TV

by Blase DiStefano and Troy Carrington

Targeting HIV/AIDS

Viacom, one of the largest media companies in the world, and the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, a leader in health information and research, have created an unprecedented, cross-platform public information campaign to eradicate ignorance about HIV/AIDS. The multi-year campaign will encompass the creation and dissemination of information about the HIV virus and its prevention through a variety of media, including TV, radio, and outdoor.

Showtime and Sundance Channel join Viacom in this company-wide initiative to raise awareness about the ongoing global AIDS crisis.

Showtime premieres its latest original picture Behind the Red Door, starring Kiefer Sutherland, Kyra Sedgwick, and Stockard Channing. • Supposedly, a red door keeps evil out. Well, upon meeting Roy (Kiefer Sutherland), you’d think he had never even seen a red door; “evil” is probably not the best word to describe him, but he is certainly one helluva angry prick. • Natalie (Kyra Sedgwick) is offered a photo shoot in Boston; she gets the gig through Julia (Stockard Channing, in yet another gay-friendly role). Julia, well aware that the shoot is for Roy—Natalie’s older gay brother—doesn’t inform Natalie of the ruse. When Natalie arrives and sees her brother snapping at his employees, she’s ready to pack it up. (The two had a rotten childhood with a rotten father who was suspected of killing their mother.) Yeah, I know it sounds like a soap opera, but it’s actually a beautifully written and well-acted film (Sutherland as a snooty gay queen is superb). When Roy tells his sister that he has AIDS and that his lover died of AIDS, the two siblings begin a healing process. Don’t miss it. • Premieres Sun., Jan. 12 at 7 p.m. on Showtime. Repeat airings: 1/13 at 9 p.m., 1/22 at 7 p.m., 1/25 at 8:45 p.m., and 1/28 at 8 p.m.

Sundance Channel presents two acclaimed documentary films about living with AIDS. Monte Bramer’s Paul Monette: The Brink of Summer’s End profiles the National Book Award-winning writer Paul Monette, one of the world’s most eloquent voices on the subject of AIDS. The film, which won the Audience Award at the 1997 Sundance Film Festival, was made with Monette’s collaboration shortly before his death in 1995. • Peter Friedman and Tom Joslin’s Silverlake Life: The View from Here is an intimate, deeply moving portrait of a gay couple, Tom Joslin and Mark Massi, coping with AIDS. Joslin, a filmmaker and teacher, began the video diary when he and Massi learned they were both infected with HIV. The film won the Grand Jury Prize and Freedom and Expression Awards at the 1993 Sundance Film Festival. • Monette airs Mon., Jan. 13; Silverlake airs Tues., Jan. 14; both at 8 p.m. on Sundance Channel.

Lance Loud: A Death in an American Family

An American Family, the original reality TV series about the Loud family of Santa Barbara, California, premiered on January 13, 1973. Lance Loud: A Death in an American Family commemorates the 30th anniversary of the PBS documentary series. “This is not to emphasize the sadness of my demise but rather emphasize the love of my family and friends. When time comes up, I want to be filmed because life this past year has taught me so much. I also stand as a role model as to what not to do in one’s life.” This is a quote from a letter by Lance Loud to the filmmakers Susan and Alan Raymond. “The core of the new film,” say the filmmakers, “include the filming we did with Lance and his family the few months shortly before he died in December 2001, as well as his memorial service at the Chateau Marmont Hotel in Los Angeles, January 2002.” The one-hour program points out Loud’s distinction as the first openly-gay character on television and includes interviews with and Rufus Wainwright, who also belts out a stirring rendition of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” Mon., Jan. 6, at 8 p.m. on PBS. A rebroadcast of episode #2 of An American Family follows.

Oz

Coming off its most-watched season, HBO's prison drama Oz returns for its sixth and final season this month with eight new episodes. Among the guest stars are Betty Buckley, Joel Grey, and Patti LuPone. Among others, the returning cast includes Rita Moreno, Harold Perrineau, B.D. Wong, Lee Tergesen, and Christopher Meloni. Oz is about the relentless struggles for power inside the Oswald State Correctional Facility, where inmates and correctional officers battle ruthlessly for survival amid warring factions and explosive acts of retribution. In this final season, Oz will wrap up some of its storylines, with some of the main characters experiencing redemption and spiritual awakening. The new season begins Sun., Jan. 5, at 8 p.m. on HBO.

Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her

Rodrigo García’s debut feature is composed of five narratives, which examine the hidden emotional lives of women in contemporary Los Angeles. An unmarried bank manager (Holly Hunter) faces the possibility of an abortion; a police detective (Amy Brenneman) discovers her blind sister’s (Cameron Diaz) astute insight; a lonely gynecologist (Glenn Close) consults a psychic; a lesbian couple (Calista Flockhart and Valeria Golino) confronts the finality of their relationship; and a single mother (Kathy Baker) becomes erotically intrigued by a dwarf next door. Various dates: Sun., Jan. 5, 9 a.m. & 10 p.m.; Wed., Jan. 22, 9 a.m. & 8 p.m.; Tues., Jan. 28, noon & 11:30 p.m. on Sundance Channel. (To confirm dates and times, visit www.sundancechannel.com.)

Our Lady of the Assassins

The violent inferno of Columbia’s drug capital, Medellín, plays host to Fernando (Germán Jaramillo), a world-weary gay writer who has returned to die after a 30-year exile. While preparing his last goodbyes, Fernando falls in love with an angelic young street thug (Anderson Ballesteros), who serves as Fernando’s guide to the Medellín of his youth. Vivid, darkly humorous and often mystical, Barbet Schroeder’s adaptation of Fernando Vallejo’s acclaimed novel was largely filmed secretly under dangerous circumstances on the streets of Medellín. Various dates: Sat., Jan. 11, 9 p.m.; Tues., Jan. 14, midnight; Tues., Jan. 21, 1:45 a.m.; Mon., Jan. 27, 9 p.m. on Sundance Channel. (To confirm dates and times, visit www.sundancechannel.com.)

Will & Dan

At press time, we were thrilled to find out that on Will & Grace, Will (Eric McCormack) may finally have another romantic interest. And to our delight, he is played by the oh-so-gay-friendly Dan Futterman. (In an interview in The Advocate in 2001, he had to be coaxed into mentioning his wife. “I always find it creepy when you read an article about someone playing a gay character and the first thing they do is mention their girlfriend or wife.”) In the episode, “Phagmalion Part One: Gay It Forward,” Futterman begins a multi-episode stint as a cousin of Karen (Megan Mullally) who recently decided to come out of the closet. Thursdays at 8 p.m. on NBC.

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