Documentary History
What "That's Entertainment" did for movie musicals, "The Celluloid Closet" does for Hollywood homosexuality, as this exuberant, eye-opening movie serves up a dazzling hundred-year history of the role of gay men and lesbians have had on the silver screen. Lily Tomlin narrates as Oscar-winning moviemaker Rob Epstein ("The Times of Harvey Milk" and "Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt") and Jeffrey Friedman assemble fabulous footage from 120 films showing the changing face of cinema sexuality, from cruel stereotypes to covert love to the activist triumphs of the 1990s. Tom Hanks, Susan Sarandon, Whoopi Goldberg, Tony Curtis, Harvey Fierstein and Gore Vidal are just a few of the many actors, writers and commentators who provide funny and insightful anecdotes.
Directed by
Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman
Written by
Armistead Maupin
Tom Hanks
Self
Whoopi Goldberg
Self
Sharon Stone
Self
Paul Newman
Self (archive footage)
Shirley MacLaine
Self
Susan Sarandon
Self
Lily Tomlin
Narrator (voice)
James Dean
Self (archive footage)
Tony Curtis
Self
Harry Hamlin
Self
Harvey Fierstein
Self
Natalie Wood
Self (archive footage)
Farley Granger
Self
Sal Mineo
Self (archive footage)
Antonio Fargas
Self
Quentin Crisp
Self
Vito Russo
Armistead Maupin
Self
Susie Bright
Self
Richard Dyer
Self

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