My favourite 2008 flicks and my Best Picture Oscar predictions...

Last year, I published a top ten list for the 2007 feature films I had seen by Dec 31. It was a pretty solid list, but not being a professional film critic with free tickets to see all major feature releases, it was incomplete. And upon viewing the great 'There Will Be Blood' in January of this year, my list became obsolete rather quickly as I now see that great flick as the best of 2007.

So I hesitate this year to provide any kind of similar top ten list, except to point out those films I most enjoyed this year, as well as predictions for this coming awards season (the best part of winter, as far as I'm concerned.)

My two favourite films of 2008: Slumdog Millionaire (pictured) and The Dark Knight. Both were absolutely astonishing and deserving of the Oscar nominations they're due to receive next month; I can't seem to decide which one I like better.

I also loved Milk, The Reader, The Bucket List, Rachel Getting Married and In Bruges.

The most disappointing film I paid money to see this year: George Clooney's Leatherheads (a complete waste of time and talent.)

Those films on my list I hope to see asap, in order of priority:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Wall-E
Frost/Nixon
Wendy and Lucy
Doubt
The Wrestler
Gran Torino
Valkyrie
Revolutionary Road

Thus, it's entirely possible that one of these or other films could overtake my current 2008 favourites (I love everything by director David Fincher, who made Benjamin Button and my 2007 fave Zodiac, among other great films). But we'll have to see.

With movie awards season now upon us, it's anybody's guess which five films will land a coveted Best Picture nomination at the Oscars. But I'm betting when the nominations are announced on January 22nd, these five films will be on the list: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, Frost/Nixon, Milk and Slumdog Millionaire.

Of these, I expect that Slumdog will take the top prize in February. Here's hoping.

Obama's holiday gift to the world...

I've seen other shirtless/beach pics of President-elect Barack Obama, but man, this guy has been hitting the gym and is looking good! I think I may hit my condo's gym tonight after all...lol

Gus Van Sant's 'Milk' a great portrait of leadership...

Since seeing Gus Van Sant's Milk last week, I've been contemplating what to write about this great film that hasn't already been said? What did I like about it most?

There's Sean Penn's uncanny performance, he's still at the top of his game. There's Van Sant's subtle touch perfect for this vital history lesson in queer liberation. There's Dustin Lance Black's screenplay that so thoroughly explores Harvey Milk's unique journey from New York closet case to community leader. There's the meticulous attention to detail that makes it inspiring and unforgettable.

Harvey Milk (pictured in the suit) was the first openly gay man to be elected to major office in the United States (in 1978 as a local supervisor (like a district councillor) in San Francisco.) Milk chronicles Harvey's growth from ordinary man to icon.

The supporting turns are all wonderful. James Franco is mesmerizing, embodying the almost perfect partner that got away. Emile Hirsch is an energetic work of art in this flick. I won't soon forget his "Out of the bars, into the streets!" chants, nor his smooching scene with fellow cutie Joseph Cross. I agree with Susan Cole there weren't enough lesbian characters in this flick, but it's a minor flaw amid the great accomplishments.

This is a story about a community desperately in need of a strong voice to lead it, and how one man's greatness was tragically cut short because of a cold-blooded murderer's inability to cope with the world around him. Josh Brolin captures the disturbing contradictions of his character, Dan White. What an enigma! The climactic scene when White walks Milk into his office to shoot him dead makes clear that White was guilty of first degree murder, not the disgustingly lenient conviction for voluntary manslaughter.

The film does a beautiful job showing how one man's inspirational hope and unique political skills could push for greater gay acceptance. The climate against homosexuals in the 1970s, even in San Francisco, was clearly hostile. The fight over Proposition 6 in 1978, which would've banned gay teachers, shows how important Milk's strategy truly was. Milk advocated that all gay people "come out" of the closet to put a human face on the issue for their straight friends, family and neighbours.

It's sad that our community lost Harvey Milk so early. Sean Penn is probably right that Milk, had he lived, would've fought and raised greater awareness about AIDS much sooner due to his high profile and energy.

In the end, Milk is a portrait of an ordinary man finding it within himself to become the leader he and his community need him to be.

Every gay man (and as many lesbians, bisexuals and heterosexuals, etc. as possible) should see this movie.

Pink Christmas shocks Amsterdam

It seems Christians in Holland resemble many in Canada where they only like freedom of expression when they are the ones who get to practice it...

"By portraying Joseph and Mary as homosexuals, a twisted human fantasy is being added to the history of the Bible," wrote Christians for Truth in a statement ahead of this Amsterdam event.

For the record, it appears that Pink Christmas performers are portraying Mary as a drag queen, not necessarily a homosexual...

And which parts of the Bible aren't twisted to conform to human fantasy?

Hate the singer, love the songs...

I used to be a huge fan of gay crooner Rufus Wainwright. I couldn't get enough of his sweet, melancholy melodies.

But when he totally trashed my city of Toronto (quite unfairly and unnecessarily), my love suddenly slipped away. I've barely listened to any of his music for months. (Yes I do sometimes let politics get in the way of my artistic appreciation). I guess he figured he could write off the lonely Toronto market without much consequence and perhaps he was right.

Now this little controversy with Rufus once again spouting off at the mouth has erupted - he dissed those who actually like the idea of getting married, and compared gay marriage to marrying one's dog.

The backlash was severe (and obviously widespread) that the opera-loving queen felt compelled to write a less-than-convincing mea culpa on his website yesterday. Unlike my friend Scott, I'm not so forgiving. Rufus is 35 going on 15, as far as I can tell. Grow some brains, Rufus, before spouting off and offending more of your select fan base.

In the mean time, I'll continue to try to forget the man behind the voice (and perhaps even ignore his next foot-in-mouth incident) and just focus on the great music.

Back from shooting 'The Golden Pin'; Congrats to 'Slap Upside the Head'

I took the last few days off from blogging (and from my day job) to work on a short film project I co-wrote with Toronto director Cuong Ngo.

The film is called, 'The Golden Pin' and it's the story about a young closeted Vietnamese-Canadian swimmer caught between his conservative family and his gay lover teammate. The film stars L.A.-based actors Kris Duangphung and Ben Bela Boehm, as well as Minh Nguyen of North Dakota, Tien Nguyen of Toronto and Lily Nguyen of Kitchener, Ontario. Produced by Ngo and Igor Szczurko, shooting started in Toronto last Wednesday and ended Sunday. I'm exhausted after the intense schedule we've been keeping (I'm also an associate producer on the film) but I'm absolutely thrilled with how well it went. Ngo is a brilliant director and working with him has been an absolute joy. The crew he and Szczurko assembled was top notch.

Post-production begins now, and we're looking forward to the first screening in Toronto in April, with many more to hopefully follow. I'll keep you posted on these exciting developments.

In the mean time, I was pleased to read today that Slap Upside the Head won the Best GLBT Blog award this year at the Canadian Blog Awards. Congrats, it's very well-deserved without a doubt!

Once I recover from the lack of sleep, I'll be back to my usual blogging self. Cheers.

Proposition 8: The Musical

This video/musical satirizing the recent passage of Proposition 8 in California must not be missed. Brilliant!

The Silver Fox humbled by Michael Phelps

I thought we needed a break from the ongoing drama in Ottawa with this light, little piece from this past weekend's '60 Minutes' featuring homoerotic icons silver-haired Anderson Cooper and Olympic gold god Michael Phelps. Enjoy.

Montreal Simon gets my vote, baby!

Sadly, I didn't make the final five in the Best GLBT Blog category in the Canadian Blog Awards this year. I want to congratulate the five finalists, particularly Montreal Simon, Slapped Upside the Head and Gay Persons of Color all of whom were nominated with me last year. Moved to Vancouver looks interesting, I must say. I'll have to read it more often. I'm not a fan of GayandRight, who seems more interested in demonizing Islam than promoting greater understanding of queer issues. Perhaps he's just been trying to appear as non-threatening as possible to his fellow hetero conservatives, hoping that shared hatred of the "other" will make his own otherness less threatening to them? I dunno. His latest post today: denying climate change and the connection between the rising amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and rising temperatures. Ugh. Can I nickname him GayandWrong? He's the kind of conservative who reminds us why the Coalition for Change is gaining momentum in this country.

It's been a great year of blogging for me and I look forward to more. And since I'm not in the final five, that makes my vote quite easy: Montreal Simon all the way, baby!

Can't wait to see Van Sant's 'Milk'...

Holiday movie season is upon us. For a cinephile like myself, the onslaught of great (or at least the best the Hollywood studios can pump out every year-end) movie releases makes the earlier sundowns and colder temperatures easier to bear.

I can't wait to see director Gus Van Sant's 'Milk,' with Sean Penn, James Franco and Josh Brolin, chronicling the life of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California. Milk, along with then-San Francisco mayor George Moscone, were assassinated by fellow politician Dan White a year later, in a case that coined the phrase, 'The Twinkie defense'.

Opening this week,initial reviews have been strong. Already, there is talk that Penn's achievement playing Harvey Milk will land him another Oscar nomination and perhaps his second Best Actor award. But it's early yet and movie awards season is just taking shape.

Milk's arrival on big screens coincides with the aftermath of California's recent passage of Proposition 8. The film, itself, delves into a similar California referendum in 1978 that would've banned gay and lesbian teachers and Milk's efforts to defeat it.

If you don't know much about Harvey Milk, I'd recommend a viewing of the extraordinary 1984 feature documentary, 'The Times of Harvey Milk', which won the Academy Award for best documentary feature.

Please expect a review from me of 'Milk' very soon.

Oshawa attack reminds us of our collective, tragic histories...

Much has already been written by other bloggers on this terrible incident involving a lesbian couple attacked last week in Oshawa in front of their son.

My heart goes out to Jane Currie and Anji Dimitriou. For anyone who doubts that virulent homophobia isn't still a major problem in Canada, please remember this incident. This kind of violent attack is merely the most extreme form of homophobia going on out there. Taunts, homophobic slurs, sneers, rude comments, you name it, are still commonplace in most parts of Canada.

It's truly sad. It makes me angry at writers like Barbara Kay in the National Post who continue to say that the LGBT community has no shared commonalities or history, no common tragedies that bind us together like other "legitimate" minorities. Bruce had a lovely response to Kay's words on the weekend (it was his post that alerted me to Kay's column, as I don't normally read the National Post on a daily basis if I can help it.)

Last week, Kay wrote: "African-Americans, Jews, aboriginals, the Roma people and other historically disadvantaged ethnic or racial groups experience their collective memory through the narratives they inherit from their parents and grandparents and ancestors. Indeed, they are a true identity group because they have a collective history and common memories. The sufferings they endured are directly related to who they are historically, to characteristics and events they cannot change, to their skin colour and bloodlines, to the deeds of their ancestors. Where is their commonality with individuals disconnected from the great chain of human history, whose "identity" isn't a culture, an ethnicity, a race or a civilization - just a mere sexual preference that rules out both a collective past and a collective future, the sine qua nons of a true identity group."

Yes, sadly, LGBT people don't usually learn about historic injustices committed against gays and lesbians from their parents. No, we have to seek out our history on our own, usually in isolation and confusion. In fact, I would argue that it's that sense of youthful isolation from the mainstream (and even our own families), often initially leading to despair, and sometimes eventually followed by the experience of "coming out of the closet" that binds the LGBT community. Most of us share in these experiences and are profoundly changed forever by them. I remember quite fondly the friends I made after I came out, sharing stories of the closet and the joys of finally being true to oneself.

When we hear about a lesbian couple getting bashed in Oshawa, the entire community feels their anguish and anger. We don't need to have children to pass along our history (although it obviously helps), it lives in other ways: through art, through literature, through spoken word and collective memories and culture, through LGBT organizations dedicated to chronicling the LGBT experience for future generations. I'd recommend that Barbara Kay, if she purports to be a fair journalist, make a visit to the Canadian Lesbian Gay Archives and do a little learning before she publishes again on this subject.

What constitutes an identifiable group worthy of protection from discrimination in law and hate-inspired violence? Well, if the group has historically been targeted (because of how they looked or talked or dressed or kissed, etc) for discrimination in law, hatred, harassment and/or violence, that's about it, as far as I'm concerned. Heck if that community is still being targeted today for hatred and violence, we constitute a legitimate group worthy of specific protection. Take that, Barbara Kay!

MSNBC's Keith Olbermann weighs in on Prop 8, marriage and love...

The great Keith Olbermann has a new fan in me, I must say. Even if you've long made up your mind on the issue of equal marriage, have a listen to Olbermann's great commentary on the subject. I've never watched Olbermann's show on MSNBC, but that will have to change.

It's truly sad that, based simply on some exit polls in California, that African-Americans are being "blamed" for the passage of Proposition 8. On this point, I have a couple of comments: one, it seems that the pro-equality folks failed to adequately reach out to ethnic minority communities in California during the campaign, as this commentary makes clear. Two, this isn't about race, it's about religion.

On my first point, there's no doubt that the lily white nature of most LGBT organizations and campaigns needs to change if our movement is going to broaden its support. Luckily, in Canada, we don't put minority rights to majority votes (at least yet.) Sadly, as long as America remains drunk on democracy, these kind of referenda will continue to be fought. Thus, the simple intellectual argument in favour of full equality isn't going to cut it.

I read earlier this week about an African-American man who voted for Proposition 8 who was quoted saying that the gay experience is nothing like the African-American experience as blacks are "born that way," while gays "choose" to be gay. This ignorance of the truth of queer life is astonishing. There's no doubt that the lying bigots who make up establishment religion in America and elsewhere have been successful promoting the myth that gays choose to be gay.

GAYS ARE BORN THAT WAY!

What's needed now is a greater effort among all LGBT people, especially LGBT people of colour, to educate their communities about the truth of their lives so fewer straights, like the one I mentioned above, cling to the lie that homosexuality is not a natural part of the human condition. And we also need to ensure that our movement stops being so lily white and does a better job of walking the "inclusive" talk we often preach.