By Hans Pedersen, October 2016 Issue.
Goat
In theaters Sept. 23 | R | 96 minutes
Nick Jonas and James Franco star in this movie that’s devoid of gay content, but simply bristling with homoeroticism. The movie follows 19-year-old Brad (Ben Schnetzer), who’s enrolling in the same college that his brother, Brett (Jonas), is a fraternity member. Brad is recovering from a beating after a random attack, but pledges his brother’s frat in the hopes of getting protection and popularity. Soon Brett must watch his younger brother getting subjected to an increasingly brutal series of graphic hazing rituals, until tragedy strikes at the frat house. Expect plenty of booze, bare-chested male bonding and even the use of food to simulate fellatio with blindfolded frat pledges.
Author: The JT LeRoy Story
In theaters Sept. 23 | R | 210 minutes
This award-winning documentary, directed by Jeff Feuerzeig, shares the true, stranger-than-fiction story of Laura Albert, a woman who decided to invent a male persona, JT LeRoy, to advance her writing career. But her creation transforms into flesh-and-blood when she asks a friend to wear a hat in order to play the role of LeRoy in public appearances. Soon LeRoy is the toast of the town, nurturing friendships with celebrities like Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan, yet nobody seems to suspect the persona is a manufactured one until the ruse snowballs out of control. This gender-bending story is filled with archival footage and candid interviews with the writer who invented a pen name and wound up creating a person.