Stonewall - the movie is going to be a disaster - literally

[tazber]

It's supposed to focus on the manager Ed Murphy and his collusion with the Police and connection with the disappearance of several homeless gay runaways before things spun out of control culminating in the riots.

But it will obviously really be about a massive tidal wave that wipes out NYC before the East Coast gets bombarded by asteroids.



Link

[FindingNamo]

Here's the detail I was not expecting in that Variety article:

"The script is written by Jon Robin Baitz."

[Kad]

Shot in Montreal? Really?

[tazber]

Me too. Here's the official synopsis:

Kicked out of his own home, young Danny Winters (Jeremy Irvine) flees to NY, leaving behind his beloved sister (Joey King). Homeless and destitute, he befriends a group of street kids who soon introduce him to the watering hole of the local drag queens, gays, lesbians, and everything in between: The Stonewall Inn. However, this shady, mafia-run club is far from a safe-haven. At the bar, Danny meets the suave Trevor (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) before catching the eye of Ed Murphy (Ron Perlman), Stonewall's repulsive manager who colludes with corrupt police, exploits homeless youth for financial gain, and is even suspected to have had a hand in some of their "disappearances." It spirals out of control when the police unexpectedly raid Stonewall. In a storm of anger and with the toss of a single brick, a riot ensues and a crusade for equality is born.

[FindingNamo]

I can't say I would be able to stay away from this new one.

But I do love the one from the '90s.

[tazber]

How have I never seen that?!

I must seek it out.

[FindingNamo]

Totally.

It's not flawless but it is fierce.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Taz, you MUST see the original *Stonewall* starring Guillermo Diaz from WEEDS and SCANDAL. I'm actually writing a chapter of my dissertation about that movie right now!
This sounds like a very whitewashed version of the story, and whitewashed as in it looks like it's gonna be yet another Stonewall account that ignores the work drag queens of colors did that evening. It wasn't all about pretty white kids as the casting suggests.

[CarlosAlberto]

I love the Spanish poster for the film.

[FindingNamo]

As much as I love the mid-'90s one, it wasn't any more "real" than this new one will be. Well, maybe a little.

[PalJoey]

Leave Stonewall alooooooooooooooone!

[Borstalboy]

Interesting synopsis. I wonder if Breckin Meyer and Salma Hayek are going to reprise their roles.

[JerseyGirl2]

Everything I need to know, I learned from
Varla Jean

[EricMontreal22]

"Interesting synopsis. I wonder if Breckin Meyer and Salma Hayek are going to reprise their roles."

HA! Is it wrong that I *still* want that director's cut of 54??

Baitz likes to mix sexuality and politics--that was even one reason he left his TV show Brothers and Sisters, because (according to his blog) aside from suggesting he had a young blonde woman to the cast and focus less on the over 35 year old characters, they didn't like his use of politics. Still, he doesn't exactly have any sort of record (that I know of) for writing about anyone but the white upper-middle class.

Aside from all being typical pretty Hollywood white actors, I don't hate the cast. But Roland Emmerich is obviously the really random choice. Is this some odd sort of labour love for him, or how did he get involved?

Montreal seems to be the go-to place to use as New York--which makes more sense to it being the go-to place to film as San Francisco which seems to happen nearly as often (I guess it has...hills.) A friend of mine who worked in the film industry there said that a lot of Montreal looks more like New York did 20 or more years back than NYC does (though of course it's about the money.)

I need to see that '90s Stonewall again. I have it on VHS, somewhere but haven't seen it since high school.

[EricMontreal22]

Ent Weekly has an interview with Roland. I suppose at least he sounds sincere (though comparing it to his Shakespeare movie--which, I admit I never saw, but I thought he turned it into sorta an action take on the "did he write it" controversy, amuses me. The riots should be thrilling, anyway.) I actually had no idea he was openly gay, so consider myself schooled.




I was always naturally interested in the subject matter. Then, maybe two or three years ago, a couple of friends and I were kind of talking about marriage equality, and one of them said to me, “You k

[Kad]

Wasn't his name involved in the whole Singer imbroglio at some point?

[EricMontreal22]

I think it was, but it seems to be dropped--although I haven't heard anything more about those lawsuits since the lawyer did his odd interview where he said he hadn't been abused as a kid, and then said that he had been abused as a kid so it was personal.

[EricMontreal22]

Coincidentally, Anonymous, Emmerich's Shakespeare film was on Canadian tv tonight. I only caught the last half, and it did seem like he filmed everyone as if they were in a disaster film. But maybe that would work with Stonewall? It's not the *worst* fit ever--I thought Ryan Murphy would destroy The Normal Heart, and I still found the show really moving (and, while a few directorial moments were distracting, mostly I thought Murphy handled it well.)

[tazber]

The mid-90s Stonewall DVD is on amazon for $9.99.

Just FYI for anyone interested.

[JoeKv99]

Perfect for Pride party viewing! Guillermo Diaz is spectacular.