Audry, Jacqueline

1950

Like the more well-known Maedchen In Uniform, this story of a young girl's love for her teacher was written and directed by women. Although it ends tragically, the film's lesbian characters are sympathetically portrayed. Olivia is a beautifully photographed melodrama, and the only film of the 1950s to deal openly with lesbianism. Released in the United States in 1954 as Pit of Loneliness, this rarely seen French lesbian boarding school drama was censored for American audiences. In The Celluloid Closet Vito Russo reprints the following censor's notation on the film: "Eliminate in Reel 5D: Scene of Miss Julie holding Olivia in close embrace and kissing her on the mouth. Reason: Immoral, would tend to corrupt morals." The film's advertising campaign sensationalized the "immoral" lesbian angle as only Hollywood can, promising viewers a look at "The secret of a woman's love-starved soul in the daring drama of an unnatural love." The film's stars are French leading lady Simone Simon and Edwige Feuillere, the noted actress, stage director, and member of La Comedie Francaise, who received excellent notices for her performance. The script by Colette is remarkable for the unblinking, if sometimes furtive, passion of Miss Julie and Olivia, which, unusual for films or books of the period, grows out of a genuine attraction to each other rather than a failed heterosexual romance or other such disaster.  Olivia was directed by Jacqueline Audry, whose film credits include Gigi (1949) and Mitzou ( 1956). Audry, known for "sensitive observations of the sentiments of women," lives up to her reputation in Olivia. Although the film ends with the tragedy and condemnation of deviancy requisite of 1950s films about homosexuality, throughout most of the film Audry succeeds in creating a generally credible ( and oftentimes steamy) relationship between the protagonists.

Zando, Julie

1994

A seductive rereading of Pauline Réage's Story of O. A man and woman narrate O's evolving relationship with Rene (played by New York lesbian poet Eileen Myles). O's submission is seen very differently than it is heard. The voice-over refers to a "he" and a "she," but the images depict O being whipped and chained by women in cowboy drag.

Boyd, Amy

1994

The sequel to a popular lesbian movie, and a rendering of “Green Acres” San Francisco–style.

Constantinou, Sophie

1994

Interviews female-to-male transsexual, Henry.

Seawright, Hilton

1994

A short, short from Brazil's dynamic MIXBrasil program.

Summers, A.K.

1994

Logsdon, Dawn

1994

Offers childhood nostalgia with a gender twist.

Garneau, Kathy

1994

No Ogawa (Hiromoto Ida) is a Tokyo burger flipper who dreams of going West and becoming a cowboy. When he loses his job at the burger joint, he decides to take a chance and heads for the wilds of Canada to look up his childhood pen-pal. Instead of finding the cowgirl of his dreams, No is greeted by Kate's meddling mother, who sees him as a prospective husband for her closeted daughter. Kate, on the other hand, wants nothing to do with her redneck roots. She has returned to her small hometown with her lover, Shelly, in an effort to reignite her creative spark, but is unable to readjust to the claustrophobic small-town life because she is unable to come out to her mother. Shelly becomes frustrated with Kate and begins to spend more time with No teaching him about the cultural quirks of the Canadian frontier. Meanwhile No falls for Shelly and casts her as a barmaid in distress in his fantasy Western in which he is her rescuing cowboy hero. Eventually No discovers the true nature of Shelly and Kate's relationship, but Kate's mother convinces him that it is only a phase. In a final attempt to win Shelly's affections, he dons a special costume for the upcoming Halloween party. Who will get the girl in the rousing genderbending finale in which the lines between No's Western fantasy and his Western reality become blurred?

Castro, Rick

1994

Featuring Alexis Arquette and Vaginal Cream Davis as a frustrated couple seeking the advice of a sex therapist.

Simpson, Kelli

1994

This Marching Girl Thing is a short Australian film about a girl's baton twirling club. During an out-of-town competition, one young woman (Muriel from Muriel's Wedding) must decide whether to stick with her lover — between practice and the final round.