Television

Sundance Channel Celebrates Gay Pride Month
There’s something for everyone in Sundance’s 4th annual "Out Loud" FilmFest
by Blase DiStefano

The channel’s longest-running FilmFest, "Out Loud" is also one of its most eclectic, encompassing an array of genres, sensibilities, and stories. This year’s series spans nearly 70 years of filmmaking to present a total of 35 narrative and documentary features, from the 1931 seminal lesbian classic Mädchen in Uniform (one of the screen’s earliest sympathetic treatments of homosexuality) to 2001 Independent Spirit Award winner Chuck & Buck. Throw in two "adventure" films (The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and The Adventures of Sebastian Cole), a couple of guys (Jeffrey and Maurice), and gay faves Desert Hearts and Beautiful Thing, among others, and you’re in for a month of ecstasy. Most of the films play more than once. • Don’t have Sundance? To subscribe, see "Cable Television" listings in the Yellow Pages. Need more info? Go to www.sundancechannel.com. While reading the list of films below, you may need a hankie or paper towel to wipe the drool from your mouth. • P.S. On June 14 and 17, there is a conversation with Ismail Merchant, best known for his partnership with James Ivory, with whom he has produced more than 25 films (including Maurice, which runs three times on Sundance during June). And on June 26 and 28, there is a conversation with Julian Schnabel, director of Basquiat (1996) and Before Night Falls, in which Javier Bardem plays gay Cuban novelist/political dissident Reynaldo Arenas.

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

The Adventures of Sebastian Cole

Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer

Alive and Kicking

Beau Travail

Beautiful Thing

Benjamin Smoke

Butterfly Kiss

Chuck & Buck

Companions: Tales from the Closet

The Cream Will Rise

The Delta

Desert Hearts

East Palace, West Palace

Edge of Seventeen

Female Persuasions

Floating

Get Real

Happy Together

Hide & Seek

The Hours and Times

The Jaundiced Eye

Jeffrey

Let It Come Down: The Life of Paul Bowles

Mädchen in Uniform

Maurice

Paul Monette: Brink of Summer’s End

Persona

Poles Apart

Red Hot + Cool

Salome’s Last Dance

Shorts Out Loud #1

In Search of Mike

Hope Is the Thing With Feathers

Traveling Companion

Shorts Out Loud #2

Lady

Just One Time

$30

Shorts Out Loud #3

Inside Out

Above the Dust Level

hiTCH

Shorts Out Loud #4

Birthday Time

Family

Nunzio’s Second Cousin

The Sixth Happiness

Steam: The Turkish Bath

Stonewall

Taboo

When Love Comes

You Don’t Know Dick: Courageous Hearts of Transsexual Men

Turner Classic Movies (TCM) Also Salutes Gay Pride Month in June

Need more films to feast on? TCM showcases films that share a common gay or lesbian theme every Wednesday in June. On June 6, TCM will show classic movies starring gay male characters or focusing on gay male-related themes, such as Strangers on a Train and Tea and Sympathy. On the 13th, gay and lesbian stars, directors, and writers are featured, such as The Women, directed by George Cukor, and Dance Girl Dance, directed by Dorothy Arzner. June 20 brings lesbian themes, such as Christopher Strong and Calamity Jane. To round out the festival, on the anniversary of the historic Stonewall Riots on June 27, TCM pays homage to Judy Garland with four films, including A Star Is Born and I Could Go on Singing. For a complete schedule, visit www.turnerclassicmovies.com.