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GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender People) Documentary Films in Leavey Library (DVDs): Books About GLBT Film

Books About GLBT Film (Selected Titles)

Frightening the Horses: Gay Icons of the Cinema
"Now fully updated, a sweeping illustrated survey of gay and gay-themed cinema, with 150 photos and posters and a comprehensive filmography. Frightening the Horses is a celebration of gay cinema, from the 'undercover' icons of the 40s and 50s, and the sexual revolution of the 60s and 70s, to more recent acclaimed and Oscar-honored movies, like American Beauty, Capote, and Brokeback Mountain. Chapters include: Forbidden Topics, Circumventing the Censor, Gay Icons, Public Versus Private Lives, and Out of the Closet, and extended treatment is given to cult stars like James Dean, Judy Garland, Joan Crawford, and River Phoenix. Featuring 150 photos, film stills, and posters, as well as an extensive filmography, this is a fabulous guide to some of the most subversive and provocative films of the last hundred years." 

Independent Queer Cinema: Reviews And Interviews
"Film critic Gary M. Kramer has always looked to films as a mirror to see how gay and lesbian life is represented. Independent Queer Cinema collects 100 of Kramer’s reviews and interviews (from 1999 to 2004) that celebrate the latest 'queer wave' of actors, writers, and directors. These are films and filmmakers to be discovered and discussed—from the independent American hit Kissing Jessica Stein and the provocative foreign gem Come Undone, to tantalizing insights from Stephen Fry and Tilda Swinton. Independent Queer Cinema is a valuable reference guide as well as an entertaining compilation of Kramer’s astute reviews and interviews.

There’s no shortage of great gay and lesbian films-if you know where to look. Independent Queer Cinema is your guide to the films and personalities that deserve more attention, more respect, and more success, with a special focus on the foreign and low-budget gems that can slip past without a second look. Kramer, whose work regularly appears in the Philadelphia Gay News, the San Francisco Bay Times, and on Indiewire.com, uncovers films that bring honest representations of the queer lifestyle to the screen, exploring sexuality and identity through issues such as coming out and finding one's place in the world. He talks with filmmakers and actors who aren’t afraid to explore gay male sexuality on screen, including queer directors whose films feature mainly straight characters, straight filmmakers who tackle queer subject matter, new queer filmmakers whose work has—so far—had very little theatrical exposure, and both gay and straight actors who’ve played both gay and straight characters."

"Over the decades, gay cinema has reflected the community's journey from persecution to emancipation to acceptance. Politicized dramas like Victim in the 1960s, The Naked Civil Servant in the 1970s, and the AIDS cinema of the 1980s have given way in recent years to films which celebrate a vast array of gay lifestyles. Gay films have undergone a major shift from the fringe to the mainstream—2005’s Academy Awards were dubbed "the gay Oscars" with statues going to Brokeback Mountain, Capote, and Transamerica. Producers began clamoring to back gay-themed movies and the most high profile of these is Gus Van Sant’s forthcoming Milk, starring Sean Penn as Harvey Milk, the first prominent American political figure to be elected to office on an openly gay ticket back in the 1970s. The book also covers gay filmmakers and actors and their influence within the industry, the most iconic scenes from gay cinema, and the most memorable dialogue from key films."
 
Queer Cinema in Europe
"Queer cinema has gained scholarly attention in recent years as a manifestation of the conflicts, anxieties, and liberation of European sexuality. Robin Griffiths’ Queer Cinema in Europe, the first anthology of its kind, probes the questions and implications of sex, gender, and identity in contemporary European filmmaking. An esteemed group of contributors discuss the varieties of lesbian and gay representation to deconstruct and redefine notions of national identity and culture in a diverse European context. This volume explores a wide scope of films, directors, and genres to forge a new understanding of what it means to be queer in the twenty-first century."