Susan Sarandon & Geena Davis in Thelma & Louise.
(1996 Feature Film)
Narrated by Lily Tomlin
Reviewed by Blase DiStefano
When asked to narrate The Celluloid Closet, Lily Tomlin told filmmakers Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman, "You guys had better make a good film." She needn't have worried: It's better than good—it's superb!
The film begins with a clip showing two men dancing together, which, in and of itself, is not all that unusual. But combine the fact that the experimental film was made by Thomas Edison and that it was made in 1895, and it becomes almost surreal.
Film clips from 120 films are used to show how homosexuals have been portrayed in popular films. Seeing the earlier clips should bring back memories of a time when—as Lily Tomlin narrates the words written by Armistead Maupin—"Hollywood, that great myth maker, taught straight people what to think about gay people . . . and gay people what to think of themselves."
The clips are interspersed with interviews with such celebrities as Whoopi Goldberg, Tom Hanks, Shirley MacLaine, and Gore Vidal, to name only a few.
Susan Sarandon & Geena Davis in Thelma & Louise.
Some of these conversations are worth the price of admission. For instance, Susan Sarandon discusses the kiss at Thelma & Louise's finale, explaining that no one but Geena Davis (and Sarandon) knew it was going to take place. She proceeds to compare Thelma & Louise's ending with that of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid—the two women kiss, the two men . . . well, let Sarandon explain: "Wouldn't that have been great if Butch and Sundance had kissed at the end? But they do what guys do in movies—instead, they got their guns out 'cause they couldn't get their dicks out. . . ."
The Celluloid Closet covers silent film (where the behavior of gays was a joke) to Philadelphia (where the hero—though he dies—is gay). In between is the "Sissy"; Marlene Dietrich and Greta Garbo; Hollywood's self-censorship; lesbians in prison and/or being neurotic; gays and lesbians looking for hints of homosexuality; the long period in which gays had to die in the last reel; The Boys in the Band; Cabaret; violence toward gays; Making Love; female-to-female affection; and there's much more!
Since it's now available on video, do yourself a favor—RENT IT!
["The Celluloid Closet," which previewed on HBO
in March of 1996,
played in April 1996 at Houston's Landmark River Oaks Theatre.]
[A slightly edited version of this review
ran in OutSmart magazine, April 15, 1998.]
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