NewFest Pride features ‘Plainclothes,’ ‘Heightened Scrutiny,’ ‘Sally,’ and more
NewFest Pride, the annual mini film festival, kicks off Pride Month with dozens of shorts, features, and documentaries by, for, and about the LGBTQ+ community. The 5-day program opens with “Jimpa” (May 29, 7:00 pm, SVA Theatre), which has non-binary teen Frances (Aud Mason-Hyde) wanting to live with their gay grandfather Jimpa (John Lithgow) in … Read More
NewFest Pride, the annual mini film festival, kicks off Pride Month with dozens of shorts, features, and documentaries by, for, and about the LGBTQ+ community.
The 5-day program opens with “Jimpa” (May 29, 7:00 pm, SVA Theatre), which has non-binary teen Frances (Aud Mason-Hyde) wanting to live with their gay grandfather Jimpa (John Lithgow) in Amsterdam, much to the chagrin of their mother (Olivia Colman). NewFest Pride also features an advance screening of Season 3: Episode 2 of “And Just Like That….” In addition, more than a half-dozen films and two shorts programs have been available for streaming.
Here is a rundown, in chronological order, of the features screening theatrically at this year’s NewFest Pride.
One of the fest’s highlights is the timely and topical documentary “Heightened Scrutiny” (May 30, 7:00 pm, SVA Theatre and streaming), which chronicles trans advocate and activist Chase Strangio arguing the December 2024 Supreme Court case United States v. Skrmetti about banning gender-affirming care for youth in Tennessee. (Strangio is the first trans person to argue in front of the country’s high court.) The film, directed by Sam Feder (“Disclosure”), shows not only how Strangio must counter transphobic thinking that instills fear and misunderstanding, but also how the media creates trans narratives about regret and detransitioning that are being used to create laws and criminalize acts. With observational footage and a plethora of smart talking heads, including actor Elliot Page, “Heightened Scrutiny” generates both uplift and justifiable anger as it creates awareness. Hopefully, it will also change minds.
“Dreams in Nightmares” (May 31, 4:00 pm, SVA Theatre) invites the audience along for the ride as three Black queer friends, Z (Denée Benton), Tasha (Sasha Compère) and Lauren (Dezi Bing), go on a road trip to find their missing friend, Kel (Mars Rucker). Writer/director Shatara Michelle Ford takes time to introduce and appreciate each woman, so their interactions feel truthful and lived in. The three performers are all engaging and genial, with Compère’s practical Tasha a standout. As they drive from New York to Iowa City to see Kel’s girlfriend Sabrina (Jasmin Savoy Brown), they make a stop in Pittsburgh for some queer poetry and head off to Kansas City to check in with Kel’s parents (Regina Taylor and Robert Wisdom), who fail to use their daughter’s pronouns. The episodes are dramatic, funny, and heartfelt, especially when the trio arrives in Mexico. If the film as a whole is uneven, it is best when it is reflective. “Dreams in Nightmares” opens with Z telling her boyfriend, Reece (Charlie Barnett), “I think my ancestors are trying to tell me something,” and ends with the women being asked, “Has your life been worth what you are paying?” But as with many road movies, one’s mileage may vary.
“Plainclothes” (May 31, 8:00 pm, SVA Theatre) is an ambitious yet muddled feature debut by writer/director Carmen Essi about Lucas (Tom Blyth), an undercover cop, who entraps gay men in public restrooms in upstate New York in 1997. When he meets Andrew (Russel Tovey) in a bathroom stall, Lucas finds himself attracted to the suspect and lets him go. As the two men discretely arrange to meet up again in the future, they begin a secret affair.
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“Plainclothes” is about Lucas (Tom Blyth), an undercover cop, who entraps gay men in public restrooms in upstate New York.NewFest[/caption]
Essi focuses on the uneasiness of Lucas’ situation, playing up his paranoia and including a time-jumping narrative (cue facial hair signposting), and erratic editing to illustrate Lucas’ fractured, conflicted mindset. These pretentious cinematic devices mar a simple character study/coming out story. Blyth is compelling as a man struggling with his same-sex attraction and scenes of Lucas and Andrew together are touching because both closeted guys feel safe when they are alone together. In contrast, Lucas’ exchanges with his homophobic uncle (Gabe Fazio) are heavy-handed and cringe-inducing. Essi plays up themes of surveillance and legality, making only obvious points about shame and the criminalization of gay sex. The policing scenes lack tension, whereas Lucas’ concerns about being discovered by his colleagues or family are strained and overplayed. “Plainclothes” actually works best as a showcase for Tovey, who makes Andrew the most interesting character in the film. In support, Maria Dizzia adds some poignancy as Lucas’ mother.
“Outerlands” (June 2, 7:30 pm, SVA Theatre), is a sensitive character study of Cass (non-binary actor Asia Kate Dillon), who is eking out life in San Francisco, and self-soothing with too much alcohol. After spending a night with Kalli (Louisa Krause), Cass is asked to watch Kalli’s 12-year-old daughter, Ari (Ridley Asha Bateman), while she goes away for a few days. Cass bonds with Ari over video games, particularly one called Outlands, which has an astronaut lost in the galaxy having to find their way back to the mothership — a decidedly on-the-nose metaphor for this film about lost parents and abandoned children. Cass’ fraught history with their own mother is hinted at as Cass parents Ari, and Ari misses her mother. Adding to the drama is Cass’ struggle at home as their landlord is making it increasingly more difficult for Cass to live in their apartment. They connect with a kindly queer bank employee (Lea DeLaria), who offers support and community. “Outerlands” features a strong central performance by Dillon and a nice sense of time and place as it depicts the difficulties its various characters face.
“Sally” (June 2, Gansevoort Plaza, 8:15 pm, and streaming) is a celebratory documentary about Sally Ride, the first American woman to go into space. A role model for breaking a glass ceiling, Ride endured incredible sexism and gendered expectations on the job and in the media — before, during, and after her famous shuttle flight. As director Cristina Costantini’s informative documentary shows, she handled it all with aplomb.
[caption id="attachment_57080" align="aligncenter" width="700"]
Astronaut Sally Ride, the first American woman to fly in space, smiles aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger during the STS-7 mission in June 1983.NASA[/caption]
However, Ride did not publicly disclose her sexuality, or her decades-long relationship with her partner Tam O’Shaughnessy, until after her death. She was even reluctant to tell her sister, Bear, who was also a lesbian. “Sally” recounts Ride’s life and work, her ambitions and training at NASA, her positive impact on women in STEM, as well as her marriage to fellow astronaut Steve Hawley and her relationship with O’Shaughnessy, making points about how things are harder for women in general and queer woman in particular. As a pioneering lesbian who remains an inspiration, Ride gets some overdue love and even more respect with this flattering portrait.
NewFest Pride | May 29-June 2 at the SVA Theater, Gansevoort Plaza, and online
“Plainclothes” is about Lucas (Tom Blyth), an undercover cop, who entraps gay men in public restrooms in upstate New York.NewFest[/caption]
Essi focuses on the uneasiness of Lucas’ situation, playing up his paranoia and including a time-jumping narrative (cue facial hair signposting), and erratic editing to illustrate Lucas’ fractured, conflicted mindset. These pretentious cinematic devices mar a simple character study/coming out story. Blyth is compelling as a man struggling with his same-sex attraction and scenes of Lucas and Andrew together are touching because both closeted guys feel safe when they are alone together. In contrast, Lucas’ exchanges with his homophobic uncle (Gabe Fazio) are heavy-handed and cringe-inducing. Essi plays up themes of surveillance and legality, making only obvious points about shame and the criminalization of gay sex. The policing scenes lack tension, whereas Lucas’ concerns about being discovered by his colleagues or family are strained and overplayed. “Plainclothes” actually works best as a showcase for Tovey, who makes Andrew the most interesting character in the film. In support, Maria Dizzia adds some poignancy as Lucas’ mother.
“Outerlands” (June 2, 7:30 pm, SVA Theatre), is a sensitive character study of Cass (non-binary actor Asia Kate Dillon), who is eking out life in San Francisco, and self-soothing with too much alcohol. After spending a night with Kalli (Louisa Krause), Cass is asked to watch Kalli’s 12-year-old daughter, Ari (Ridley Asha Bateman), while she goes away for a few days. Cass bonds with Ari over video games, particularly one called Outlands, which has an astronaut lost in the galaxy having to find their way back to the mothership — a decidedly on-the-nose metaphor for this film about lost parents and abandoned children. Cass’ fraught history with their own mother is hinted at as Cass parents Ari, and Ari misses her mother. Adding to the drama is Cass’ struggle at home as their landlord is making it increasingly more difficult for Cass to live in their apartment. They connect with a kindly queer bank employee (Lea DeLaria), who offers support and community. “Outerlands” features a strong central performance by Dillon and a nice sense of time and place as it depicts the difficulties its various characters face.
“Sally” (June 2, Gansevoort Plaza, 8:15 pm, and streaming) is a celebratory documentary about Sally Ride, the first American woman to go into space. A role model for breaking a glass ceiling, Ride endured incredible sexism and gendered expectations on the job and in the media — before, during, and after her famous shuttle flight. As director Cristina Costantini’s informative documentary shows, she handled it all with aplomb.
[caption id="attachment_57080" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Astronaut Sally Ride, the first American woman to fly in space, smiles aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger during the STS-7 mission in June 1983.NASA[/caption]
However, Ride did not publicly disclose her sexuality, or her decades-long relationship with her partner Tam O’Shaughnessy, until after her death. She was even reluctant to tell her sister, Bear, who was also a lesbian. “Sally” recounts Ride’s life and work, her ambitions and training at NASA, her positive impact on women in STEM, as well as her marriage to fellow astronaut Steve Hawley and her relationship with O’Shaughnessy, making points about how things are harder for women in general and queer woman in particular. As a pioneering lesbian who remains an inspiration, Ride gets some overdue love and even more respect with this flattering portrait.
NewFest Pride | May 29-June 2 at the SVA Theater, Gansevoort Plaza, and online What's Your Reaction?
