cobb Hall, Room 307, 5811 South Ellis Avenue, (773) 834-4509: '6 Films By Andy Warhol': The Chelsea Girls – Feb. 6; Couch and Hedy – Feb. 13; Harlot – Feb. 20; Mario Banana and Screen Test #2 – Feb. 27
@ University of Chicago/Ida Noyes Hall, 1212 E. 59th St., (773) 702-5271: Brother Outsider: the Life of Bayard Rustin: According to one of the voiceovers at the beginning of Nancy Kates and Bennet Singer's documentary about the late Bayard Rustin, 'Bayard liked to cause trouble. He caused trouble in very banal and everyday ways.' Born in 1912 in West Chester, Penn., Rustin went on to become not only a force in civil rights but also in the realm of the gay and lesbian rights movement, and this excellent documentary presents a much-needed visual record of Rustin's life and achievements. Loaded with interviews and period footage, tracing Rustin's beginnings as a singer in late 1930s Harlem through his fearless work as a non-violent pacifist and war objector through his interactions with male partners including Davis Platt and Walter Naegle, and ultimately his involvement with Dr. Martin Luther King's causes, and, of course, the historic March on Washington. Brother Outsider allows the viewer to feel like an insider until the credits roll. - Feb. 21
@ University of Notre Dame Department - First Notre Dame Queer Film Festival, at Hesburgh Library Carrey Auditorium, Feb. 11-14th. Additionally, panel discussions ('Gay Hollywood: Still in the Closet' led by Tom O'Neil and 'Film and the Construction of Sexual Identity,' keynoted by Ron Gregg) and a screenwriting workshop (led by Don Roos) will be held. Jim In Bold – Feb. 11; Hedwig And The Angry Inch - Feb. 12; Go Fish - Feb. 13; All Over The Guy – Feb. 14; The Opposite Of Sex – Feb. 14.
In theaters:
Tokyo Godfathers – With the partnership between Disney and Pixar officially at an end, Disney's domination of the animation world continues to dwindle, especially after recent lackluster efforts such as Brother Bear and Piglet's Big Movie. Acclaimed international animated features such as The Triplets Of Belleville and Tokyo Godfathers are indications that Disney should be watching its illustrated back. Set in Tokyo, between the winter holidays of Christmas and New Year's, Tokyo Godfathers introduces us to teenage runaway Miyuki (voiced by Aya Okamoto), transgendered 'homeless homo' Hana (voiced by Yoshiaki Umegaki) and gruff homeless man Gin (Toru Emori) who find an abandoned infant in a trash heap on Christmas. This heartwarming story of 'a bum, a homo, a runaway and a foundling' who share the cramped quarters of a cardboard box together and who embark on a journey to reunite the baby with her mother Sachiko (Kyoko Terase), mixes humor (Hana's reunion with her drag mother is delightful, as is the scene in which Sachiko's gossipy neighbors each provide their input) and drama (Gin's beating at the hands of young thugs, Miyuki's flashback to her reason for running away from home) with entertaining results. (B+)
On DVD:
Somewhere In The City (First Run) – Somewhere in New York City is an apartment building with a wacky assortment of residents such as the ones portrayed in the disappointing low-budget indie feature. There is unlucky in love therapist Betty (Sandra Bernhard), who dispenses unsolicited advice and actually spent part of a client's session talking about her pathetic love life; Graham (Peter Stormare), is a gay actor, who gives private acting lessons to support himself, while turning down TV roles that he considers to be below him; Che (Paul Anthony Stewart), a rich kid turned revolutionary whose mother keeps tabs on him via cell phone; Lu-Lu (Bai Ling), a young Chinese woman in search of a green card; unhappily married Marta and her lover Frankie (Robert John Burke), a half-assed thief with a bumbling crew, to mention a few. Unfortunately, a capable cast such as this was at a loss with the combination of Ramin Niami's haphazard direction and a nonsensical script. (D+)
Under The Tuscan Sun (Touchstone) – Based on the popular memoir by Frances Mayes, Under The Tuscan Sun is an unapologetic 'chick flick' with unexpected queer twists. Frances (Diane Lane) is a writer and writing instructor in San Francisco who learns that her husband wants a divorce, leaving her without a home and a questionable future. When her lesbian best friend Patti (scene-stealer Sandra Oh) offers her a ticket to Tuscany because she, Patti, is pregnant with the baby that she and her doctor life-partner Grace (Kate Walsh) conceived, Frances at first refuses. Soon she realizes that getting away would be the best thing. It is at this point that the movie reaches its highest comedic point, as Frances is the only straight woman on the Gay & Away tour of Tuscany, leading to a series of amusing scenes. While on the tour, Frances discovers a decrepit villa for sale in Cortona and before you know it she is signing papers and taking possession of the property. Predictably, the town is full of eccentric characters, such as neighbor Placido (Roberto Nobile) and his family, which includes hormonally charged teenage daughter Chiara (Giulia Stiegerwalt); a crew of Polish construction workers, including sexy Pawel (Pawel Szadja) who is interested in Chiara; a handsome realtor named Mr. Martini (Vincenzo Ricotta); Katherine (Lindsay Duncan), a big-hat-wearing flake who claims to have been discovered by Fellini when she was 16; and Marcello (Raoul Bova), a handsome young man with whom Frances begins an affair. What would have been a run-of-the-mill romantic comedy is redeemed by Lane's Shirley MacLaine-esque performance, the radiant comedic presence of the aforementioned Ms. Oh, and the glorious Tuscan setting. The DVD includes the deleted 'Discovering The Fresco' scene. (B-)
On TV:
Sundance Channel (check local listings for times) – Fire – Feb. 5, 8, 11, 20 & 24; Big Eden – Feb. 5, 10; My Beautiful Laundrette – Feb. 6, 12, 24 & 28; The Crying Game – Feb. 7, 12, 18, 22 & 27; Aimee & Jaguar – Feb. 8, 13 & 25; Don't You Worry, It Will Probably Pass – Feb. 10 & 26; The Gift – Feb. 12 & 22; The Rainbow – Feb. 13 & 21; 'Two by Barbara Hammer' – My Babushka: Searching Ukranian Identities and Resisting Paradise – Feb. 16.
