Arts & Entertainment
Big screen escapism
Hollywood kicks into high gear with its end-of-year major award contenders
Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson in ‘Saving Mr. Banks.’ (Photo courtesy Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
This year’s holiday film releases have little direct LGBT content, but still offer many delights for gay audiences.
Opening Dec. 20 is “Saving Mr. Banks,” the story behind the making of the movie “Mary Poppins.” Walt Disney (played with great gusto by Tom Hanks) has promised his daughters that he will make a movie of the beloved book by P.L. Travers. There’s only one problem — the equally curmudgeonly Travers (Emma Thompson) does not trust Disney to treat her story with the respect she feels it deserves.
He finally wears down her resistance, but the two continue to spar during the production of the movie (Travers, for example, hates the animated sequences). The film also features Colin Farrell as Travers’ alcoholic banker father (seen in flashbacks) and Jason Schwartzman and B.J. Novak as the Sherman brothers who wrote the famous score.
Award-winning filmmaker David O. Russell (“Silver Linings Playbook,” “Three Kings” and “Flirting with Disaster”) is the director and co-writer of “American Hustle,” a fictionalized version of the ABSCAM scandals that rocked American politics in the late 1970s. The film stars Christian Bale as con man Irving Rosenfeld, with Jennifer Lawrence as his unpredictable wife and Amy Adams as Sydney Prosser, his seductive British partner in crime. Opening in D.C. today, the movie also stars Bradley Cooper as a wild FBI agent and Jeremy Renner as a corrupt New Jersey politician.
Another fact-based tale of corruption, “The Wolf of Wall Street” opens on Wednesday (Christmas). The latest opus by Martin Scorsese stars Leonardo DiCaprio and tracks the rise and fall of wealthy stockbroker Jordan Belfort.
Also on Christmas Day, “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom” opens in wide release. Based on the late leader’s autobiography, the film chronicles Mandela’s life from his childhood in a rural village through his years in prison to his triumphal inauguration as the first democratically elected President of South Africa. The movie stars Idris Elba as Nelson Mandela and Naomie Harris as Winnie Madikizela. At the film’s London premiere on Dec. 6, Elba announced the news of Mandela’s death to a shocked audience.
Also opening Wednesday is the gripping family drama “August: Osage County.” With a screenplay by Tracy Letts based on his Pulitzer Prize-winning play, the film chronicles the turbulent lives of the strong-willed women of the Weston clan who return home when their father Beverly (Sam Shepard) goes missing. Meryl Streep (likely to rack up another Oscar nomination for her performance) stars as the ailing, but still monstrous, matriarch Violet, with Julia Roberts, Julianne Nicholson and Juliette Lewis as her three long-suffering daughters. The powerful ensemble cast is rounded out by Dermot Mulroney, Abigail Breslin, Ewan McGregor, Margo Martindale, Chris Cooper and Benedict Cumberbatch.
The increasingly popular Cumberbatch will also be heard as the voice of the dragon Smaug in “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” which opens Wednesday and features the return of openly gay actor Ian McKellen as the wizard Gandalf. On a lighter note, Ben Stiller takes on the title role in “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” a remake of the Hollywood classic based on the famous story by James Thurber.
In addition to these new releases, some movies with LGBT content that opened earlier in the season will no doubt linger on area screens through the holiday season.
“Philomena” tells the true story of an Irish woman (Dame Judi Dench) who was forced to give her son up for adoption. With the help of disgraced journalist Martin Sixsmith (Steve Coogan), she discovers that her son was a closeted advisor to President Ronald Reagan who died of AIDS.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DBPqcp6Hc4
Also inspired by real events, “The Dallas Buyer’s Club” tells the story of Ron Woodroof (Matthew McConaughey), a homophobic straight man who is diagnosed with AIDS. With the help of transsexual Rayon (a bravura performance by Jared Leto), Woodroof fights the medical establishment by smuggling HIV drugs over the US border.
Also of note, finely honed performances by Stanley Tucci (Caesar) and Elizabeth Banks (Effie) blend high camp and high drama in highlighting the darkening political atmosphere of “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.”
Finally, gay playwright and activist Langston Hughes’ perennial holiday stage classic “Black Nativity” has been brought to cinematic life by director Kasi Lemmons (“Eve’s Bayou”). Hughes’ Christmas pageant is framed by a modern-day story of a troubled youth who embarks on an unexpected and inspiring journey. Already in local theaters, the film features high-wattage performances by Jennifer Hudson, Forest Whitaker and Angela Bassett.
The Washington Blade held the seventh annual Pride on the Pier at The Wharf DC on Saturday, June 13.
(Washington Blade photos by Landon Shackelford)
The 2026 Lost River Pride Festival was held on the scenic grounds of the Lost River Farmers Market in Lost City, W.Va. on Saturday, June 13. Headliner Tom Goss performed at the festival and gave a second performance at the nearby Guesthouse Lost River.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
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Books
David Archuleta on Mormon faith, ‘Idol,’ more in new book
Unique memoir details religious upbringing, coming out
‘Devout: Losing My Faith to Find Myself’
By David Archuleta
c.2026, Gallery Books
$29/290 pages
So just make up your mind already.
The decision is very much in your control – or, at least that’s how it’s supposed to be. It’ll be your future, your path, and seizing it may not just be necessary, but mandatory. It’s your life, and no one can live it for you. As in the new memoir “Devout” by David Archuleta, that goes for career and for love, too.
Born to parents who both had musical careers before they wed, David Archuleta remembers an early childhood growing up in a Hispanic Mormon community in Florida, where kin was always nearby. He was six when his parents moved the immediate family to Utah; the first thing he remembers about that is the snow, and how it was so cold, it burned.
Because music was in his blood, Archuleta grew up singing and dancing, often with his mother whom he calls “my rock.” It was his father, however, who encouraged him to perform; first, with a gentle push, then a shove toward a career Archuleta didn’t really want.
But he did want to make his father happy, so he went along with the contests, embarrassing meet-and-greets with stars, and uncomfortable introductions. Slowly, though, performing became more fun, and Archuleta made friends.
Meanwhile, back home, everything was breaking apart. A “family friend” whom Archuleta refuses to name accused his father of abuse. He was exonerated, but it affected the family’s closeness and they stopped being affectionate.
That was a painful backdrop to Archuleta’s soaring career, his appearances on Star Search, friendships with other rising stars, his runner-up spot on “American Idol,” tours, and recording contracts. His father kept pushing him.
But there was one thing missing.
Since he was a boy, Archuleta had known that he was attracted to men, but his Mormon faith taught him that that was unacceptable. Kissing, his abuelita said, was wrong. He tried hard to date girls, in the most chaste way. Anything past that was against God – and anything at all with a man was unthinkable.
Though it absolutely favors his personal life and dwells on it a bit too much, “Devout” strikes an otherwise nice balance between that, author David Archuleta’s career, his sexuality, and his faith. The latter two are loaded with controversy.
You don’t need to be Mormon to fully understand the faith part; Archuleta offers non-Mormons a brief education, so readers can see the importance of the Church’s teachings in his life and why he felt the need to abandon it as his understanding of his bisexuality grew. It’s emotionally raw and honest, but also so respectful that it almost bears re-reading. Such candor and the heart-on-his-sleeve tone you’ll sense are features in the entire book, alongside Archuleta’s family’s struggles and his learning to strike out alone.
It’s harmonious in more ways than one, and fans will be happy.
So, too, will anyone who wants a unique memoir with a dose of faith, or someone who’s an “American Idol”watcher. Find “Devout” and be sure to share. You won’t mind.
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