| Men on the Verge |  |
Date: Saturday, 10/23/2004
Time: 4:00 pm
Venue: Lincoln Theatre
Tickets: $9 (buy online now
)
Type: Collection of short films
Metro Weekly Rating: 
(4 out of 5)
by Sean Bugg
"MEN ON THE VERGE" could have just as easily been titled "Men in Australia," as this series of shorts seems focused exclusively on gays who say "g'day." Not that there's anything wrong with that.
In fact, in some cases, there's everything right with it, as this turns out to be one of the strongest shorts programs of the festival.
A Wonderful Day (
) begins with a phone call that launches an
emotional race to the hospital, where a drag queen who hadn't come out to his
family comes to the bedside of his dying mother. Intercut with flashbacks that
illuminate his mother's role in developing his courage, the film packs an
emotional punch that culminates in a surprising moment.
Your perception of reality can be altered when you're in a gay bar, and not
just from recreational substances. Two Minutes After Midnight (
)
and The Judas Kiss (
) both take place the same time in the same bar
-- scenes from each short play out in the background of its companion. Two
Minutes is the more successful, as a circuit-boy fairy godmother grants a
despondent barfly the chance to be the ultimate desire of any man who choose.
Needless to say, being someone's ultimate desire ain't all it's cracked up to
be (think diapers). Judas Kiss, on the other hand, lingers on a lover's
discovery of betrayal, all set to the music of Handel for a boring and
non-revelatory viewing experience.
What Grown-Ups Know (
) feels like watching a short story in a
small literary journal; not a bad thing aside from the sense of structured
formality that tints the script. But watching poor Roy on the lam with his
marriage-fleeing mother, who calls him Toodles, look for love in the arms of a
trailer park manager has both moments of humor and despair, often at the same
time, such as realizing Roy's mother sounds like a cancerous Jennifer Tilly.
Short White Pleated (
) is a cute lark about the desires released
when a man dons his female squash partner's skirt. Unfortunately, it goes
nowhere. Better, though, than Harvie Krumpet (), a claymation affair
that begs the question of why it's playing at a gay film festival. Little
Harvey is born with Tourette's to a crazy mother, loses his parents to the
Nazis, escapes to a life of menial work in Australia, discovers nudism, and
adopts a thalidomide baby among other things. Not nearly as interesting as it
may sound, and deadened all the more with soporific narration by Geoffery Rush.
| More information |
Film Links:
· Reel Affirmations details
Festival Venue:
Lincoln Theatre
1215 U Street, NW; Washington, DC 20009. (202) 328-6000. (map)
Directly across from Green Line Metro / U Street-Cardozo station.
Tickets:
You may buy your tickets or passes in advance: Online at BoxOfficeTickets.com
or by phone at (800) 494-TIXS (494-8497). Or you may visit the Lincoln
Theatre (1215 U Street, NW, WDC); the DCJCC (1529 16th Street, NW,
WDC); Lambda Rising (1625 Connecticut Avenue, NW, WDC); or Universal
Gear (1601 17th Street, NW, WDC).
|
For more info visit the official Reel Affirmations website. |
