Gay Best Friend: Christian (Justin Walker) in "Clueless" (1995)

A series by Christopher James looking at the 'Gay Best Friend' trope

You had me at "nice stems."Clueless is a perfect movie. The more time passes, the more the film is solidified as a bona fide classic.  Writer/director Amy Heckerling turns Jane Austen’s Emma into an addictive and heartfelt tale of high school relationships and finding one’s impact on the world around them. Alicia Silverstone’s Cher is a pitch perfect heroine whose big heart is only outmatched by the size of her closet. Heckerling’s loving wit doesn’t just apply to our leading lady. The entire high school is filled with big personalities (and bigger wallets). One of my favorite characters has always been Christian (Justin Walker), an old soul who becomes the first (and likely not last) gay man that Cher falls for. 

While mostly a supporting player, Christian isn’t solely defined by his sexuality. He gets to be a fully rounded connoisseur who seamlessly moves from a romantic interest to a gay best friend...

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What did you see this week?

Been back to the movie theaters yet? We've been going regularly again (huzzah!) but this week we skipped the new releases and took in a special one-night screening of The Graduate (1967) for the Movies with MZS at IFC Center. Next month he's showing Body Heat (1981) which is so perfect (you know we're fans) so if you're in NYC and you've never seen it now is your chance to see Kathleen Turner's jaw-dropping debut on the big screen.

Anyway. Here is the chart. What did you see this past week/weekend?

Weekend Box Office July 16th-18th 🔺 = new or expanding / ★ = recommended
WIDE RELEASE	PLATFORM TITLES
Black Widow	Pig

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Vintage '98

The Smackdown of '98 (with special guests) arrives in just one week. Before we get to the main event let's just soak in that year a bit. Were you old enough to be conscious of pop culture in that year? If so, nostalgia warning. If not, here's what people were talking about before your time.

Great Big Box Office Hits: Titanic (1997) reigned long into 1998 as the then the biggest hit of all time. In fact it didn't fully cede the #1 of the weekend placement from Christmas '97 through Easter of '98. What's more it didn't leave the top ten box office chart until JUNE. That kind of run is unthinkable now. But the biggest hits released in the actual calendar year of 1998 were...

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Platino Nominees: La Llorona, New Order, etc...

Just when you think it's safe to leave 2020 cinema behind, another award pops up! This time it's the 8th annual PLATINO Awards which are for Ibero-American films and television. The Best Film nominees are...

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"Parallel Mothers" to open Venice

by Nathaniel R

Reporting Pedro Almodóvar news twice over. First, his 22nd feature Parallel Mothers will open the 77th Venice Film Festival on September 1st, followed by a September rollout in Europe.  Sony Pictures Classics will distribute the film in the US though they haven't announced a specific date yet. Almodóvar has been an arthouse sensation in the international marketplace since the late 80s. Though he feels like an Oscar perennial the truth is that though he's often in 'the conversation', as it were, Oscar has been a bit stingy; Collectively his films have earned 7 Oscar nominations and 2 wins (Best Foreign-Language Film for All About My Mother and Best Screenplay for Talk To Her) but are often snubbed despite outclassing their competitors. Remember Volver not placing in Foreign-Language Film and The Human Voice not landing in the short film category just last season when in both cases they both ought to have won those particular categories given the finalists? 

The second bit of news is that we'll be launching a Thursday series here at TFE in which we'll (re)watch his whole filmography... which we've been meaning to do for awhile. His official debut Pepi, Luci, Bom and Other Girls Like Mom (1980) is surprisingly available on HBOMax at the moment!