One commentator this week pointed out that what happened to gays and lesbians in the 80’s and 90’s is now happening to trans people. So its good as Transgender Awareness Week ends to take a look at some refreshing films that explore a wide range of ideas around sexuality, identity and transgender issues.
Breaking Glass Pictures has put together a bundle of old and new films that give very different angles on some of the issues. I sampled their trailers.
Call Her Ganda – when Jennifer Laude, a Phillipina trans woman is brutally murdered by a US marine, 3 women who are intimately interested in the case come to our attention – an activist attorney, a transgender journalist , and Jennifer’s mother – Ganda being Jennifer’s nickname , meaning beautiful .
Their interest leads to political unrest and a demand for justice in the context of US colonial imperialism. It’s gripping and important.
K-11 : record producer Raymond Saxx Jnr has a weekend of binge drinking and drug use. He wakes up in a jail cell, unaware of how he got there , and then is hauled off to a new vision of Hell – Los Angeles County’s K-11 – a separate unit for gay and transgender inmates.
The trailer says “ some places should only exist in nightmares “ and judging by what I saw, this is one of them.
And Then There Was Eve – Alyssa is a successful photographer who wakes one morning to finds her husband missing and her apartment ransacked. Without even a photo to give to the police , she turns to Eve , a talented jazz pianist , who has flirtatious charm and grace. Together they confront the missing man’s long- term struggle with depression , and Alyssa soon finds herself surprised to be falling in love again.
The Aggressives says it is an insight into the subculture of what it describes as trans men, lesbian “ butches “ and their “ femme “ counterparts – their language not mine ! Filmed in New York over 5 years from the late 90’s it explores the characters’ dreams, secrets and deepest fears.
The Godess of Fortune is a new release – soon to be reviewed in Gscene – and is a story of two men who have lived together for 15 years, in a growing state of crisis. When two children are left in their keeping for a few days, they redefine themselves and as the trailer says discover that “ love is a state of pleasant madness “.
Finally the wickedly sharp and funny Fairytale is set in the advertising industry’s dreamworld of 1950’s America. Mr(s) Fairytale is locked in her dream home without a moment to breathe and only accompanied by her stuffed puppy dog Lady. When she realises she is a he, the crazy genius fun begins .
All 6 films can be purchased, or watched on a choice of platforms via Breaking Glass at bgpics.com
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