Knight at the Movies Archives
Two new indie films feel awfully familiar
Summer is winding down.  Look no further than the local Cineplex where a certain déjà vu has begun to set in for proof of that.  Like
January, late August is when Hollywood dumps all its summer leftovers into theatres – the stuff that didn’t test so well, isn’t so easy
to market, and sounds and looks a bit too familiar.  
The Invasion and The Last Legion, both opening this week fit this definition as do
two films with heavy gay subject matter,
Cut Sleeve Boys and Death at a Funeral.  Whether the familiarity will breed comfort or
discontent for these movies remains to be seen.  I found the latter two enjoyable late summer fare though not particularly
memorable.   

Cut Sleeve Boys begins by explaining the derivation of the movie’s title which goes something like this:  A one time Chinese
emperor awoke one day to find his male concubine still asleep on his sleeve.  Rather than disturb the sleeping beauty, the emperor
cut off his sleeve to prove his love for the Adonis.  Further, we are told, “gay” in Chinese has been known from then on as “cut
sleeve.”  This interesting little anecdote is honestly the only original thing in the movie that follows; a gay comedy from writer-
director Ray Yeung.  That’s not to imply that it isn’t entertaining, has its share of laughs, is somewhat moving in parts, and is sexy
enough (the requisite hot male eye candy prominently displayed throughout guarantees that).  In fact, its similarity to scores of
previous TV shows and movies of the “Queer as Folk” variety may be just the ticket for gay audiences looking for a nice 90 minute
diversion in air conditioned comfort.

The Sisterhood TV/movie template (
Steel Magnolias, Waiting to Exhale, The Joy Luck Club, “Sex in the City,” etc.) has been successfully
mirrored by gay culture for years now and like its female counterparts, has broken out into ethnic subsets over the years.  The white
boys have had films like
The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert, The Broken Hearts Club, Love! Valour! Compassion!, and the
aforementioned “Queer as Folk” on cable, for black men there’s Logo’s
“Noah’s Arc” (with a feature film promised in the future),
among the many ethnic variations available.  Now
Cut Sleeve Boys joins the ranks as it focuses on gay Asian culture (albeit Chinese-
British).

The characters are Mel (Steven Lim), the relationship-phobic circuit queen with the tattooed hot body, Todd (Gareth Rhys Davies) the
innocent stud from the sticks who falls hard for him, Ashley (Chowee Leow) the nellie drag queen who lives for sophistication and
glamour, Diane/Dan (John Ebb-On-Knee Campbell), a world weary seen it all done it all transsexual, and Ross (Neil Collie) the butch
guy who’s dying to release his inner queer (and inner drag queen) who gets his chance thanks to Ashley.  The story begins with the
abrupt death of a third friend, Gavin (Mark Hampton) who dies of a heart attack after doing a bump while getting serviced in a toilet
stall.  Mel and Ashley, the two lead characters who drive the story, are introduced at the funeral.

Things bump along with the expected highs and lows as characters fall in and out of bed, sashay in enough glitter drag to make
Lady Bunny envious, and eventually, of course, find their True Purpose.  The picture is shot in eye popping colors (the costumes
help), is attractively designed and the soundtrack, naturally, includes plenty of techno music.  I loved the contrast of the techno
thump with a device that Yeung creates for the character of Ashley, a dedicated rice queen if there ever was one.  Ashley, it seems,
is enough of a retro queen to play old Asian 78s on a rickety phonograph when he is feeling morose.  The lyrics of the songs on the
scratchy 78s are subtitled as they play and this charming device adds some depth to the Ashley characters search for a meaningful
relationship.

I’d have been much more captivated by a re-creation of that emperor and his male concubine parable that gave the movie its title,
but a self-described “quirky stir fried journey of self-discovery and ultimately, a makeover of the British Chinese gay experience” will
suffice until Yeung gets the budget to bring us this more lavish epic (a gay
The Emperor and the Nightingale as it were).  Given the
talent he displays here, that’s not such a far fetched idea.

The other awfully familiar movie this week is
Death at a Funeral, a not very funny latest installment of a dysfunctional British
family gathered for a social occasion movie (this one a funeral obviously).  Stereotypical characters include the shallow, successful
good looking brother, the overshadowed, envious, put upon older brother, a snappish sister, a nasty geezer in a wheelchair, et al.  
The comedic situations are overcooked to say the least – a boyfriend who needs to make a good impression is accidentally dosed
with a hallucinogenic, old folks spout naughty words, the geezer in the wheelchair needs help in the bathroom before he loses his
load, numerous sight gags involve the corpse, and on and on ad nauseum.  

The plot hinges on the arrival at the funeral of a sinister dwarf who has photographic proof that the deceased man, father of the now
sniping brothers, was a poofta (and a Big One at that).  The dwarf wants to be paid off immediately or he will reveal to the gathered
relatives Big Daddy’s secret.  “Hilarity” ensues as the brothers try to keep the secret (and the dwarf) under wraps.  The screening
audience howled at each ensuing scatological sight gag (is incontinence really so funny I ask?) and giggled at the subsequent
pratfalls and “outrageous” set ups.  The director of this likeable but so-so comedy is none other than Frank Oz who was vilified back
in 2004 for his comedic remake of
The Stepford Wives.  Audiences and critics were not kind.  That one I liked.  That one made me
laugh and gets watched voluntarily on occasion by me on DVD.  
Death at a Funeral probably won’t.  But there’s the rub and again
points out that all criticism is subjective.  All around me at
Death at a Funeral the audience roared with laughter while I puzzled at that
and merely chuckled from time to time.  Maybe it was the heat.
Been There Done That:
Cut Sleeve Boys-Death at a Funeral
Expanded Edition of 8-15-07 Windy City Times Knight at the Movies Column
By Richard Knight, Jr.