NEWS: Mrs. Jackson Missing; Too Many Traitors; Bristol Palin Laughs At 'Faggot'

 Tripp Palin calls Auntie Willow a "faggot" -- mom laughs -- AFTER THE JUMP ... 

 Is Michael Jackson's mom missing or not?

 Michele Bachmann's search for Muslim Brotherhood infiltration of the American government nets ... Grover Norquist?

 The Paterno statue goes down. 

 Australia's ex-minister of foreign affairs on marriage equality, off the record.

 For some reason, a half-dozen Indian newspapers are reporting this weekend that Marilyn Monroe was a lesbian. 

 Growing up gay in the west of Scotland, the Church is no help at all:

After years of watching The Devil Wears Prada and Sex and the City and preferring the products of Habitat and Ikea to Adidas and Puma, you finally acknowledge that there may be trouble ahead. What to do, though? Even if you tell your parents gently that you are having issues with your sexual identity, you know that they will either pretend they didn't hear you or that you should seek counsel from the parish priest. You might as well tell him that all this time he thought you were human you were really a horse. If he's not actually gay himself he'll simply say: "Take two paracetamol and lie down until the feeling goes away."

  The 14 gay Olympians.

 Alexander Cockburn is dead.

 Boycotting Chick-fil-A? Why not Best Buy, Target, and Exxon, too?

 ... and what about Microsoft and Apple?

 A handful of advocates, armed with nothing more than their keyboards, have put many of the country’s largest retailers, including Apple, Microsoft, Netflix and Wal-Mart, on the spot over their indirect and, until recently, unnoticed roles in funneling money to Christian groups that are vocal in opposing homosexuality.

The advocates are demanding that the retailers end their association with an Internet marketer that gets a commission from the retailers for each online customer it gives them ... a share of the commission that retailers pay is donated to a Christian charity of the buyer’s choice, from a list that includes prominent conservative evangelical groups like the Family Research Council and Focus on the Family.        

Movies: All Divas All The Time — Piggy, Tink, Natalie, Tilda, Cleopatra

Clooney and his onscreen girls in THE DESCENDANTS

NATHANIEL ROGERS
...would live in the movie theater but for the poor internet reception. He blogs daily at the Film Experience. Follow him on Twitter @nathanielr.

 
NOW IN THEATERS
Writer/director Alexander Payne (Sideways) is back after a long hiatus with THE DESCENDANTS. The dramedy finds a wealthy Hawaiian landowner (George Clooney) totally at sea with the women in his life (his wife is in a coma, and his daughters are hard to handle) while attempting to find his footing on land as the family prepares to sell their unspoiled prime real estate. It's a certain player in this year's Oscar race. 

Less certain is whether Academy voters will go for a second round with those dancing penguins in HAPPY FEET TWO. 

Meanwhile, mopey terrible-role-model Bella "I'm nothing without a man!" Swan is back to marry her vampire in THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN PART 1 but don't make me talk about it. Let's illustrated Bella's return with a photo of Miss Piggy as "Bella Swine" because the world would be a better place with more Muppets (next week!) and less Twilight. Breaking Dawn supposedly has a 35 minute wedding sequence and I swear to god the next person who tells me they thought the brilliant Rachel Getting Married was boring or that the hilarious bridal shower toasts in Bridesmaids went on too long is getting karate chopped. "Hiiii-yaaaaa."

May Oscar winning out filmmaker Bill Condon (Dreamgirls, Kinsey, Gods and Monsters) survive his years with Bella & Edward and return to making good movies with more progressive sexual politics soon.

BONUS SCENES

On the topic of Bridesmaids, have you watched the "line-o-rama" feature on the DVD/Blu Ray? It's crazy to to soak in all that discarded improv comedy. Even Rose Byrne can do it! Who knew she had that performance in her? 

NATALIE, CLEOPATRA, TILDA, TINK & GLINDA, AFTER THE JUMP...

Michelle Williams Does Marilyn: VIDEO

Michelle Williams does her turn as Marilyn Monroe in the upcoming film 'My Week with Marilyn' and it's a mighty convincing turn.

Watch her perform "Heatwave" along with another clip, AFTER THE JUMP...

Movies: Identity Crises with Antonio Banderas, Glenn Close and Marilyn Monroe

Pedro Almodóvar And His Latest Plaything from "The Skin I Live In"

NATHANIEL ROGERS
...would live in the movie theater but for the poor internet reception. He blogs daily at the Film Experience. Follow him on Twitter @nathanielr.

 
NOW PLAYING
This weekend at the multiplex it's the battle of the 80s remakes with sci-fi horror film THE THING (previously in theaters in 1982) vs. "everybody cut everybody cut" dance drama FOOTLOOSE (previously in theaters in 1984). The latter proudly and absurdly waves a "this is our time" tagline despite being a remake of another generation's touchstone.

But no matter. The only one that truly matters is Pedro Almodóvar's new gem THE SKIN I LIVE IN. While it's not quite on the level of his five masterworks (Law of Desire, Women on the Verge..., All About My Mother, Talk To Her, and Volver if you ask me) very few films are. Second tier Almodóvar is still better than most movies made in any given year. For his latest he's reunited with his only male muse Antonio Banderas for their sixth film together and their first since Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! (1990) in which sexy Antonio held a beautiful woman prisoner until she loved him. Twenty-one years later and Antonio is up to his old Stockholm Syndrome tactics again. This time he's a brilliant cold plastic surgeon and the woman he's holding captive (Elena Anaya) seems to be a semi-willing guineau pig in a series of illegal surgeries which will give her flawless new skin. But why does he keep her locked up? What exactly happened to the surgeon's wife and daughter who are nowhere to be seen? How long has this been going on? 

Like most Almodóvar films this one is novelistic with intriguing details that could make their own movies, has themes of identity and sexuality that are of interest to LGBT audiences, features smartly executed twists which bring the story into perverse focus, and wows with stunning imagery including simple but freakishly haunting costumes from Paco Delgado (with an assist from Jean Paul Gaultier). I hate to quote Peter Travers from Rolling Stone since his whole raison d'etre as a film critic is to be quoted but they used to promote Pedro's movies with this blurb:

"Pedro Almodóvar doesn't just make movies. Almodóvar is the movies."

A more succinct and correct appraisal I've rarely read.

BONUS SCENES

Did you know they had personal trailers in the 19th century? How else to explain Aaron Johnson's physique in Albert Nobbs?

More identity crises AFTER THE JUMP...

Chicago's Colossal Marilyn Monroe 'Seven Year Itch' Sculpture: PHOTO

And upskirt photo pervs rejoice. (via chicago tribune)

News: Dolce and Gabbana, Volcano, Tel Aviv, Andrew Cuomo

Obama impersonator yanked off stage after making racist and anti-gay jokes at the Republican Leadership Conference.

Dolce and Gabbana streams their runway show live on the Internet.

Ryan Reynolds: 200 pounds and 8% body fat.

Psychiatrist who offers "therapy" sessions for those with "unwanted same-sex attractions" and who was recently hired by Hong Kong's Social Social Welfare department defends himself: “We should not ban people from therapy if they want to change. We should respect their right."

Matthew Rettenmund on how well things sold at the Debbie Reynold Hollywood auction. Marilyn Monroe's dress set a new record, selling for a whopping $5.6 million.

Marriage equality in New York would pump $184 million into the state's economy.

Ryan Gosling walks his pup through LAX.

Watch: New music video from RuPaul's Drag Race Winner Raja.

The AP brands Governor Cuomo as the new face of marriage equality.

Ash from Chile's Puyehue volcano is currently painting sunsets all over the world.

Google celebrates Pride in June.

Gay rights leaders from Barcelona claim unwarranted treatment at Tel Aviv airport: "David Marti, the general manager for gay pride events in Barcelona, told Haaretz that airport security had stripped his boyfriend whom he was traveling with. The pair were asked a series of personal questions, which Marti said exceeded reasonable limits. The men's personal items were also thoroughly searched. Marti said the pair was questioned for a long time, with their security check ending just minutes before their plane took off."

John Aravosis and Dan Choi joined ten women in Muslim headscarves who all crashed RightOnline to protest an anti-Muslim incident at the conservative conference.