the art of being straight
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the art of being straight is not available at this time. instead, check out andré téchiné' s wild reeds, which is currently showing on mubi .
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the art of being straight is a movie starring jesse janzen, tyler jenich, and bryan mcgowan. a sexy, comedic drama about two college friends questioning their careers and sexuality in east los angeles .
the bi writers association is sponsoring newfest’s lgbt film fest screening of the art of being straight on wed june 10 th @ 10: 30pm at the school of visual arts theater on 23 st, 8 - 9 ave in manhattan. three ways to purchase tickets
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you gave jon the quality of being able to get any girl he wants. so you make it clear that being hard up isn’t the reason he sleeps with paul .
interview with jesse rosen, on the art of making a bisexual film and his own personal coming out .
jesse rosen' s microbudgeted indie, in which he also stars, explores the issue of sexual identity in a way that is meant to be thoughtful and provocative but which has little more depth than the old joke about bisexuality being a good way to double your chances for a date on a saturday night .
the art of being straight
is far from the worst of the recent plethora of gay - themed films, but its best chances of exposure will be on vod .
with surprisingly good acting and a smart script, the art of being straight takes a nuanced approach to young adults' struggles with sexuality issues. the film failed to significantly grapple with issues of how the other people in the characters' lives might react and the impact of that reaction, which is unfortunate because it leaves the film feeling incomplete. nevertheless, the film is funny, intelligent and well worth watching .
the buzz around the release of the art of being normal has been crazy! so many of my trusted friends and fellow reviewers have loved it so the pressure was on when i chose to read it myself. williamson has created a novel i wish had been written years ago. it’s incredibly brave – i don’t think there’s anything too similar to it published at the moment – and it stands out because of its themes and content. however, i’m sad because i wish there were more books just like the art of being normal. i’m
a gay internet connection is made, but entanglements ensue due to hiding behind the name and photo of a straight male stripper who happens to return to the area .
this film is about a young man who moves to los angeles to pursue his dreams. his life gets complicated when his boss takes a special interest in him .
the art of being straight
is a realistic down to earth story. the lead character jesse rosen is handsome and is convincing as a confused man. however, the story telling is not so good. it fails to create tension or suspense. there is little to stir the emotions of viewers, which i find a fatal flaw. the only interesting character is rachel castillo, whose performance is the most natural and convincing. i guess
the art of being straight
might be an autobiographical account from the writer. it is not terrible, it is not particularly entertaining either .
the art of being straight is now playing at quad cinema on w. 13 th street in nyc and opens june 12th in la @ the laemmle music hall theatre in beverly hills. ft. lauderdale, palm springs, and columbus, ohio to follow. check your local lgbt film fest calendar. it’s also running on here tv and here on demand .
it' s not easy being attracted to guys when you are stuck in a straight man' s body... at least that' s the hurdle josh (jesse rosen) appears to face after he arrives in la to begin a new life. surrounded by his exclusively hetero friends, josh is more than happy to be a willing participant in their world of bars, booze and loose women - after all he has just come out of a long term relationship with a girl. but things start to get complicated after he begins work at an advertising agency, and meets paul, a sexy ad director, who won' t take' straight' for an answer! littered with smart dialogue and brilliantly subtle performances the art of being straight is a savvy, comic story about the fluidity of sexuality and the bonds between people that transcend stereotype .
but she hasn’t just been hiding the dramatic plot of the movie from the public .
we discover that jon’s presumably straight sexual history up to this point hasn’t been quite as straight as it appears, when he confesses to paul that he got drunk and fooled around with a guy back in high school. when did you first have feelings for guys ?
all this might portend a certain harshness in my response to the affable “art of being straight, ” but rather i’m just trying to impress that good - natured dv debuts deserve their critical fair shakes as much as any larger - scale indie or even studio product (something that those who leave irate comments on reviews don’t quite understand). and inoffensive as it is, rosen’s personal soul - searcher is certainly rickety, featuring all the signs of being unpurposefully unpolished (clunky editing within conversations, overreliance on stultifying close - ups, anonymous spaces stripped of personality standing in for viable art direction, sloppy scene transitions that often seem to go on a beat too long) and many hallmarks of the indie playbook, including a heavy dose of wimp - rock on the soundtrack–here courtesy of the musical theatre–and even blink - and - miss cameos from those purveyors of dull non - conversation - making, joe swanberg and greta gerwig, hanging out at a party .
the title is the cleverest thing about this minor indie portrait of sexual confusion .
lisa williamson' s the art of being normal is a moving, well - written reminder of how brutal, yet how beautiful, the world can be to those who are different. david piper has really never fit in. apart from his two best friends, most of his fellow high school students ridicule him for being different. one of the school bullies has called him
freak show
since they were younger, but david is willing to wait him out until high school ends. his parents think he is gay, and are waiting for him to tel
jon tells maddy, his female friend who has a girlfriend, first, then comes out to his straight best friend. what was your coming out process like ?
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans. it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
in college, i started to become more curious about guys, but somehow had been pigeon - holed as being straight, and either never felt like i had the opportunity, or just wasn’t attracted enough to any one particular man to make the effort. i’d fantasize, and then in reality, fantasy was always far superior .
the coming of age tale of an extraordinarily gifted young dancer recently arrived in new york city .
it' s high time the world of ya fiction had a real contender in the t corner of the lgbt spectrum, and lisa williamson stands up to the plate magnificently.' the art of being normal' follows david, who stumbles through the minefield of high school and puberty knowing in his heart that everything is wrong... because he wants to be a girl, knows he is supposed to be girl. navigating bullies gets a little easier for him though with a well aimed punch from leo denton, who struggles alongside david wit
fantastic. highly recommended. the art of being normal is the story of a transgender character named david, and his journey to finally telling his family (and the rest of the world) that he wishes to be referred to as kate, and would like to begin transitioning. i have to be honest and say that i don' t believe i' ve read a book about a transgender character before, certainly not as the main focus of the story. i know they exist, so it' s either down to my own lack of diverse reading or a distinct l
have you ever finished a book and thought…that it was important? that the story that’s being told is one that everyone should hear? that’s how i felt about “the art of being normal”. i feel like everyone needs to read this. it’s an important message about our society today. and it it’s just a damn fine book, too. david has a secret. he hasn’t told his family. he hasn’t come out to the world with it. only his best friends, and his trusty journal know the truth. if he could be anything in the world
3. 5 stars loved the introductory exploration of trans issues in this book, even if it faltered in other areas. the art of being normal follows two protagonists who both go to eden park school: david piper, a biological male who has always wanted to be a girl, and leo denten, an outsider with dark secrets of his own. though the two seem quite different - david, more reserved and wistful, leo, more moody and confrontational - a twist of fate brings them together in ways neither of them expect. i app
sigh. another disappointment crossed off the tbr. i was so excited to read this, especially after seeing so many rave reviews, but unfortunately this was a story that did not make it on my memorable list. my main issue with the art of being normal is that it' s a tale of transgender teens told by a cisgender author. now admittedly, i knew that from the beginning but i was optimistic that it may have worked out. i believe in giving authors the benefit of the doubt until i' ve seen the proof in their
[ michael koresky is co - founder and editor of reverse shot and the managing editor and staff writer of the criterion collection. ]
smart without being smart - alecky, mr. rosen' s writing avoids the aggressive cleverness and gummy politics of many similarly themed movies, focusing instead on realistic dialogue and low - key interaction .
the buzz around the release of the art of being normal has been crazy! so many of my trusted friends and fellow reviewers have loved it so the pressure was on when i chose to read it myself. williamson has created a novel i wish had been written years ago. it’s incredibly brave – i don’t think there’s anything too similar to it published at the moment – and it stands out because of its themes and content. however, i’m sad because i wish there were more books just like the art of being normal. i’m going to make it my mission to seek them out! i hope it leads the way to similar books being published. david has one wish: he wants to be a girl. it’s something that only his two best friends know. as he starts a new school year, leo denton starts in year eleven, a boy shrouded in mystery. he is determined to be invisible. the school year plays out and the two boys find out that things at eden park school don’t stay secret for long. i really loved both protagonists and especially how distinguishable they were. each stood out on their own but also interacted well together, which is what i love in a multiple perspective novel. david was such a loveable character. being the same age, i thought i could relate to him a lot and really sympathise with his situation. i wish he were my friend! leo’s character development was amazing to read. it was almost as if it was unfolding in real time and i loved seeing him grow and change. authors take note – this was a perfect character arc! please, please, please read the art of being normal! i want to scream from the rooftops about it, and i know i’m not the only one !
it’s interesting that andy, jon’s straight guy best friend and roommate doesn’t have much of a reaction to jon telling him he had sex with a guy, even though he is your typical, somewhat homophobic, ex - frat boy. in your generation, has it become more of a non - issue? are many straight guys who make comments like, “that is so gay, ” when faced with an actual friend saying “i slept with a man” not that taken aback ?
structured like a comedy, but outfitted with only the most tedious sexual - identity riffs, generic characterizations, and no singular point of view, the art of being straight finds a perfectly bland putative hero in jon (writer - director jesse rosen), who does awfully well with women for a guy who has what could be mistaken for “a herpe”—as woody allen used to call it—visible on his lower lip. moving to l. a. from the east coast on a rebound from an ex - girlfriend, jon finds his office - flunky job draws the lascivious attention of his boss paul (johnny ray rodriguez), and despite the lad’s straight - faced denials, a wine - fueled roll in the hay follows. the film’s typically blasé etching of the older man makes it impossible to guess whether he’s meant to be judged as predatory or not, until we are reminded that, after all, he’s an ad executive. meanwhile, jon’s lesbian college chum maddy (rachel castillo) dithers over moving in with her girlfriend just long enough to flirt over a bong with the scruffy hipster guy next door (pete scherer) .
despite its promising title, jesse rosen’s tiny l. a. - set “ the art of being straight ” isn’t really about contemporary codes of masculinity or the rattling task of “passing” as heterosexual. rather it’s a flimsy pseudo - autobiographical character piece from a first - time filmmaker playing an approximation of himself so dewy - eyed cute and effortlessly naive that many audiences will be hard - pressed to find enormous fault. after all, the “likability” factor goes a long way in negligible indie fare, and certainly in small - budget gay - themed niche moviemaking, at times even held up as an ideal equal to such matters as coherent editing and photography and certainly to performance. tact and charm are attributes, but a rewarding movie experience they don’t necessarily make .
is one of those pieces of literature that tries to do that, and does a good job, but overall the plot, the writing, and the supporting characters are pretty average .
one of the great films made by the generation after the french new wave, andré téchiné’s wild reeds, a four - time césar winner, is a teenage drama electric with currents of sexuality and politics. the 1962 setting is precise (the franco - algerian war), yet the tensions live on into the 90s and today .
the collective genius of the internet has once again worked its magic. a group of reddit users have gone about collecting a series of photographs that are not from a wes anderson film, but might as well be .
your film got an art house theatrical release and is running on here tv. did those deals help you break even? or is this film just an expensive resume for your next job ?
fantastic. highly recommended. the art of being normal is the story of a transgender character named david, and his journey to finally telling his family (and the rest of the world) that he wishes to be referred to as kate, and would like to begin transitioning. i have to be honest and say that i don' t believe i' ve read a book about a transgender character before, certainly not as the main focus of the story. i know they exist, so it' s either down to my own lack of diverse reading or a distinct lack of books covering this topic... i suspect it' s a bit of both. i enjoyed this immensely, it' s very easy to read and i liked both of the dual povs (i also appreciated the use of different fonts for both just to keep me on track !) it features some serious and important themes, all of which were handled well, including of course sexuality and gender but also bullying, family relationships, poverty and abandonment... probably a few more too. but beyond the struggles of david and leo it never felt' heavy', if that' s the right word. i certainly felt sad and angry, as well as happy and warm, but i enjoyed the whole journey. as others have said, a must read if you enjoy the work of david levithan and maureen johnson .
it is a beautiful, signature look ― and apparently one that, every so occasionally, people around the world have stumbled upon in real life too. hence, “ accidental wes anderson, ” a brilliant subdivision of reddit where people are collecting reality’s best attempts at recreating anderson’s art .
gay men must drag the abjectness of their bodies around for so long it’s easy to imagine porn as the ultimate stage for their fresh - off - the - closet desirability. much like the nouveau…
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in the second part of the book the roles are reversed, but the way leo’s character is given depth is by sending him and david on a wacky road trip. it’s fun to read about, and the drunken scene in the pub made me laugh, but the trip lacked emotional impact. williamson certainly tries to give us the feels, but the attempt feels pretty forced .
i don' t think i' ve ever been so happy to finish a book. and i don' t mean that in a bad way, i literally finished the book with the biggest grin on my face, content with the ending and slightly wanting more kate (david) and leo. i' m so glad this book was mainly focused on finding ones true self, as well as true friendship. you know, the type of friendship you' ll have for life. however, i also have to be open and honest to the slightly problematic aspects of the book too. do i think this represented transgender people in the best way? absolutely not. the author is a cis female and could never fully understand what it' s like to be transgender, all the issues people with gender identity issues go through. i also felt like the romantic aspect was seen as a laugh at the expense of kate which made me uncomfortable. the art of being normal is a good place to start out but there are so many more better representing books out there .
you must have heard about the art of being normal by now and, if not, i' m not sure how you have managed to miss it. published on 1st january, it' s one of the most talked about ukya novels published this year so far, and has certainly set a high standard. fourteen - year - old david piper has only told two people – his two best friends, essie and fox, who have both been incredibly supportive – that he has wanted, needed, to be a girl ever since he was a small child. david has written a letter to his p
the psychologically flat script isn' t nearly up to the task of depicting the pleasure within confusion / despair (or vice versa); neither are rosen' s acting chops .
one of the film’s neat tricks, and also one of its great calamities, is that rosen and castillo, who obviously have an innate chemistry, share only a small handful of scenes (rosen’s hesitant sorta - coming - out scene to castillo is undoubtedly the film’s highlight, shot and performed with an ease the rest of the film desperately craves). this leaves them each a bit unmoored and interacting with a cast made up of many greatly unskilled performers — all rosen’s scenes with his straight - arrow roommate jared grey fall flat, as do those with rodriguez, whose odd approximation of an alpha boss makes the character an unnecessarily hateful predator. castillo’s magnetism grows ever clearer in light of the other actors — considering that as written maddy registers as little more than a hostile hipster harridan (she’s often needlessly sarcastic, even to strangers, even when smoking pot and... reading sartre? !), it’s near miraculous that the actress is able to so shine through .
the actress and director both love the genre, but as they told indiewire, they also knew it needed to be retrofitted to tell the true story of catherine weldon and sitting bull .
david longs to be a girl. david is a girl who longs for acceptance. the art of being normal was not what i had expected. i would say that this is a good introduction for someone who wants to know more about life as a transgender kid and adolescent. it is a heartfelt novel, for sure, but not a perfect one. i had difficulties connecting with the characters, especially with david. she is 15 years old if i am not mistaken, but she acts like a 12 - year - old. in most situations, david and her friends seem
i’m transgender myself and i work with transgender youth, so of course i’m bringing that to the table. i didn’t hate this book – in fact, i quite liked large parts of it, but there are a few issues that drag it down. one of them was that i don' t feel like it was written with transgender people in mind as a part of the key audience, unless they' re teenagers still trying to figure out even the most basic things. but at the same time, it' s a bit of a narrow representation of transgender people. the
if you’ve ever seen a film by the 48 - year - old anderson, you’ll know that the component parts of one his films are unmistakable .
boys on film comes of age with ten uplifting and powerful tales recounting the lives of everyday heroes with no special powers except striving for their own identities and fighting for the right for us all to be ourselves .
lane and schoenbrun discuss how her interest in morgellons disease patients (“the pain of others”) and his exploration of the slenderman myth (“a self - induced hallucination”) led them to make archival films from youtubes .
that friendship however isn’t strong enough to mask the thin plot of the book. in the first half of the novel the focus is on david and his problems with body dysphoria (which were realistically described, in my cisgender opinion). not much happens to leo, apart from him falling in love with alicia and experiencing some family drama .
i’m not sure it’s a non - issue, certainly depending on place (i’ve seen some pretty homophobic responses to the trailer on the internet), but i think my generation can be very accepting of being gay. just not much in between. you rarely hear anybody ask, “is he / she bi? ” if you have to ask, i think that’s a better question. the question, “are they gay? ” is one of the reasons i wanted to make the film. i think it says a lot about how are society views bisexuality .
i’m transgender myself and i work with transgender youth, so of course i’m bringing that to the table. i didn’t hate this book – in fact, i quite liked large parts of it, but there are a few issues that drag it down. one of them was that i don' t feel like it was written with transgender people in mind as a part of the key audience, unless they' re teenagers still trying to figure out even the most basic things. but at the same time, it' s a bit of a narrow representation of transgender people. the full review is at my blog and contains spoilers .
silent youth is a film for misfits, dreamers and lovers. it' s the classic story of a coming out, but it focuses on the moments one tends to quickly forget: the first approach, the creaking... see full summary »
“literally people i’ve known for my entire life, i was like, this is the premise of the movie... and then they’d get out of the movie, and they’re like: ‘i have to talk to you for two reasons. one, our friendship is over. two, i loved the movie. ’”
when i first picked up this book i had really high hopes for it. the idea of a young transgender protagonist was really appealing and (as fickle as this may be) i love the cover. it' s what drew me in. having just finished the book, my overall thoughts are good, but not great. story wise i really enjoyed it. i think the overall story was great. both david and leo are wonderful characters and i loved their inner monologues of their struggle with being transgender; they were thoughtful and they wer
a sweet ya - story with a couple of amazing diverse characters, although the story itself could have been better .
is the author of this book transgender? i' m very hesitant about reading books focusing on lgbt + issues if the author isn' t lgbt + themselves .
he takes a low - level job at an ad agency, where he becomes the sexual object of attention of his predatory gay boss (johnny ray rodriguez), who, despite being thoroughly obnoxious and repugnant, soon manages to seduce his new hire. also experiencing sexual confusion is jon' s best friend, maddy (rachel castillo), a lesbian in a committed relationship who finds herself falling for the sweet guy (peter scherer) who moves in next door .
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and by the look of things, they’ve done quite a good job over their first couple months in business. we’ve said all we can. just look at the photos .
in an episode dedicated to the show within the show, “glow” illustrates its grand capacity for storytelling, and the very good tv podcast breaks down how .
no connection but that’s great. i was however, lucky to discover my old college roommate’s songs, matt studivan, aka the musical theatre, who provided most of the soundtrack .
if you’ve ever seen a film by the 48 - year - old anderson, you’ll know that the component parts of one his films are unmistakable, regardless of the project’s theme and characters. there are the eye - popping colors and the strong, well - defined lines. there are the eccentric architectural triumphs and eerie quiet. but most importantly, there are those shots ― the ones that zoom in and out with an almost borderline obsessiveness in their quest for near - perfect, everything - just - so symmetry .
two boys. two secrets. david piper has always been an outsider. his parents think he’s gay. the school bully thinks he’s a freak. only his two best friends know the real truth – david wants to be a girl. on the first day at his new school leo denton has one goal – to be invisible. attracting the attention of the most beautiful girl in year eleven is definitely not part of t
although reasonably insightful in its portrait of confused twentysomethings, the film lacks the depth to be interesting, and its lead character' s sexual experimentation is not depicted in particularly convincing fashion .
hi! i' m cis - gender. i was inspired to write the book following two years working at the gender identity development service. i' ve had lots of really …more
oh, this is one cute diversity read! i highly recommend this if you love simon vs. the homo sapiens agenda! just like in simon, in this book it is about a diversity character, in this case a trans, but without the book being written in a learny way. you get to know david and you learn what it' s like to be trapped in the wrong body because he is. and i also like leo a lot! and i like how, at least in the dutch version, the different point of views are indicated with different fonts. i really like
a car mechanic in a small, working class town comes out of the closet to his unsuspecting, blue - collar best friends .
normal
kids don' t see therapists .
normal
kids don' t have mothers like mine, who tell you life isn' t fair with messed - up glee, like the unfairness of life is pretty much the only thing they know for sure. i' ve spent my whole life being told i' m the complete opposite of
normal
. i' m sorry, but i loved this. i don' t know why i' m apologizing, since i' m on this website to either hate or love a book no matter what others thought about it, but i feel like this is another one of those books that
your plot reminds me of a song by peter allen called “bi - coastal. ”
structured like a comedy, but outfitted with only the most tedious sexual - identity riffs, generic characterizations, and no singular point of view .
eric kohn and anne thompson discuss their favorite films of the year so far. they also debate several new releases and share some streaming recommendations .
the writer - director plays the lead role of jon, a nice young man who has recently moved from new york to los angeles after taking a
break
from his relationship with his girlfriend. moving in with his old college buddy andy (jared grey), he finds himself hanging out with the sort of macho guys who preface every observation with the phrase
that is so gay .
ant - man and the wasp, starring paul rudd and evangeline lilly, took the top spot at ...
i was also a bit disappointed by the author’s treatment of transgender topics like bullying or transitioning. some bullying does takes place in the book, but it isn’t treated seriously; while in reality, prejudice against transgender people is pretty severe. the discussion of gender and sex changes neither goes very into depth. the reason why has to do with an important plot reveal, so i’ll tag this for spoilers .
“a lot of white people don’t see it coming, ” williams told huffpost. “and then they try to talk themselves out of it. ‘maybe she’s been hypnotized too. ’”
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williams told huffpost that she’d already been sold on the script by the time rose appeared on - screen for the first time. the opening scene follows lakeith stanfield as a young black man walking alone in a white suburb, a scene williams pointed out is reminiscent of the shocking killing of trayvon martin in 2012. “after i read that scene, i was like, ‘i don’t really care who rose is, i definitely want to be in this movie, ’” she said .
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after reading reviews by transgender readers, i' m lowering my rate of this book .
a shy but smitten college boy pursues a ny go - go boy through the pretext of making a documentary film about him, with the guys knowing each other only as
doc
and
go .
not to get repetitive, but the lighthouses in iceland really are perfect. this one is from the westfjords. from accidentalwesanderson
oh, this is one cute diversity read! i highly recommend this if you love simon vs. the homo sapiens agenda! just like in simon, in this book it is about a diversity character, in this case a trans, but without the book being written in a learny way. you get to know david and you learn what it' s like to be trapped in the wrong body because he is. and i also like leo a lot! and i like how, at least in the dutch version, the different point of views are indicated with different fonts. i really like how this worked out! a cute, fun read, lovely characters and the book is filled with beautiful touching moments. i highly recommend reading this !
hi! i' m cis - gender. i was inspired to write the book following two years working at the gender identity development service. i' ve had lots of really positive feedback from readers of all gender identities, but particularly from trans teens. hope you give it a try! (less )
here' s an unconventional romantic comedy if there' s ever been one .
the lovers
begins as a divorce dramedy, < a href =
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> debra winger and tracy letts < / a > playing a sedentary married couple who reignite an unlikely spark in the midst of steady affairs. they are lovers, cheating on their lovers by becoming lovers. azazel jacobs' charismatic flurry & nbsp; is about the ripening & nbsp; of middle age and the ambiguities of elapsed time, expressed in small gestures, like whether to share a bottle of wine one evening or retire to separate quarters as usual. & nbsp; winger and letts bear every complicated crease of a life spent together, wistful for the past and marching toward a farcical fresh chapter .
it' s been a while since i read this but i feel there' s two things i should point out that really bothered me about the book. 1) leo is a trans guy but him being trans is treated as a plot twist, and is found out when a girl he likes sees his genitalia. not a fan of that. 2) kate (called by her birth name for most of the book) is referred to by he / him pronouns by leo in his internal monologue after he finds out she' s a trans girl but only refers to her as' she' when she' s wearing feminine clothin
besides, who wants to be normal anyway? fancy that on your gravestone. ‘here lies so - and - so. they were entirely normal. ’” a sweet ya - story with a couple of amazing diverse characters, although the story itself could have been better. the strength of this ya - novel is the budding friendship between david and leo. at first sight the boys are each others opposite - leo is reserved and moody and david open and kind – but when david is able to break down some of leo’s walls, they realize how alike
meanwhile, jon must contend with his roommate’s cartoonishly homophobic arsenal of screechy guy - guy friends (who use words like “donkey douche” almost as frequently as “fag”) while dealing with his own internal doubts and rages. if rosen is as unimaginative in representing jon’s demons as to at one point stoop to a dingy, out - of - focus vomiting scene — with him dramatically clutching a toilet, natch — there is some respite in his surprising, refreshingly ambiguous non - ending. even if a bit forced (the conventionality of all that transpired may not naturally lead to such a radical anticlimax), the conclusion helps brings some of the film’s themes to the fore, and also shows the difficulty that comes with true self - definition .
two boys. two secrets. david piper has always been an outsider. his parents think he’s gay. the school bully thinks he’s a freak. only his two best friends know the real truth – david wants to be a girl. on the first day at his new school leo denton has one goal – to be invisible. attracting the attention of the most beautiful girl in year eleven is definitely not part of that plan. when leo stands up for david in a fight, an unlikely friendship forms. but things are about to get messy. because at eden park school secrets have a funny habit of not staying secret for long…
this is a coming of age story about a gay boy in a mexican family, taking place in the grape fields and trailer homes in the coachella valley. goyo has a hard time hiding his sexual... see full summary »
[ in my opinion, the process of going through a sex change and its physical and emotional effects are never fully explored because david and leo stand at opposite sides of that process. david only makes the first steps by dressing up as kate, and although leo has already gone through a large part of his transition, he never talks about his specialist appointments. this really bugged me because the transition process is such an important part of a transsexual person’s life (whenever they choose to go through it or not), so i was sad that williamson never wrote anything about that. (hide spoiler) ]
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this book is really important. there are so many people out there today struggling with gender identity and the desperate need to be looked at as
normal
because they do not fit into the specific and constricting constructs of society and it is just heartbreaking. before this book, i did not have that much of an insight into transgender struggles. even if this book is purely fiction, it still did open my eyes to some of the struggles in an honest simple prose imbued with complex depths. i real
i couldn' t finish this, it deals with an incredibly important issue and relevant topic in today' s society but the book just felt like a generic ya book. i wanted to read this book for the trans character and to see how well the story would deal with the issue but after 110 pages i couldn' t even really get to the core issue because the writing, dialogue and story were so painfully cliche. the story screams american cliche high school trash that we see in so many media outlets and the book isn' t even
i don' t think i' ve ever been so happy to finish a book. and i don' t mean that in a bad way, i literally finished the book with the biggest grin on my face, content with the ending and slightly wanting more kate (david) and leo. i' m so glad this book was mainly focused on finding ones true self, as well as true friendship. you know, the type of friendship you' ll have for life. however, i also have to be open and honest to the slightly problematic aspects of the book too. do i think this represent
the strength of this ya - novel is the budding friendship between david and leo. at first sight the boys are each others opposite - leo is reserved and moody and david open and kind – but when david is able to break down some of leo’s walls, they realize how alike they are. together the boys help each other face problems that are hard to confront, like david’s trans issues or leo’s missing father, which makes their friendship very touching and beautiful to read about .
this book is really important. there are so many people out there today struggling with gender identity and the desperate need to be looked at as
normal
because they do not fit into the specific and constricting constructs of society and it is just heartbreaking. before this book, i did not have that much of an insight into transgender struggles. even if this book is purely fiction, it still did open my eyes to some of the struggles in an honest simple prose imbued with complex depths. i really do not have much to say except that i urge everyone who has not read it yet to read and be educated in any possible way and learn more even after reading in order to understand the struggles of the people going through this. it may not seem real to some of us, but it is for every transgender person out there who is not accepted. the only thing i did not like about the book was that it is written in the present tense because for some reason that i do not know, i just cannot stand books written in the present tense. i made it through though so yassss bihh. so i have to read this for a class and i' m pretty curious about the book .
i couldn' t finish this, it deals with an incredibly important issue and relevant topic in today' s society but the book just felt like a generic ya book. i wanted to read this book for the trans character and to see how well the story would deal with the issue but after 110 pages i couldn' t even really get to the core issue because the writing, dialogue and story were so painfully cliche. the story screams american cliche high school trash that we see in so many media outlets and the book isn' t even set in america, it' s set in england so why are they acting so american? ! the story was so painfully boring with the typical high school bullies who felt so unrealistic because they used pathetic insults like
freak - show
. the dialogue was depressingly boring and failed in giving the characters any depth or personality, i think the worst thing i read was when one character uses the word' amazeballs'. cringe. no one ever says that, it felt like the author was desperately trying to make the story appeal to a younger audience. i looked up what happens in the story and it' s incredibly predictable so i' m glad i stopped reading. it' s such a shame i couldn' t carry on reading this book when i was so looking forward to it especially due to the trans characters but then the characters have literal no development, the story is depressingly generic and the dialogue is painful .
rosen is unfortunately bland in the lead role, but co - star castillo reveals a highly engaging presence as the tough - talking but vulnerable maddy .
allison williams, while making the rounds for jordan peele’s psychological thriller “ get out, ” has been as tight - lipped about the film’s twists as one might expect. williams plays rose, the white girlfriend of main character chris (daniel kaluuya) who invites him home to meet her family, where events take a dark turn .
i' m a trans person and when i saw this book i was super excited. it had a cool cover and a premise i was personally interested in. however, once i started reading i was honestly very disappointed. i know that trans people have different experiences and points of view on their gender, but so many things about this book seemed off to me. the book isn' t written by a trans person, and that was my first clue. in the blurb :
two boys .
and
david wants to be a girl .
being trans isn' t about wanting to be
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it was important to me for jon to be a regular guy, and maybe the slight envy of those who wouldn’t typically go near a film with gay sex, who then in turn, may then be more willing to stay on the ride jon’s character takes .
the director' s inexperience shows at times... but his writing and acting are fine. indeed, everyone in the cast is quite good .
after studying under cinematographer ed lachman, shevaun mizrahi forged her own unique filmmaking path with its own set of rules .
lisa was born in nottingham in 1980. she spent most of her childhood drawing, daydreaming and making up stories in her head (but never getting round to writing them down). as a teenager she was bitten by the acting bug and at 19 moved to london to study drama at university. following graduation, lisa adopted the stage name of lisa cassidy and spent several happy and chaotic years occasionally gett
this starts off well enough but quickly devolves into meaningless scattered scenes until it abruptly ends in a sort of non ending .
an unseen woman recites shakespeare' s sonnets - fourteen in all - as a man wordlessly seeks his heart' s desire. the photography is stop - motion, the music is ethereal, the scenery is often... see full summary »
here are all the movies opening today, january 9. what will you see?
the art of being straight is a 2008 film by jesse rosen on malvern productions . he also wrote the screenplay and plays the lead role of jon . the film explores jon 's unexpected search for identity . the film was an official selection at the 2008 frameline film festival ( san francisco lgbt film festival ) and the philadelphia international gay & lesbian film festival
the art of being straight is a 2008 film by jesse rosen on malvern productions. he also wrote the screenplay and plays the lead role of jon. the film explores jon's unexpected search for identity. the film was an official selection at the 2008 frameline film festival (san francisco lgbt film festival) and the philadelphia international gay & lesbian film festival
the art of being straight is a 2008 film by jesse rosen on malvern productions. he also wrote the screenplay and plays the lead role of jon. the film explores jon's unexpected search for identity. the film was an official selection at the 2008 frameline film festival (san francisco lgbt film festival) and the philadelphia international gay & lesbian film festival