By Hans Pedersen, July 2017 Issue.
Laerte-se
Now available on Netflix | 100 minutes | Documentary
Tracing the life of Brazilian cartoonist Laerte Coutinho, who came out as a transgender woman at the age of 60, this documentary features animated scenes lifted from her own drawings. A national treasure who has raised three children, Coutinho allows cameras into her home for a laid-back visit as she speaks frankly about her life in this slice-of-life portrait. This documentary about the popular artist responsible for dreaming up countless cartoon characters also includes interviews with journalist Eliane Brum, who co-directs the film with Lygia Barbosa.
Esteros
Now available on Netflix | 83 minutes | Drama, Romance
After sharing their first sexual experiencing together prior to beginning high school, Jerónimo (Esteban Masturini) and Matías (Ignacio Rogers) wind up reconnecting 10 years later. Matias and his girlfriend return to his old hometown to take part in a traditional carnival, and the man dressing him up in zombie makeup turns out to be his old friend, Jeronimo. This chance meeting revives old feelings for both parties. The action shifts back and forth between their free-spirited youth and their pressurized adult lives in this uneven, but picturesque Argentinian drama.
Political Animals
Now available on DVD/iTunes | 87 minutes | Documentary
This award-winning documentary by Jonah Markowitz profiles four prominent lesbian politicians in California who have shaken up the State Capitol while working to achieve equality for all. Interviews with the four female lawmakers are interspersed with powerful archival footage of demonstrations, and an examination of the calculated anti-LGBTQ lies promulgated by members of the right wing decades ago. Check out this profile of these amazing women who helped to shape LGBTQ history by making a major push to introduce anti-discrimination laws and working to craft policies that promote social justice.
Beguiled
In theaters June 30 | 94 minutes | Drama
Sexual taboos abound in writer/director Sofia Coppola's new film about a stranger who upends life at a girls’ boarding school in 1860s Virginia. The sexual tension in this Gothic thriller is almost stifling: Edwina (Kirsten Dunst) and Martha (Nicole Kidman) play two teachers holed up in their school with five students as the Civil War rages on. A wounded Union soldier (Colin Farrell), invades this feminine domain, triggering jealousy and passions, but the women have a wicked punishment in store for the man who crosses the line. The acclaimed film, also starring Elle Fanning, was nominated for the Palme d’Or at Cannes Film Festival.
