armistead maupin Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Over on Hollywood Elsewhere, Jeffrey Wells has really stirred things up by questioning the motives of Robin Williams gay character in The Night Listener. In the film, Williams' character, Gabriel, a late-night radio host, strikes up a long-distance phone friendship with a 14-year-old child abuse victim dying of AIDS, after the boy's memoir is passed his way by his editor. Wells sprayed the hose on the proverbial hornet's nest with this bit: "I haven't read any reviews that have brought this up, so I guess I'll have to: a 50ish gay man developing a fondness for a 14 year-old boy over the phone -- hello? -- feels icky."

The debate in the comments on this has ranged from people stalwartly defending Wells' POV on the relationship, to outright accusations of homophobia, to irate gay schoolteachers taking umbrage at Wells' implication that if an older gay man has a relationship with an adolescent boy, there must be something "icky" involved. I'd love to hear what Armistead Maupin, the author of the book on which the film was based (and co-writer of the screenplay as well) would say on this subject. The book was based on real-life incidents in Maupin's own life; ergo, an implication of unsavory motives on the part of the Gabriel character is, by extension, a questioning of Maupin's own motives.

My own take on the film, in case you're wondering, is that there was nothing untoward in the relationship between Gabriel and the boy; on the contrary, I saw Gabriel as desperately lonely and in need of someone to nurture (his character is coming off the breakup of a long relationship in which he cared for his lover, who has HIV), and that his interactions toward the boy are strictly paternal. What say you, readers -- especially those who have actually seen The Night Listener? Is the relationship between Gabriel and the boy somehow "icky"? Or is Wells reading something into this that just isn't there?

We reported during Sundance that The Night Listener, Patrick Stettner's adaptation of the Armistead Maupin novel, sold North American rights to Miramax. The film, about a radio talk show host who gets involved in the tale or horrific abuse of a young listener - and then questions whether the tale, and the boy, are even real, stars Robin Williams, Toni Collette, Sandra Oh and Rory Culkin. 

Things just keep getting better and better for the flick - the film has been added as a "surprise screening" (well, it's not so much a surprise, really, as a previously unannounced engagement) to the 2006 Berlinale, which starts today. In addition to scoring a slot a the Berlinale, Indiewire notes that even before the Berlinale's all-important European Film Market, Fortissimo Films, the flick's sales co, is reporting The Night Listener has scored sales in Germany, Israel,  Taiwan, Thailand, Czech Republic, Turkey, UK, Australia, and Scandinavia - which doesn't leave too much of the free world for the film to still conquer.

 

The Night Listener is a Hitchcockian version of Shattered Glass, the story of what happens when sketchy journalism and mental instability collide. Robin Williams plays a pretentious NPR storyteller (think: Ira Glass of This American Life) who is introduced by telephone, by his publisher/agent, to a gifted young novelist named Pete.

Peter, played by Rory Culkin, has escaped a life of pornographic pedophilia imposed on him by his parents (in their basement studio), to complete the great American novel. However, he is now dying from AIDS (apparently from being raped by straight men during the making of pornos) and his dying wish is to have his story published. Given the recent "Frey" around fictionalized biographies, the story is timely.

Williams' character Gabriel, recently shaken by a breakup with his HIV-positive lover, develops a deep phone relationship with the budding novelist and his adoptive mother Donna, played by Toni Collette (who is also featured in the Sundance '06 selection Little Miss Sunshine).

As the story unfolds Gabriel starts to doubt the authenticity of Pete--and his mother's--claims. Gabriel is forced to look inward as well, knowing that he has taken many liberties in his storied, storytelling career. As you can guess, it's not enough for our protagonist to just wonder if he's being duped. Nope, he's got to hit the road and travel to Wisconsin to get to the bottom of this mystery. Cold landscapes, dank basements, dark shadows, and other creepy devices ensue.

At 90 minutes the film has a nice, suspenseful pace, and doesn't go for the cheap thrill. The tension is built while we try to understand the psychosis. Based on the book by Armistead Maupin, the story includes plenty of plot twists. Highly recommended for those who like intelligent thrillers--or Law & Order: Criminal Intent.

Others on The Night Listener: Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter was intrigued by the film, which he says "bristles with intriguing thoughts about the realm of fiction, how one loves, [and] issues of identity...". Our own James Rocchi was also impressed, calling the film "a strand of story strung out into the dark, coaxing us along as it unravels and leading us to think about who we are." Variety's David Rooney, however, was less interested in a work he calls "tediously solemn," and totally lacking "tension or dramatic structure."

Sitting in a New York radio studio, spoken-word artist and writer Gabriel Noone (Robin Williams) starts telling a story … about a story. In a serious personal slump – his long-time boyfriend Jess (Bobby Cannavale) is moving out, he’s writer’s-blocked –his editor (Joe Morton) gives him a manuscript to get his opinion on. It’s called The Blacking Factory, and when Gabriel looks at the subtitle, he’s underwhelmed: “’A diary of transcendent hope and courage’? Oh, please … does it come with aromatherapy?”

But he starts reading it, and he’s hooked. It’s written by Pete, a young boy who’s spent years of his life being sexually abused by his parents and a circle of their friends; Pete’s out of immediate danger, living in seclusion with Donna, the social worker who’s adopted him – but he’s also slowly dying from a case of AIDS that’s being exacerbated by his other injuries and exposures to disease, all at the age of 14. And then Pete (Rory Culkin) and Donna (Toni Collette) call Gabriel to connect, and talk, with the voice they’ve listened to on the radio for so long. …

(More after the jump. ...)

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The Outfest Queer Brunch is one of the hottest parties for actual filmmakers at Sundance. You won't find Paris Hilton getting jiggy in her fur boots there, but you will find a good percentage of the folks actually involved making movies - and lest we forget, that's really what Sundance is all about. Most of the filmmakers at Sundance must have been there yesterday morning, because the Grub Steakhouse was packed wall-to-wall with people schmoozing, networking, and trying to work their way to the buffet lines and the open bar. Our own C.K. Sample came with me to act as photographer, and he must have a vibe about him or something, because he was come onto twice - one guy grabbed C.K.'s rear in the buffet line and told him, "It's so crowded here, you have to just push your way through and be....aggressive". I'm sure C.K. was flattered.

I ran into lots of directors at the brunch, including Quinceañeara director Richard Glatzer, All Aboard! Rosie's Family Cruise director  Shari Cookson, small town gay bar director Malcolm Ingram, and Oscar-award winning director Freida Lee Mock, who is here with her film Wrestling With Angels: Playwright Tony Kushner. Queer film historian Jenni Olson was on hand, as was novelist Armistead Maupin (scoring at the brunch buffet, left), whose novel The Night Listener was made into a film starring Robin Williams and Sandra Oh, which is premiering here at Sundance.

The biggest draw at the brunch was legendary director John Waters, who is so cool and amazing in his natural state, he doesn't even have to put on any pretense.  Waters is practically the messiah of Outfest and of queer film - he was unabashedly taking Hollywood by storm as an openly gay man long before it was cool to do so,  and paving the way for every gay person working in film today. It was fascinating watching people's reaction to Waters - waiting patiently to get a picture taking with him, to shake his hand, to touch his sleeve. C.K. bravely got right up there to introduce himself and give Waters a Cinematical tshirt - Waters was a little startled by C.K. at first, but warmed right up when offered a pumpkin-colored Cine shirt.

Director Maurice Jamal and his crew (pictured, right) had the best tshirts at the Outfest Brunch. Well, except for ours, of course.

 More photos of the Outfest Brunch below the fold.