Larry Kramer On Stonewall Boycott

"Don't listen to the crazies. For some reason there is a group of 'activists' that insists on maintaining their prime importance and participation during this riot. Unfortunately there seems no one left alive to say 'it wasn't that way at all,' or 'who are or where the fuck were you.' As with so much history there is no way to 'prove' a lot of stuff, which allows artists such as yourself (and me I might add) to take essences and attempt to find and convey meaning and truth. I sincerely hope this boycott your film shit peters out. We are not dealing with another 'Cruising' here. Keeping your film from being seen is only hurting ourselves. Good luck and thank you for your passion." - Larry Kramer, responding to the Facebook page of Stonewall director Roland Emmerich.

TRAILER: About Ray

Via Vanity Fair:

With transgender people more visible than ever in the media and in everyday life, more trans people have been able, at younger ages, to begin their own transitions. In the new drama About Ray we see the way a family is rocked, as daughter Ramona (Elle Fanning) begins the process of becoming Ray. Despite the title, the film is not just about Ray—Ray’s mother (Naomi Watts), father (Tate Donovan), and grandmother (Susan Sarandon) are all deeply impacted by his identity. Ray may have finally found a way to become who he truly is, but finding that understanding in his own family may be a much greater challenge.

PETITION: Boycott Stonewall Movie

Variety reports:

"A historically accurate film about the Stonewall Riots would center the stories of queer and gender-noncomforming people of color like Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson," a MoveOn petition reads. "Not relegate them to background characters in the service of a white cis-male fictional protagonist." The trailer for Roland Emmerich's film about the 1969 Stonewall riots just debuted online on Tuesday, but it's already sparked controversy among the LGBT community for its portrayal of the start of the gay-rights movement. The preview presents a white man as the centerpiece of the movie, showing a character named Danny (Jeremy Irvine) arriving in New York City, where he meets the gay community on Christopher Street and is radicalized by his experiences with them at the Stonewall Inn. A MoveOn petition aimed at director Roland Emmerich, himself openly gay, urges those who sign it to boycott the movie "for erasing the contributions of of-color queer and gender non-comforming activists."

So far the petition has over 14,000 signatures.

UPDATE: Director Roland Emmerich has responded on Facebook:

When I first learned about the Stonewall Riots through my work with the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center, I was struck that the circumstances that lead to LGBT youth homelessness today are pretty much the same as they were 45 years ago. The courageous actions of everyone who fought against injustice in 1969 inspired me to tell a compelling, fictionalized drama of those days centering on homeless LGBT youth, specifically a young midwestern gay man who is kicked out of his home for his sexuality and comes to New York, befriending the people who are actively involved in the events leading up to the riots and the riots themselves. I understand that following the release of our trailer there have been initial concerns about how this character’s involvement is portrayed, but when this film - which is truly a labor of love for me - finally comes to theaters, audiences will see that it deeply honors the real-life activists who were there — including Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and Ray Castro — and all the brave people who sparked the civil rights movement which continues to this day. We are all the same in our struggle for acceptance.

Matt Baume On Stonewall

TRAILER: Deadpool

TIME recaps:

“One thing that never survives this place is a sense of humor,” evil sidekick Ajax, played by Ed Skrein, tells Ryan Reynolds’ character Wade Wilson, a.k.a Deadpool, while strapping him onto a gurney. “We’ll see about that, Posh Spice.” Wilson deadpans. If the first official trailer for the eagerly-awaited Marvel movie Deadpool is any indication, the movie promises just as many laughs as it does thrills. The red band trailer, which begins with the cancer diagnosis which prompts Wilson to volunteer for the genetic experimentation program that gives him his superpowers (including an inability to be killed), is an action-packed blur of gunshots, punches, smashed cars and…more jokes.

Kevin Bacon: We Need More Naked Men

TRAILER: Stonewall

Clip recap:

STONEWALL is a drama about a fictional young man caught up during the 1969 Stonewall Riots. Danny Winters (Jeremy Irvine) is forced to leave behind friends and loved ones when he is kicked out of his parent’s home and flees to New York. Alone in Greenwich Village, homeless and destitute, he befriends a group of street kids who soon introduce him to the local watering hole The Stonewall Inn; however, this shady, mafia-run club is far from a safe-haven. As Danny and his friends experience discrimination, endure atrocities and are repeatedly harassed by the police, we see a rage begin to build. This emotion runs through Danny and the entire community of young gays, lesbians and drag queens who populate the Stonewall Inn and erupts in a storm of anger. With the toss of a single brick, a riot ensues and a crusade for equality is born.

(Tipped by JMG reader Adam)

TRAILER: The Intern

Via USA Today:

If you thought that Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson’s Google-sponsored The Internship would be the last time Hollywood explored “old people as interns are hilarious,” well, you’d be wrong. But we have to say that The Intern, which follows a retired and bored Robert DeNiro as he interns for uber-boss Anne Hathaway, looks nothing like The Internship, which is promising. It’s also written and directed by Nancy Meyers, who gave us such gems as Something’s Gotta Give and The Holiday, which is even more promising. All in all the first trailer for the movie gives us the feeling that it’s kind of like a reverse Devil Wears Prada, but everyone’s nice. We’ll see how that works out for them.

TEASER: Zoolander 2

Rowdy Roddy Piper Dies At Age 61

TMZ reports:

Wrestling legend "Rowdy" Roddy Piper has died at the age of 61 ... TMZ Sports has learned. Piper -- born Roderick George Toombs -- died from cardiac arrest in his sleep at his home in Hollywood on Thursday night. He was discovered on Friday. Piper was a wrestling icon -- one of the biggest stars in the WWE back in the '80s, and even wrestled in "Wrestlemania I" back in 1985 ... squaring off against Hulk Hogan and Mr. T. Roddy's rep tells us, "I am devastated at this news. Rod was a good friend as well as a client and one of the most generous, sincere and authentic people I have ever known. This is a true loss to us all." Piper had been diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma in 2006, but last November he said he was cancer free. A family source tells us he was "cancer free" at the time of his death.

TRAILER: The 33

The Guardian recaps:

You would suppose that the rescue of a bunch of miners buried deep underground and facing certain death would be perfect source material for a major motion picture, and you’d be right: the story of the 2010 Chilean mining disaster has been shepherded on to the big screen in (relatively) short order. And now the trailer for The 33 is out, we can get a sense of what’s transpired. First things first, this film is in English – or at least the heavily accented variety that makes everyone sound a little like a 40s cartoon character. We also know that this film will contain some of the corniest dialogue ever minted – “that’s not a rock, that’s the heart of the mountain – and she finally broke!” – delivered in Antonio Banderas’ best breathy quaver. On the other hand, even in this snippet form, it looks like the scenes of actual cataclysm are efficiently mounted. But however it plays, the main thing is the Chilean miners story is one of those chestburstingly amazing things that actually happened, and a film would have to be completely awful to mess that up. Never mind if they say cheesy things on the way.

Jurassic World: High Heels Edition

TRAILER: Spectre

Via the BBC:

The first full-length trailer for the 24th official James Bond film, Spectre, has been released online. The two-and-a-half minute clip - which sees Daniel Craig reprise his role as the superspy for a fourth time - gives a closer look at the film after a teaser was released in March. Featuring car chases, exploding planes and shady crime organisations, it bares all the hallmarks of classic Bond. Spectre will be released in UK cinemas on 26 October. The new trailer begins with a first look at Ralph Fiennes in his new role as MI6 boss M, questioning Bond about a rogue mission to Mexico City.

TRAILER: Attack On Titan

Screen Rants recaps:

Attack on Titan features an all-Japanese cast and will only receive a limited theatrical release in North America, courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment, so the marketing materials so far have all been in Japanese. For those who had difficulty following the events of the previous trailer, we can now offer the first Attack on Titan trailer with English subtitles, which introduces the premise and the main cast of characters. The visual effects in this trailer reflect the movie’s modest budget, but nonetheless the Titans look very creepy, with their blank eyes and massive mouths (all the better to eat you with). As the trailer explains, the Titans can only be killed by attacking a weak spot on the back of their neck, which the Survey Corps can reach using a grappling system calling Omni-directional Mobility Gear.

TRAILER: Legend

Entertainment Weekly recaps:

Back in the ’60s, no British gangsters were more feared — or more famous — than London criminals Ronnie and Reggie Kray. Mad Max: Fury Road star Tom Hardy portrays both twin brothers in the new film Legend which is writen directed by Brian Helgeland (Payback, A Knight’s Tale, 42) and co-stars an impressive array of British acting talent, including David Thewlis, Paul Bettany, Christopher Eccleston, Emily Browning, and Taron Egerton from Kingsman: Secret Service, as well as token Yank, Chazz Palminteri. Legend is on limited release from Oct. 2 and will then platform out around the country.

TRAILER: Fantastic Four

The AV Club is disappointed:

This final trailer in advance of the film’s upcoming release isn’t all that different in tone or style from the first trailer we got back in January. We’re still mining that “dark ‘n’ gritty” vein, apparently until all the darkness and grittiness has been extracted, and nothing is left except for two hours of celluloid, bereft of even its gloom, a blank void upon the silver screen, staring back at you as you stare at it. On a more positive note, we get a better glimpse of Doctor Doom here, so that’s something. Also Michael B. Jordan’s youngest Storm gets to make a statement that vaguely resembles a joke—maybe there’s even some actual smiling at some point in this film? August 7 will finally reveal the truth.

TRAILER: Suicide Squad

More than ten million views overnight.

TRAILER: Batman v Superman

TRAILER: Air

Via The Wrap:

Norman Reedus and Djimon Hounsou guard the last humans on the planet after breathable air becomes non-existent in the new trailer for “Air,” a science fiction film produced by “Walking Dead” creator Robert Kirkman. In the trailer, the actors play two engineers tasked with protecting humans in air-tight coffins who are the “last remnants of human civilization.” When one of the facilities doesn’t check in, it becomes clear that something is about to go wrong. A fire breaks out, and the electricity fails, with 59 minutes of reserve air left. “1:59” is a time viewers see a lot throughout the trailer. While saving mankind, they must preserve their own lives as well.

Omar Sharif Dies At Age 83

The BBC reports:

Actor Omar Sharif, best known for his roles in classic films Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago, has died aged 83. Egypt-born Sharif won two Golden Globe awards and an Oscar nomination for his role as Sherif Ali in David Lean's 1962 epic Lawrence of Arabia. He won a further Golden Globe three years later for Doctor Zhivago. Earlier this year, his agent confirmed he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. His agent Steve Kenis said: "He suffered a heart attack this afternoon in a hospital in Cairo." Other notable roles came opposite Barbra Streisand in her first film Funny Girl and as Julie Andrews' lover in spy thriller The Tamarind Seed. He also got to play a series of real-life figures, among them Genghis Khan and the Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara.