By Romeo San Vicente
Kate Winslet. Photo: The Weinstein Company
Haynes and Winslet bring 'Mildred Pierce' back to life
One thing you can definitely say about visionary gay filmmaker Todd Haynes is that he's unpredictable, bouncing from the chillingly unsettling acclaimed '90s drama "Safe" to the Douglas Sirk homage "Far From Heaven" to the Dylan biopic fantasia "I'm Not There." Now he's tackling an old-school gay favorite, writing and directing an HBO miniseries of "Mildred Pierce." The James M. Cain novel was indelibly brought to the screen in the 1940s with Joan Crawford in the lead role – it's the movie that won Mommie Dearest her Oscar – and now Kate Winslet will play the striving greasy-spoon entrepreneur who's brought down by a mean, ungrateful daughter. And it's a safe bet that Haynes' version will hew closer to the too-hot-for-the-Hays-Code novel than the first film, so Romeo is counting the days until this new "Mildred" moves into the pop culture landscape.
Aniston sings behind bars in 'Goree Girls'
If gay director Michael Sucsy could make Drew Barrymore sound exactly like "Little Edie" Beale in the acclaimed HBO movie "Grey Gardens," then he can make Jennifer Aniston sound like she can sing. At least that seems to be the idea behind "The Goree Girls," which will star Aniston in the true-life story of female prison inmates who formed a country-western ensemble in the 1940s. Aniston will do her own singing for the film, and the one-time "Friends" star will also learn how to play the dobro (a resonator guitar). If Sucsy could get a passable "Tea for Two" out of Barrymore and Jessica Lange for "Grey Gardens," he'll no doubt elicit some sweet vocalizing from Aniston for "The Goree Girls," warbling its way onto screens in 2010 – and, with a little luck, taking Faith Hill down a peg or two on the country charts.
Will Young joins 'Ab Fab' star in new Agatha Christie mystery
Singer Will Young became a megastar in the United Kingdom (and a cult fave among American gays) as the first winner of that country's "American Idol"-spawning "Pop Idol." And while his coming out nabbed him even more headlines, it didn't impact his pop career much. Next step was, of course, acting. (Because if Mariah can keep getting work in movies, anyone can, right?) After his well-received appearance in "Mrs. Henderson Presents," Young is now set to do his first Agatha Christie whodunit, starring in a new British TV production of "The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side," opposite "Absolutely Fabulous" star Joanna Lumley. Old movie fans will remember "The Mirror Crack'd" as a 1980 theatrical feature starring Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, Kim Novak and Angela Lansbury (as Miss Marple). This latest incarnation of the mystery -about murders on a movie set – could air in the UK before the end of 2009.
Xandir returns for The 'Drawn Together' movie
Since real reality-show celebs never seem to want to let go of their 15 minutes of fame, why should their animated counterparts be any different? Comedy Central has announced "The Drawn Together Movie: The Movie!," a direct-to-DVD feature about politically incorrect cartoon characters living in a "Big Brother"-style house. When one character notices they can now all curse without being bleeped, the cast realizes that the show has been canceled, leading them to fight to get back on the air. The series' cast includes gay actor Jack Plotnick ("Girls Will Be Girls"), who provides the voice of Xandir, a video-game prince who doesn't seem quite ready to acknowledge he's a homosexual, even though it's painfully obvious to everyone else in both his universe and ours. "The Drawn Together Movie: The Movie!" will hit your Netflix queue in 2010.
