Movies: Glen & Glenda, Ed Wood & Johnny Depp

[Sheri 4242]

In another thread, a member was, in part, seeking a movie title that he might obtain and watch with his SO to use as a springboard into discussing crossdressing. I found this intriguing. It was noted that two very good movies -- "The Birdcage" and "To Wong Foo" -- would not be appropriate b/c they dealt with gays in drag. "Mrs. Doubtfire" and "Tootsie" -- two more very entertaining films -- were also mentioned and discounted b/c the characters who crossdressed in them did so for very pointed and specific reasons and not b/c the characters were true crossdressers.

I mentioed "Ed Wood," the Johnny Depp film on the life story of Edward Wood, Jr. who, besides being known as Hollywood's worst director, was a crossdresser (and, at times, very openly so).

Lucille Tall suggested "Glen or Glenda," a 1951 film still available on Amazon.

So, for the sake of some new discussion, and b/c their is some cultish interest in the life of the real Ed Wood, I thought I would:

1. Ask everybody if they know of any other movies that might be of value within the franework of being valuable as springboards for discussing CDing???

2.) And, to kick things off, make note that, as far as "Ed Wood" and "Glen or Glenda" go, they are related and both have value!

The real Edward Wood, Jr. wrote, directed, and stared in "Glen or Glenda." (Bela Lugosi also stared; Ed Wood always tried to find a way to include Lugosi in his films.) "Glen or Glenda" was filmed in 1953 and was released on DVD in 2000 or 2001. A quick synopsis of the movie (which is available through Amazon) is as follows: After discovering the suicide of a transvestite, a police inspector seeks enlightenment from a psychiatrist. The psychiatrist tells him two stories. "Glen" is to be married to "Barbara," but must find a way to tell her of his desire to wear her angora sweaters, and of his cross-dressing needs in general. (The real Ed Wood loved to wear angora sweaters!) Another is the story of "Alan," who decides to physically become a female via surgery (based on the contemporary story of Christine Jorgensen). So, this movie also has elements of TSism in it in addition to CDing.

The movie "Ed Wood" was filmed in 1994, with Johnny Depp playing Ed Wood, and also staring Sarah Jessica Parker, Vincent D'Onofrio, Bill Murray, Martin Landau, and Patricia Arquette; it was directed by Tim Burton. The plot line of "Ed Wood" is basically the real Ed Wood's adult history as "Hollywood's worst-ever director/producer." His crossdressing comes up several times during the movie (yep, Johnny Depp in a skirt and angora sweater), but isn't the entire focus of the movie.

Both movies have elements of truth in them -- and both address crossdressing and the inner need to do so.

So, anybody know of any other informative, helpful movies? Anynody seen these two, and, if so, what was your take on them?

[Rachel Newark]

How about 'Just Like a Woman', amusing, and sympathetic and very loosely based on a true story ( VERY loosely )


Rachel Newak

[Emily Ann Brown]

I'll second JUST LIKE A WOMAN..........is an excellent film about a well adjusted crossdresser. Only good one that comes to mind that doesn't include the desire to transition.


Emily Ann

[Karren H]

I'll second JUST LIKE A WOMAN..........is an excellent film about a well adjusted crossdresser. Only good one that comes to mind that doesn't include the desire to transition.
Emily Ann

Hmmmmmm Maybe you could make a movie along the same lines as "Just Like a Woman", Em? It could be a comedy too.... Well maybe less the well adjusted part...... Ohhhh and the happy ending part.... Maybe just a short film...

But it could have guns in it!!! Kind of like Dirty Harry only in drag...... "Do you feel lucky, punk?........ Love your top.... Did you get that at Macy's??" Hehe



Love ya.... Karren

[Emily Ann Brown]

"Are you feeling lucky punk ? Was that 5 OR 6 shots from my hairspray can?"
GIGGLE GIGGLE !


Or maybe a weird remake of that last Sandra Bullock film where a crossdresser finds the girl of her dreams in a handicapped stall at work where she dresses, except the GG was there everyday 2 years earlier.


Emily Ann

[Tina B.]

Well I hate to show my age, but what about "Some Like it Hot" to bring up cross dressing. A light comedy to bring up a heavy subject!
Tina B.

[carolinewalker_2000]

Tina,

Doesn't matter whether you are showing your age or what; "Some Like It Hot" is one of the ALL TIME great films! (...and the fact that it involves cross-dressing is, for once, incidental to its enjoyment.)

[Julogden]

Hi Barbara,

I found "Glen or Glenda" and "Ed Wood" to be mainly campy fun. While Wood probably intended "Glen or Glenda" to tell the CD'ers story in a compassionate way, he was so intrinsically bad at making movies that it comes off as strange and campy, at best.

As others have said, "Just Like a Woman" is an excellent film (Julie Walters is great in this one), pretty much the only one that I can think of that is specifically about a straight CD. While I love "Some Like It Hot" too, it's not about CD's, even though Jack Lemmon's character was getting into it by the end.

Julie Walters was in another fun British film that had a couple TG characters who were treated with compassion, "Personal Services".


Carol

[Rachel Newark]

Well I hate to show my age, but what about "Some Like it Hot" to bring up cross dressing. A light comedy to bring up a heavy subject!
Tina B.

"Well, nobody's perfect "

Agreed, an excellent film :-)


Rachel Newark

[Sheri 4242]

Hi Barbara,

I found "Glen or Glenda" and "Ed Wood" to be mainly campy fun. While Wood probably intended "Glen or Glenda" to tell the CD'ers story in a compassionate way, he was so intrinsically bad at making movies that it comes off as strange and campy, at best.

As others have said, "Just Like a Woman" is an excellent film (Julie Walters is great in this one), pretty much the only one that I can think of that is specifically about a straight CD. While I love "Some Like It Hot" too, it's not about CD's, even though Jack Lemmon's character was getting into it by the end.

Julie Walters was in another fun British film that had a couple TG characters who were treated with compassion, "Personal Services".


Carol

Carol,

First, you are absolutely correct about Ed Wood being so very bad at making movies! He was so bad that it is probably the single-most reason he is so well-known and and has a cult-like following. Go figure! LOL A'hhh, such is life!

Second, I read a synopsis of "Just Like a Woman," and it sounds like a great movie -- sensitive and relevant. I wonder how I could buy a copy? Amazon does have a few copies for sale, but they are formatted for Region 2 DVD players. (And, Amazon has the caveat that the copies they have for sale are Region 2 encoded and that, "they will not play on most DVD players sold in the US or Canada [Region 1] . . . This item requires a region specific or multi-region DVD player and compatible TV." That figures, too. *sigh*

Barbara

[Sasha Anne Meadows]

If you can find it Just Like a Woman it is one of the best t movies ever produced. It is pretty accrate about who we are. One word of caution though: they use the term transvestite which we all know is not acceptable anymore. But this was made more thana dozen years ago so just keep that in mind. Now enjoy especially with your SO.

[Julogden]

Second, I read a synopsis of "Just Like a Woman," and it sounds like a great movie -- sensitive and relevant. I wonder how I could buy a copy? Amazon does have a few copies for sale, but they are formatted for Region 2 DVD players. (And, Amazon has the caveat that the copies they have for sale are Region 2 encoded and that, "they will not play on most DVD players sold in the US or Canada [Region 1] . . . This item requires a region specific or multi-region DVD player and compatible TV." That figures, too. *sigh*

Barbara

Hi Barbara,

I know, I've been looking for a DVD version too, but apparently it hasn't been released for North American distribution on DVD, only for the UK. Are there multi-region DVD players?

I have it on VHS tape, which was released here in the USA. You might be able to find one of those, maybe check EBay, or if someone knows how to get past the copy protection, they could put the VHS version on DVD for you.

Carol

[jenny_centaur]

"Ed Wood" is my favourite tranny movie because it comes across that his tranvestism is simply a coincidental part of his life and personality, rather than his primary focus.

I don't know about anyone else, but I felt a lot of empathy with that.

[Sheri 4242]

"Ed Wood" is my favourite tranny movie because it comes across that his tranvestism is simply a coincidental part of his life and personality, rather than his primary focus.

I don't know about anyone else, but I felt a lot of empathy with that.

You are right! Wood's transvestism was portrayed as just a part of his lfe and his being. Like many of us, the movie seemed to indicate that he CDed more when his stress levels were up. I, too, thought the fact that the movie didn't portray his CDing as the priary focus of his life was important -- it was shown to be just a part of his being in a "no big deal" manner.

(As an aside, if Wood hadn't been so very bad at making movies, we might not know as much as we do about him. Go figure!)

[Lisa Golightly]

Unfortunately the best films, in my opinion, have dealt with transsexualism. CDing characters are normally a bit too comic for my taste... I've seen an awful lot of films, and to be honest I think a couple of Eddie Izzard shows on dvd would be much more valuable. I think he has done wonders for disarming people's prejudice. Plus as he is very funny on all subjects he tackles CDing is made a ridiculous thing for people to worry about... 'He's a bit confident for a bloke in a dress isn't he?'

[KarenEdwards]

Another film to consider is "Bruno" starring Gary Sinese and Shirley McClain. Ms. McClain also directed the film. It's the story of a little boy (around 8 years old) who is a genius at spelling (as in spelling bees) and also a crossdresser. The movie does a pretty good job of explaining the attraction to crossdressing, especially at the age around which most of us started doing it.

[cemab4y]

One excellent F-to-M film is "Yentl". Barbra Streisand dresses up as a boy to go to Hebrew School. Winds up marrying Amy Irving. Outs herself to Mandy Patnkin. The women in the aisle in front of me wept.

One of the few Western films: "Little Big Man". An indian "Little Bear" prances around the teepee wearing a blanket with hearts sewed on it. He asks Dustin Hoffman to come to his teepee and says "I'll be your wife!".

[Julogden]

Another film to consider is "Bruno" starring Gary Sinese and Shirley McClain. Ms. McClain also directed the film. It's the story of a little boy (around 8 years old) who is a genius at spelling (as in spelling bees) and also a crossdresser. The movie does a pretty good job of explaining the attraction to crossdressing, especially at the age around which most of us started doing it.

Hi Karen,

Yep, that's a fun one too, although it does seem to wander a bit between dealing with the TG Bruno and his mother who is dealing with weight problems, not the most focussed film I've ever seen.

I saw it on broadcast TV with the name "Bruno", as you stated, but if you go looking for it on DVD, it's title is "The Dress Code", not sure why they changed the name when they put it on TV.

An excellent film dealing with a youngster who is TG is "Ma Vie En Rose", a Belgian film that's available on DVD too.

Carol

[cindychan]

Yes I agree with the Ed Wood suggestion. I loved Iron Ladies, but some may think it protrays CD's only as Gays, still it brings a good message about acceptance ( that it is ok for regular people to like CDs). My Life in Pink is a good and realistic view of a young CD boy's stuggle with the issue. It's amazing how the boy's father grows to be accepting and the mother grows to hate her child. I lost it in the scene where the mom cuts the boy's hair, then of course Grandma saves the day.

[krisinpink]

I really like Depp in most every film he's done...Ed Wood is a movie that I'll agree came off as campy, but, as has been pointed out here, Mr. Wood couldn't help that...he was not a good director. (Tim Burton however, is) To the point, 'Ed Wood' certainly did well to demonstrate that Mr Wood's crossdressing is simply part of his personna...I was glad with the way it was presented in that film.

Another film I've seen that hasn't been listed here, but is really a TS movie is an older European film entitled "I want what I want". It's interesting to watch, and has helped me to understand and see the line in my world between CD and TS.

Jacqui

[TxKimberly]

I'll second, third, or fourth the support for "Just Like a Woman".

Kim

[wannabie]

informative movies?

How about, Just One of the Girls with Corey Haiam. What was it like to be a teenaged boy dressed as a girl in highschool. It was fun to watch.


And a friend of mine was telling me about a movie called kinky boots. she said that she couldn't stop laughing. and it had some truths in the movie. I haven't seen it yet and I trust her opinion so I have to see it.

[Sedona]

There are lots of great movies out there that include CDing themes (Victor/Victoria is one of special interest to the FtM crowd), but I think that Ed Wood is simply the best bet for an in the closet CDing male to use as a springboard. It's not the movie's focus (the bad directing is), and doesn't present CDing in a "scary" over the top way, and is a relatively current movie, so you can watch it together with a couple of more recent Depp classics if need be.

I watched Ed Wood with a girlfriend several years ago, specifically as a springboard to CDing discussions. After talking about the movie's various merits, my gf volunteered "I could never be with a man who did that, it's disgusting." Obviously, one of our final dates.

Good luck,

[cindychan]

informative movies?

How about, Just One of the Girls with Corey Haiam. What was it like to be a teenaged boy dressed as a girl in highschool. It was fun to watch.


And a friend of mine was telling me about a movie called kinky boots. she said that she couldn't stop laughing. and it had some truths in the movie. I haven't seen it yet and I trust her opinion so I have to see it.

Ya I totally forget about that one! But I wonder why Corey always wore the sweater over his top. Was his arms to buffed?

forget to say there was always bugs bunny. I remember one cartoon where he transfomed Elmer Fudd into a lady ( It seemed really trippy)

[Bunny Love]

Hello, my one true love - my husband Barbara Was "Connie and Carla" left off your list for a reason? There were some very poignant scenes where one CDer was dealing with his brother about his life choices. I think it's an excellent movie that deals wonderfully with CDing in a unique way.

You got me, Babe!!!!!!!!!!!