In addition to the Armistead Maupin thriller The Night Listener, and Sundance winner Quinceañera, both of which are on my list, Talladega Nights opens this weekend. Though it's far more mainstream than Night Listener or Quinceañera, AfterElton says Sacha Baron-Cohen's sympathetic and hilarious portrayal of Jean Girard, a gay Nascar Rival to Will Ferrell's Ricky Bobby, may surprise you:

"The filmmakers satirize the conservative stereotype of the 'gay elite' by including shots of Jean (who is sponsored by Perrier) sipping a macchiato, listening to classical music, and reading Camus's L'Etranger all while driving in a race...But Girard is never treated to gay slurs or anti-gay violence in the film, and his is the life of sophistication and wealth that is envied by the other characters. Ricky's eventual fall from grace does come at the hands of Jean Girard, but the Frenchman also plays a pivotal role in Ricky's triumphant return.

Girard never positions himself as "other" in comparison to the heterosexual characters, and, if anything, considers himself their superior. Girard isn't de-sexualized either, making obvious references to his sexuality and more than one pass at Ricky (who rejects the advances without incident or homophobia). In fact, the shocking end-sequence of the film is centered squarely on Girard's gayness in an extremely positive--and extremely funny--way."

Looks like a pretty interesting weekend at the movies for the beginning of August...

Gay Driver Laps Stereotypes in Talladega Nights [afterelton]
‘Quinceañera’: Turning Sweet 15 in Los Angeles’s Immigrant Stew [nyt]
A Long-Distance Friendship, and Then It Gets Strange, in 'The Night Listener' [nyt]

Posted Aug. 4,2006 at 11:45 AM EST by Andy Towle in Film, Sacha Baron-Cohen | Permalink

1. Saw Quincineara at the NY Latin Film Fest last weekend. Enjoyed it a lot. And Jesse Garcia, who plays the gay Latin guy, looks good whether he's wearing a white wife beater, a black wife beater, or a tux. Seriously, though, I thought it was a very good movie -- I saw it with a fellow Angeleno-turned-New-Yorker, and we both felt it captured Echo Park and the characters very authentically.

   Posted by: EricW | Aug 4, 2006 11:55:33 AM

   
   

2. I want to see Taladega Nights for no other reason than

   "Save me oprah, Save me jesus, Save me Tom Cruise. use your magic Aghhhhhhhhhhh"

   LOL no matter how many times they show that clip on tv, it always cracks me up.

   LOL

   
   

   Posted by: jimmyboyo | Aug 4, 2006 12:03:26 PM

   
   

3. It's weird, but the trailers I've been seeing on TV in the past couple of days have had the "Save me Tom Cruise" line edited out.

   Posted by: Frank | Aug 4, 2006 12:11:22 PM

   
   

4. I am not a Will Ferrell or NASCAR fan. It's been a long, dry summer.

   Rad

   Posted by: Rad | Aug 4, 2006 2:11:32 PM

   
   

5. Quinceanera opened last month in France, and I can confirm it is definitely a must-see.

   Posted by: Nick | Aug 4, 2006 2:37:09 PM

   
   

6. Frank i haven't noticed the tom cruise reference taken out. i am on the east coast, maybe scientologists don't have any power over here.

   RAD, LOL. I to am not a will farel fan. BUT the movie satarizes nascar people and the south. Throw in making fun of tom cruise and I can stomach will farel

   Posted by: jimmyboyo | Aug 4, 2006 4:39:29 PM

   
   

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