Too Bad for Cats

Did you ever play that game Lifeboat, where you have one lifeboat and you have to decide who gets to jump into it? You know, priest vs. pregnant mother vs. sailor vs. rich banker vs. yadda, yadda, yadda?

There’s a similar thing called the trolley problem in situational ethics. Well, MIT is working on a database to help self-driving cars play their own version of the who-to-save game. It makes one wonder how we’ll program (teach?) all sorts of machines we will come to rely on, and how those machines in turn will have to program (teach?) ethics to that which they create. On and on… Our ethical codes are handed down to us via our myths and stories, philosophies and laws, traditions and taboos. However, the idealism they aspire toward is often left unexercised in everyday practice. Will AI face that same conundrum? In the article on the project at The Economist we learn that, sadly, cats don’t so well in this process. Not sure about kittens.

Hitchcock made a movie called Lifeboat based on a script by John Steinbeck and featuring the lovely Tallaullah Bankhead. Maybe we need a new version of Lifeboat now that we have ruined the planet. A movie featuring the Terminator, C3PO, The Jetsons’ Rosie, a Dalek and the Lost in Space robot. Maybe they should decide if we humans are worthy of shooting into the stars.

 

#RobotEthics

https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2018/10/27/whom-should-self-driving-cars-protect-in-an-accident

http://moralmachine.mit.edu/

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QFest Announces Winning Films

It was my privilege this year to serve on the Jury for QFest, Philadelphia’s 19th annual GLBTQ film festival. Along with two other judges, I was tasked with viewing the documentaries. All told, I ended up seeing about twenty films, the ones competing in our category as well as some of the feature films I mentioned in previous posts.

Our Jury for Best Documentary faced a particularly tough challenge this year, choosing among excellent films that dealt with such topics as marriage equality, gay and lesbian parenting, political change, aging in our community and surviving hate crimes. _All_ the films deserve praise, and the Jury hopes you will seek them out and learn from the wisdom and insight they offer. One of the films stood out in particular for its rich historic detail, its fine cinematography and its insight into how our understanding of equality has changed over the last sixty years. All of this embodied by the story of one woman’s life: that of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Alice Walker. We were happy to award Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth, the 2013 QFest Award for Best Documentary Film.

The full list of winners is below, courtesy of the QFest site at http://www.qfest.com/index.cfm .

QFEST ANNOUNCES THE 2013 FILM WINNERS

OFFICIAL JURY AWARDS
BEST FEATURE: Free Fall, directed by Stephan Lacant
BEDOCUMENTARY: Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth, directed by Pratibha Parmar
BEST SHORT (GAY): The Package, directed by Rafael Aidar
BEST SHORT (LESBIAN): The Kiss, directed by Filip Gieldon
FIRST TIME DIRECTOR (FEATURE): Jane Clark for Meth Head
FIRST TIME DIRECTOR (DOCUMENTARY): Marta Cunningham for Valentine Road
HONORABLE MENTION: Pamela Drynan for Where I Am

AUDIENCE AWARDS
BEST DOCUMENTARY: The New Black, directed by Yoruba Richen
BEST FEATURE: Out In the Dark, directed by Michael Mayer
BEST COMEDY: Who’s Afraid of Vagina Wolf, directed by Anna Margarita Albelo
BEST SHORT: Spooners, directed by Bryan R. Horch
HONORABLE MENTION: The Rugby Player, directed by Scott Gracheff

Qfest after-party at Tavern

The Romeo Romeo after party at Tavern featuring songs by Lexi, one of the stars.

And extra fun courtesy of a burlesque troupe.

QFest Update!

@QFest #gayfilm #QFest

Pictured: In the Name Of…

Seeing some fun movies at QFest over these hot, hot days, including a deeply symbolic Polish film called In the Name Of… about a Polish priest running a boy’s reformatory. Also saw a first-time director’s film called Love Will Tear Us Apart. It has a great soundtrack of French pop, including a French version of These Boots Were Made for Walking.

Documentary topics at QFest have ranged from a portrait of Gore Vidal to a pair of documentaries about the trials and tribulations of gay and lesbian couples creating families. Writer Robert Drake is featured in the moving Where I Am, about how he survived a brutal attack in Ireland in 1999 and was able to forgive his attackers. The New Black chronicled marriage equality politics in Maryland, while Breaking Through showcased cutting-edge queer politicians. The Invisible Men depicts the struggle of Muslim gays seeking asylum in Tel Aviv. More documentaries about Divine and Alice Walker are on my docket for the weekend. Check out the fabulous list of documentaries at http://www.qfest.com/2013-program.cfm?c=280.

QFest Film Festival Debuts with film: GBF (Gay Best Friend)

#QFest, #GBFfilm, #gayfilm

QFest Update 1: Opening Night Film and Party
July 11, 2013

Opening Movie: GBF (Gay Best Friend)

GBF is a rom-com that doesn’t quite live up to the tropes of its genre, but nevertheless gains momentum with zinger after zinger, delivered by the likes of Meghan Mullally, whose cameo as the mother of a closeted high schooler is A+ work in an otherwise B- film.

The plot is a young queer boy’s dream (nightmare?) come true: What happens when closeted twinkie Tanner is outed by his classmates and finds himself the target of three mean-girl queen bees, all of whom want him to becomes their new “gay best friend”? Will he end up a faddish accoutrement akin to a puppy dog in a purse? Hilarity ensues, naturally.

As one of the three mean girls ruling the local high school, actress Xosha Roquemore plays bitchy drama queen Caprice. She is a standout, ably delivering snappy one-liners with uzi-like indiscretion and statuesque ferocity. If ever there is a Grace Jones bio-pic, she needs to be on the director’s short list. Actor Taylor Frey steals scenes as a closeted young Mormon horn-dog who gets more action than anyone else in this comedy, which generally talks more about sex than actually depicts it. (Incidentally, both of these actors were at the Philadelphia opening night screening, and they seemed both personable and appreciative of their moment in the spotlight. See their sexy Twitter pic at http://instagram.com/p/bpjG0tPeF0/.

I can’t say the acting chops of leads Paul Iacono and Michael J. Willet were as good. Willet’s “Tanner”, the main male lead, seems especially sketched in–a comic book nerd who is never once shown reveling in his inner-geekdom. Iacono shares some funny moments with Meghan Mullaly, who plays his sometimes-helicoptering parent. Iacono and Willet both play closeted gay teens too afraid to come out on their own terms. Best-friends-turned-frenemies, the pair suffers from lack of backbone throughout the film, and their brief romantic interlude toward the end lacks any simulacrum of real spark. Don’t expect much fortitude in either character, though both certainly manage to keep the plot moving forward. The consensus among the friends I saw the movie with was that these two were outshone by their fellow cast members, which included Evanna Lynch (better known as Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter franchise) and Andrea Bowen (who played Susan’s daughter on Desperate Housewives). And let’s not forget the school’s reigning diva, played by Sasha Pieterse. As “Fawcette”, a Farrah-like blonde, she displays the prowess of an actress of promise, coming closest among all her cast-mates to layering her character with the kind of depth that typified John Hughes’ teen movies in the 1980s–perhaps the Golden Age of teen films.

Indeed, GBF’s score borrows a LOT from that era, most notably in the music of the ’80s and early ’90s, with songs by Spandau Ballet, Erasure and Blur on the soundtrack. But unlike Hughes, who so masterfully wove the music of his era into the textual fabric of his films, thereby adding gravitas to his story lines–here the music seems mere afterthought. That’s too bad. A few quiet moments and some genuine tears would have made all the zany bitchiness far more poignant. That’s brave water to tread in a high-school comedy. But even though Director Darren Stein didn’t get it 100% right the first time around, these characters deserve revisiting in their college years–hopefully under direction that will make even more of the snappy, witty, and always clever storytelling of writer George Northy. Some genuine pathos would make the comedy stand out in sharper relief. I especially want to see what happens to Taylor Frey’s closeted Mormon, who morphs into a gung-ho gay boy by movie’s end.

The film is a fun romp worth seeing with friends. You’ll find some laughs and you may want to hit rewind a time or two to take notes on all the saucy repartee. As the kids say these days, “Whatev, bitches!”

Director: Darren Stein. Soon to be released theatrically in LA and NYC. Distributor TBA.

Check out this video trailer on YouTube:

http://youtu.be/Z6DJSGrfNbk

 

PS–The after party…
…was a lot of fun. I met drag queen Timmy Tenderloin, and hung out with friends Rex, Javier, Mario, Thom Cardwell, @Michael Busza, @Brian Gannon. @Joe’l Ludovich, @Jhett Bond, and others at LIT ULTRA BAR in Northern Liberties. A great start to QFest! The theme was a prom night extravaganza, and it was a helluva show with drag queens, drag kings and a photo booth with a cute Mini Cooper (now only if Minnie Driver had been driving the Mini Cooper. Oh well.) Here is a gratuitous picture of Timmy Tenderloin, the drag king, at Philly’s Gay Pride Parade. I stole this off the Internet. At the party, in real life, I took Timmy’s picture weirdly distorted through an ice sculpture–wish I had it, but I took it on Timmy’s camera, not mine.

Tags: Xosha Roquemore, Taylor Frey, GBF, G.B.F., QFest, Philadelphia, Film, Gay, Queer, 80s music, 90s music, George Northy, Darrewn Stein, Timmy Tenderloin, Philadelphia Gay Calendar,

PPS–File under Extra Adorable. Taylor Frey of GBF helps kids fight obesity by teaching them dance moves from Hairspray. How freaking cute is THAT?!

http://broadwayworld.com/article/Photo-Flash-Mara-Davi-Taylor-Frey-and-More-Teach-PS-221-Students-in-Brooklyn-20130430

Okay, enough pics, enough gossip. Go get your QFest tickets. Pronto! If you missed GBF, it shows again this weekend. http://www.qfest.com/film-details.cfm?id=14588

QFest Film Festival Debuts with film: GBF (Gay Best Friend)

#QFest, #GBFfilm, #gayfilm

QFest Update 1: Opening Night Film and Party
July 11, 2013

Opening Movie: GBF (Gay Best Friend)

GBF is a rom-com that doesn’t quite live up to the tropes of its genre, but nevertheless gains momentum with zinger after zinger, delivered by the likes of Meghan Mullally, whose cameo as the mother of a closeted high schooler is A+ work in an otherwise B- film.

The plot is a young queer boy’s dream (nightmare?) come true: What happens when closeted twinkie Tanner is outed by his classmates and finds himself the target of three mean-girl queen bees, all of whom want him to becomes their new “gay best friend”? Will he end up a faddish accoutrement akin to a puppy dog in a purse? Hilarity ensues, naturally.

As one of the three mean girls ruling the local high school, actress Xosha Roquemore plays bitchy drama queen Caprice. She is a standout, ably delivering snappy one-liners with uzi-like indiscretion and statuesque ferocity. If ever there is a Grace Jones bio-pic, she needs to be on the director’s short list. Actor Taylor Frey steals scenes as a closeted young Mormon horn-dog who gets more action than anyone else in this comedy, which generally talks more about sex than actually depicts it. (Incidentally, both of these actors were at the Philadelphia opening night screening, and they seemed both personable and appreciative of their moment in the spotlight. See their sexy Twitter pic at http://instagram.com/p/bpjG0tPeF0/.

I can’t say the acting chops of leads Paul Iacono and Michael J. Willet were as good. Willet’s “Tanner”, the main male lead, seems especially sketched in–a comic book nerd who is never once shown reveling in his inner-geekdom. Iacono shares some funny moments with Meghan Mullaly, who plays his sometimes-helicoptering parent. Iacono and Willet both play closeted gay teens too afraid to come out on their own terms. Best-friends-turned-frenemies, the pair suffers from lack of backbone throughout the film, and their brief romantic interlude toward the end lacks any simulacrum of real spark. Don’t expect much fortitude in either character, though both certainly manage to keep the plot moving forward. The consensus among the friends I saw the movie with was that these two were outshone by their fellow cast members, which included Evanna Lynch (better known as Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter franchise) and Andrea Bowen (who played Susan’s daughter on Desperate Housewives). And let’s not forget the school’s reigning diva, played by Sasha Pieterse. As “Fawcette”, a Farrah-like blonde, she displays the prowess of an actress of promise, coming closest among all her cast-mates to layering her character with the kind of depth that typified John Hughes’ teen movies in the 1980s–perhaps the Golden Age of teen films.

Indeed, GBF’s score borrows a LOT from that era, most notably in the music of the ’80s and early ’90s, with songs by Spandau Ballet, Erasure and Blur on the soundtrack. But unlike Hughes, who so masterfully wove the music of his era into the textual fabric of his films, thereby adding gravitas to his story lines–here the music seems mere afterthought. That’s too bad. A few quiet moments and some genuine tears would have made all the zany bitchiness far more poignant. That’s brave water to tread in a high-school comedy. But even though Director Darren Stein didn’t get it 100% right the first time around, these characters deserve revisiting in their college years–hopefully under direction that will make even more of the snappy, witty, and always clever storytelling of writer George Northy. Some genuine pathos would make the comedy stand out in sharper relief. I especially want to see what happens to Taylor Frey’s closeted Mormon, who morphs into a gung-ho gay boy by movie’s end.

The film is a fun romp worth seeing with friends. You’ll find some laughs and you may want to hit rewind a time or two to take notes on all the saucy repartee. As the kids say these days, “Whatev, bitches!”

Director: Darren Stein. Soon to be released theatrically in LA and NYC. Distributor TBA.

Check out this video trailer on YouTube:

http://youtu.be/Z6DJSGrfNbk

 

PS–The after party…
…was a lot of fun. I met drag queen Timmy Tenderloin, and hung out with friends Rex, Javier, Mario, Thom Cardwell, @Michael Busza, @Brian Gannon. @Joe’l Ludovich, @Jhett Bond, and others at LIT ULTRA BAR in Northern Liberties. A great start to QFest! The theme was a prom night extravaganza, and it was a helluva show with drag queens, drag kings and a photo booth with a cute Mini Cooper (now only if Minnie Driver had been driving the Mini Cooper. Oh well.) Here is a gratuitous picture of Timmy Tenderloin, the drag king, at Philly’s Gay Pride Parade. I stole this off the Internet. At the party, in real life, I took Timmy’s picture weirdly distorted through an ice sculpture–wish I had it, but I took it on Timmy’s camera, not mine.

Tags: Xosha Roquemore, Taylor Frey, GBF, G.B.F., QFest, Philadelphia, Film, Gay, Queer, 80s music, 90s music, George Northy, Darrewn Stein, Timmy Tenderloin, Philadelphia Gay Calendar,

PPS–File under Extra Adorable. Taylor Frey of GBF helps kids fight obesity by teaching them dance moves from Hairspray. How freaking cute is THAT?!

http://broadwayworld.com/article/Photo-Flash-Mara-Davi-Taylor-Frey-and-More-Teach-PS-221-Students-in-Brooklyn-20130430

Okay, enough pics, enough gossip. Go get your QFest tickets. Pronto! If you missed GBF, it shows again this weekend. http://www.qfest.com/film-details.cfm?id=14588

Man of Steel: Good, But Room for Improvement

#ManofSteel

(Spoilers)

You’ve either seen it or you haven’t, so I am going to go ahead and review Man of Steel, spoilers and all. I’ll assume you’ve seen it so I don’t have to write a tedious plot summary.

I liked the Man of Steel film, but I think its smaller moments were its best ones–like the great scene with Diane Lane as Ma Kent helping young Clark to master his X-Ray Vision and Super Hearing when his senses suddenly overwhelm him. We’ve not seen that moment before.

A fresh spin was also put on the death of Pa Kent, but I didn’t buy it, though I liked Kevin Costner in the role. What made Pa Kent’s death in the comics and in the Christopher Reeve film so powerful was that Clark’s powers could do nothing to stop an aging man dying of a coronary. In Man of Steel, Clark _allows_ his father to sacrifice himself during a tornado to avoid “outing” Clark’s big secret, which is what a public, super-powered rescue would ensure. However, this isn’t in character with any iteration of Clark in any comic, TV show, film or radio serial I’ve ever come across. Clark’s more than capable of thinking on his feet and he can also move those feet at frickin’ Super Speed. In the blink of an eye, Pa could have been saved. If Pa Kent needed to die (and most versions of the mythos share this turn), he should have been done in some other way. Making this moment worse is that we know Clark’s secret had been exposed years ago when he rescued drowning classmates. What’s up with that? He’ll jump to save classmates but won’t rescue his own pop? Great Caesar’s Ghost!

Henry Cavill is an able actor, and perhaps the most heroic-looking incarnation ever to to step inside the blue long johns. He makes Clark Kent a formidable presence. What I also wished I had seen was a moment for Clark where his powers actually seemed like fun to him, because that makes the price he pays for his otherness all the more double-edged. The DC/Nolan films in general have been overly dark, while the best of the Marvel films have been able to combine levity, gravitas and smash-em-up storytelling in the extremely dynamic ways. And this is coming from someone who was always more a fan of DC/Just League characters than Avengers characters.

The story would also have been helped a bit if Supes had established himself on the world’s radar before Zod touched down with his plans for world domination. We needed a few good more good deeds to helped people wonder, “Who is this guy?” Metropolis needed to be more of a character, rooting for their local hero [see any Spider-Man film]. Instead, it was simply the wrestling ring for an alien vs. alien smackdown. And once you’ve seen one skyscraper crumble like cardboard, seeing twenty more tends to dull the impact. The finale was not in the same league as the climax of The Avengers.

Also, can we PLEASE put Zod to sleep for awhile? Why did we have to tell that story again? There are more interesting characters we have not yet seen on film. Braniac shrinking Kandor would be fun. In fact, I’d love to see Superman films open like James Bond films: a 5 or 10 minute opening segment where we see him getting out of some jam before the real story begins–something like tying up Toyman, outwitting the Prankster, or tricking Mister Mxyzptlk into returning to his home dimension. Open light. Then bring on the dark stuff.

http://www.kellymcquain.wordpress.com

Read more about local superheroes: https://kellymcquain.wordpress.com/2012/07/22/from-july-8th-2012-new-philadelphia-inquirer-column/

How soon will Supes meet Bats on the big screen?
http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/20/showbiz/comic-con-superman-batman/index.html?iid=article_sidebar

Qfest Film Festival

Tonight is the planning meeting for QFest, which will be taking up much of my July, as I will be helping them again behind the scenes–more on that later. Maybe I’ll see some of you there? Expect updates.

For those not in the know, Qfest is an international film festival highlighting the best independent queer films out there. Get your festival pass now!

http://www.qfest.com/index.cfm

Philly in Cinema, Circa 2012

This summer the Philadelphia heatwave was only partially caused by global warming. I think a little of it had to do with all the celebrities in town. Just a few weeks ago the Golden Palace Chinese restaurant around the corner from my house stood in for NY’s Chinatown as Colin Farrell shot scenes for a new movie there.

Days ago, the bocci court three blocks away was the site of a scene with Harrison Ford in yet another upcoming film, Paranoia. Indiana Jones is here with Liam Hemsworth and several other stars, including Richard Dreyfus and Gary Oldman. Liam brought along fiancée Miley Cyrus, and they’ve been quite the loving couple around Center City. Readers of this blog know I like to hang out at the M garden bar at the Morris Hotel–in fact, I was just there last night catching up with writer-photographer Montgomery Maxton. Evidently Liam, Miley and their pooch are staying nearby, as evidenced by these photos on M’s facebook page.
The Italian Market, my neighborhood, is also frequently used in It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, naturally, as the gang’s fictitious South Philly bar is supposedly located nearby.
Suffice to say, every so often I’ll turn a corner to find equipment trucks and catering vans elbowing in among the tightly packed streets as some new scene is being shot. The Philadelphia Film Office’s tax incentive program keeps paying off big time, and I love it.
Philly has a couple film festivals throughout the year, including QFest, a leading GLBTQ film festival sponsored by TLA Video. In fact, my friend Jim Tushinski was here last month for it, screening his work-in-progress bio-documentary, Dirty Poole.

So if you live in Philly like me, keep your eyes open for the stars. If you live somewhere else, keep your eyes peeled for Philadelphia on the big screen. The next time you think you’re looking at New York or Chicago, you just might be looking at the City of Brotherly Love.

More photos at: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151005390719077&set=a.10151005390654077.431669.295889004076&type=3&permPage=1