Dorian TV Awards: Horny Vampires, Queer Comedians, Fellow Travellers, and Baby Reindeers

by Nathaniel R

Fellow Travelers © Showtime

The Society for LGBTQ Entertainment Journalists have released the Dorian Award nominations for the 2023-2024 TV season in twenty-four categories. As per our usual disclaimer, multiple members of TFE are in the 500-wide membership of GALECA. It's a four way tie for the leading show between AMC's interpretation of Interview with the Vampire, perennial Emmy favourites Max's Hacks and FX/Hulu's The Bear, and Netflix sensation Baby Reindeer all grabbing six nods each. FX/Hulu's remake of classic period epic Shōgun and Showtime's thrilling romantic drama Fellow Travellers were not far behind with five nods each. 

After the list, the full nominations and a few scattered comments...

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1974: An Ode to "Female Trouble" and Taffy Davenport

by Nick Taylor

As regular TFE commenter par pointed out in the comments for my Tina Holmes piece last week, there’s a lot of supporting actresses from 1999 who I could honor this Pride month. It’s a very tempting idea, and though many of those women will likely get their flowers later in the year - who wouldn’t want to pick over Election as the nonsense of the US Presidential race really starts heating up? - I think this is a terrific opportunity to hop across major eras and remind folks that, hey, queers have been around and making films for a long fucking time. We’ve been rubbing our grubby hands all over cinema since its inception.

If we’re talking about queer cinema, and if we’re talking about a peak among peaks, there’s really nowhere else to go but Female Trouble, John Waters’ inspiring ode to troubled teen flicks from the ‘50s, and the perfect performances of Mink Stole and Hilary Taylor as Taffy Davenport . . . .

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1999: Tina Holmes in "Edge of Seventeen"

by Nick Taylor

Hello, strangers! Did you miss my supporting actress write-ups? With no smackdown to latch onto like a gay barnacle, I’ll be hopping onto our 10|25|50|75|100 anniversary format to look back on supporting actressing feats of years past. For those keeping track at home, this means I’ll be writing up performances from films released in the US in 2014, 1999, 1974, and 1949 (technically I could also do 1924, but I think that’s less likely). If you would like to see the whole list of films and performances I'm considering for this series and a longer run-down of it, click here! The dream is to post these corresponding to months of release, or, barring that, themed categories based on what month it is. Like how June is gay Pride month, meaning I can write about queer films and queer actresses all month long! Broader schedules hopefully mean more wiggle room to write about as many films as I like!

For my first entry in this series, I’m immediately going to take advantage of that US release calendar for Tina Holmes's indelible performance in David Moreton’s Edge of Seventeen . . . .

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Cannes Diary: Jacques Audiard's stunning 'Emilia Perez'

by Elisa Giudici

How does Jacques Audiard do it? Emilia Pérez would be an extraordinary film if it were directed by a 35-year-old filmmaker who had just matured and created a groundbreaking movie destined to consecrate his career. Yet Audiard is 72 years old, already has a Palme d'Or at home, and a portfolio of excellent films. He doesn't need to reinvent himself or take many risks, having reached an age and fame where some simply coast along, continuing to indulge their existing obsessions.

Instead, Audiard delivers a film that, on paper, should be disastrous and unworkable...

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Cannes at Home: Day 8 – The Beautiful People

by Cláudio Alves

Sean Baker's ANORA looks like a top contender for the Palme d'Or.

After much divisiveness in the Main Competition, the Cannes critics finally have something to fawn over in collective uproar. Sean Baker's Anora was a hit with press and audiences alike, standing out in a selection of otherwise derided titles. Indeed, Christophe Honoré's Marcello Mio met critical rejection on the same day of Grand Tour's world premiere, while Paolo Sorrentino's Parthenope inspired another wave of dissenting opinions. Some love it, while many others decry the Neapolitan director's obsession with objectified female bodies, beauty above everything else, even cinematic meaning. Considering his last few projects, this shouldn't come as a surprise.

That shall be the theme of this Cannes at Home program—the beautiful people. Let's explore the siren calls of Baker's Tangerine, Honoré's The Beautiful Person, and Sorrentino's Oscar-winning The Great Beauty…

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