Tom of Finland
This year will be my fifth covering the Tribeca Film Festival and I have yet to tire of it. That might be because in addition to an astonishingly wide array of movies, the Robert DeNiro-funded festival has expanded to encompass television, virtual reality, and this year, video games. Here are some of the most intriguing picks for LGBT geeks on this year's program:
The Geeky Stuff
I always look forward to the Midnights category; this year Psychopaths is at the top of my list, since director Mickey Keating delivered one of the most stirring and intense horror films in recent memory with Darling (which boasted my fellow blogger and Monster Nation co-host David Rondinelli as a crew member). I'm also looking forward to Hounds of Love, an 80s true crime thriller. In the narrative section, graphic novel adaptation My Friend Dahmer, with Disney alum Ross Lynch as the high school version of the eponymous killer, is building serious buzz. Emma Watson stars opposite Tom Hanks in the tech thriller The Circle, based on the book by Dave Eggers.
My Friend Dahmer
As for other media, Tribeca Tune In boasts the premiere of the hotly anticipated dystopian sci fi adaptation The Handmaid's Tale, with Alexis Bledel and Joseph Fiennes; the second annual VR Arcade includes such installations as the sexual assault survivor piece Testimony and the animated post-apocalyptic adventure Arden’s Wake; and Storyscapes interactive experiences include NeuroSpeculative AfroFeminism,"a multidisciplinary exploration of women of color's experience through the lens of technology, society and culture" (!). This is also the first year Tribeca will include video games, including the premiere crowd play of Guardians of the Galaxy.
The Gay Stuff
Easily the most promising LGBT film at this year's festival is Tom of Finland, a sure to be sexy biopic of the legendary homoerotic artist. There's also Saturday Church, a trans coming of age story starring transgender actress and model Indya Adrinna Moore, and documentary The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson, director David France's follow-up to How to Survive a Plague.
Saturday Church
I'll be posting reviews and stories to Geeks OUT throughout the festival, which runs through April 30. For more information, visit the Tribeca Film Festival's official site.