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IMDbPro

The Celluloid Closet

  • 19951995
  • RR
  • 1h 42m
IMDb RATING
7.8/10
7K
YOUR RATING
The Celluloid Closet (1995)
  • Documentary
  • History
A documentary surveying the various Hollywood screen depictions of homosexuals and the attitudes behind them throughout the history of North American film.A documentary surveying the various Hollywood screen depictions of homosexuals and the attitudes behind them throughout the history of North American film.A documentary surveying the various Hollywood screen depictions of homosexuals and the attitudes behind them throughout the history of North American film.
IMDb RATING
7.8/10
7K
YOUR RATING
  • Directors
    • Rob Epstein
    • Jeffrey Friedman
  • Writers
    • Vito Russo(based on the work of)
    • Rob Epstein(story)
    • Jeffrey Friedman(story)
  • Stars
    • Lily Tomlin(voice)
    • Tony Curtis
    • Susie Bright
Top credits
  • Directors
    • Rob Epstein
    • Jeffrey Friedman
  • Writers
    • Vito Russo(based on the work of)
    • Rob Epstein(story)
    • Jeffrey Friedman(story)
  • Stars
    • Lily Tomlin(voice)
    • Tony Curtis
    • Susie Bright
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 57User reviews
    • 34Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 5 Primetime Emmys
      • 7 wins & 9 nominations total

    Videos1

    The Celluloid Closet
    Trailer 2:10
    The Celluloid Closet

    Photos10

    Quentin Crisp, Rob Epstein, and Jeffrey Friedman in The Celluloid Closet (1995)
    1 sheet
    The Celluloid Closet (1995)
    Sal Mineo in The Celluloid Closet (1995)
    The Celluloid Closet (1995)
    The Celluloid Closet (1995)
    The Celluloid Closet (1995)
    The Celluloid Closet (1995)
    The Celluloid Closet (1995)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Lily Tomlin
    Lily Tomlin
    • Self - Narratoras Self - Narrator
    • (voice)
    Tony Curtis
    Tony Curtis
    • Selfas Self
    Susie Bright
    Susie Bright
    • Selfas Self
    Arthur Laurents
    Arthur Laurents
    • Selfas Self
    Armistead Maupin
    Armistead Maupin
    • Selfas Self
    Whoopi Goldberg
    Whoopi Goldberg
    • Selfas Self
    Jan Oxenberg
    • Selfas Self
    Harvey Fierstein
    Harvey Fierstein
    • Selfas Self
    Quentin Crisp
    Quentin Crisp
    • Selfas Self
    Richard Dyer
    • Selfas Self
    Jay Presson Allen
    Jay Presson Allen
    • Selfas Self
    Mrs. Gustav Ketterer
    • Selfas Self
    Gore Vidal
    Gore Vidal
    • Selfas Self
    Will H. Hays
    Will H. Hays
    • Selfas Self
    • (archive footage)
    Farley Granger
    Farley Granger
    • Selfas Self
    Paul Rudnick
    Paul Rudnick
    • Selfas Self
    Shirley MacLaine
    Shirley MacLaine
    • Selfas Self
    Barry Sandler
    • Selfas Self
    • Directors
      • Rob Epstein
      • Jeffrey Friedman
    • Writers
      • Vito Russo(based on the work of)
      • Rob Epstein(story)
      • Jeffrey Friedman(story)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The filmmakers originally planned a sequence discussing how gay historical figures were portrayed as heterosexual in films, including Cole Porter in Night and Day (1946) and Lorenz Hart in Words and Music (1948). The sequence was aborted when Richard Burton's estate denied the rights to Alexander the Great (1956), MGM denied use of Hans Christian Andersen (1952) (fearing that the filmmakers were trying to 'out' Danny Kaye) and Charlton Heston declined use of The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965) (claiming that Michelangelo was heterosexual).
    • Quotes

      Quentin Crisp: Mainstream people dislike homosexuality because they can't help concentrating on what homosexual men do to one another. And when you contemplate what people do, you think of yourself doing it. And they don't like that. That's the famous joke: I don't like peas, and I'm glad I don't like them, because if I liked them I would eat them and I hate them.

    • Connections
      Edited into Rescued from the Closet (2001)
    • Soundtracks
      Advise and Consent (Main Theme)
      Written by Jerry Fielding

      Performed by Frank Sinatra (uncredited)

      Courtesy of Warner Bros. Inc.

    User reviews57

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    8/10
    A documentary that follows the appearance of gays in the history of the movies, the film takes a talking heads approach with interviews, splicing in some terrific film pieces. We get to see Marlene Dietrich, in "Morocco," kiss another woman while dressed in tails -- and looking better than any man ever could. There's a brilliant in-joke clip from "Red River" where Montgomery Clift is told about the beauty of a Swiss watch and a woman -- and then asked if he's ever had a Swiss watch. The film looks at gay stereotypes such as the pansy or the sissy, the characters that Franklin Pangborn used to play. Some of the interviewees are exceptional, namely Harvey Fierstein, Gore Vidal, and the incredible Quentin Crisp. Vidal gives a hilarious recount of including a gay backstory in "Ben Hur" which Charlton Heston of course denies.

    The film is also touching and kind of heartbreaking. You realize that in the century we've had movies how enormously they've shaped our culture and our perception of people, and how if the filmmakers and studio heads hadn't been pressured by the horrible Hayes code, society's collective view of gays might not be so troublesome. There's a great moment where Quentin Crisp talks about census takers in England, asking about homosexuality. They were asked whether they knew any homosexuals. If the answer was yes, they were asked what they were like, to which they replied, "just like everybody else." If they answered no, they were asked what they would expect to meet, to which they replied, someone with grand gestures and flamboyance and bright colors. So that there are two images we have in our minds -- one of what homosexuals are like, and one of what homosexuals should be like. And movies played a huge role in that. 8/10
    helpful•17
    6
    • desperateliving
    • Feb 16, 2004

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • March 15, 1996 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • France
      • United Kingdom
      • Germany
      • United States
    • Official sites
      • Sony Pictures Classics
      • Telling Pictures
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Sakincali Film Dolabi
    • Filming locations
      • Raleigh Studios, Hollywood, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Home Box Office (HBO)
      • Channel 4
      • ZDF/Arte
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $1,400,591
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $95,047
      • Mar 17, 1996
    • Gross worldwide
      • $1,400,591
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 42 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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