Arts & Culture :: Movies

Season of award contenders

Season of award contenders

  • by David Lamble
  • Nov 13, 2018

This time of year is rich with wannabe Golden Globe and Oscar contenders, films that are looking for some box-office love and awards-season hardware.

Divine diva

Divine diva

  • by Jason Victor Serinus
  • Nov 6, 2018

Tom Volf's new documentary "Maria by Callas" is essential viewing for anyone who cares about classical music, opera, the human psyche, or the biases of American media.

SF Transgender Film Fest inspires us

SF Transgender Film Fest inspires us

  • by Sari Staver
  • Nov 6, 2018

The opening-night feature of the SF Transgender Fim Fest is about performer Marsha "Pay it No Mind" Johnson's role.

Filipinos & other Asian American lives

Filipinos & other Asian American lives

  • by David Lamble
  • Nov 6, 2018

Presenting the 2nd Cinematografo International Film Festival. This Asian American-themed event presents an array of films and videos, many with LGBTQ content.

'Conversion therapy' & searing drama

'Conversion therapy' & searing drama

  • by David-Elijah Nahmod
  • Oct 30, 2018

Based on the memoir by Garrard Conley, "Boy Erased" is an emotionally riveting new film about a young man in Arkansas, a pastor's son, who goes to a conversion therapy camp.

Orbiting the planet Freddie Mercury

Orbiting the planet Freddie Mercury

  • by David-Elijah Nahmod
  • Oct 30, 2018

Rami Malek beautifully channels the late rock star Freddie Mercury in "Bohemian Rhapsody," the new biopic of Queen, the band Mercury (1946-91) fronted.

November at the Castro Theatre

November at the Castro Theatre

  • by David Lamble
  • Oct 30, 2018

The Castro Theatre waits until Turkey Month to get back to its best rep programing.

Emotional breakdown in Montana

Emotional breakdown in Montana

  • by David Lamble
  • Oct 23, 2018

The subject of the new drama "Wildlife" (opening Friday) is achingly familiar to many LGBTQ filmgoers.

Home fires burning

Home fires burning

  • by David Lamble
  • Oct 23, 2018

Directed by Glenn Silber, "The War at Home" captures how a generation of students at the University of Wisconsin/Madison was radicalized by school authorities complicit in the American war machine.

Melissa McCarthy shines in 'Forgive'

Melissa McCarthy shines in 'Forgive'

  • by David-Elijah Nahmod
  • Oct 23, 2018

Best-known for her appearances in over-the-top comedies such as "Life of the Party," Melissa McCarthy is given a rare opportunity to play a dramatic role in the new film "Can You Ever Forgive Me?"

Partnership supreme: Dietrich & von Sternberg

Partnership supreme: Dietrich & von Sternberg

  • by Tavo Amador
  • Oct 17, 2018

Josef von Sternberg and Marlene Dietrich had a distinctive collaboration. Their six pictures remain visually stunning, erotic, romantic, and atmospheric.

It was a dark and stormy night

It was a dark and stormy night

  • by David-Elijah Nahmod
  • Oct 17, 2018

Director James Whale's "The Old Dark House" (1932) has recently been released on BluRay in a newly restored and remastered print.

Pledging allegiance

Pledging allegiance

  • by David Lamble
  • Oct 17, 2018

First-time writer-director Ike Barinholtz's just-released film is the hyper-confrontational, extremely dark, Thanksgiving Day-themed comedy "The Oath."

Father, son & addiction

Father, son & addiction

  • by David Lamble
  • Oct 17, 2018

The fall film season has two fresh boys-on-drugs dramas: "Ben is Back" (out in early December) and the subject of this review, "Beautiful Boy" (opens Friday).