Tru Loved

Last updated
Tru Loved
Tru Loved Poster.jpg
Promotional Poster
Directed by Stewart Wade
Written by Stewart Wade
Produced byDavid Avallone, producer
Eric Borsum,
executive producer
Antonio Brown, producer
Elaine Hendrix,
co-producer
Eric Miller,
executive producer
Stewart Wade, producer
StarringNajarra Townsend
Jake Abel
Matthew Thompson
Alexandra Paul
CinematographyHoward Wexler
Edited byDavid Avallone
Music byChris Nicolaides
Production
companies
BrownBag Productions (II)
Tru Loved
Distributed byRegent Releasing
here! Films
Release date
  • February 28, 2008 (2008-02-28)
Running time
102 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$9,467 [1]

Tru Loved is a 2008 independent film written and directed by Stewart Wade and starring Najarra Townsend, Jake Abel, Matthew Thompson and Alexandra Paul.

Contents

Plot

Sixteen-year-old Tru has been raised in San Francisco by two lesbian mothers and two gay fathers. When one of her mothers gets a well-paid job in a multi-cultural but more conservative suburb in Southern California, Tru and her mothers relocate.

When Tru first starts at her new school, teachers welcome her but a group of male football jocks and their female friends bully her and say she looks like a "dyke." One of the footballers, Lodell, changes his mind about her and they start dating, but the relationship never becomes sexual. When they attend The Marvelous Wonderettes musical, Lodell flirts with a man. Tru's fathers suggest that Lodell is gay, and when Tru questions him he finally, reluctantly admits that he is a closeted homosexual. She tells him that she "doesn't want to be his Katie Holmes" but agrees to be his beard so he can continue to be accepted at school.

Tru begins to spend time with Lodell's best friend, fellow footballer Manuel, but when he bullies openly gay classmate Walter, Tru defends Walter and they become friends. They try to establish a Gay Straight Alliance and although a conservative teacher and a closeted English teacher refuse to support the group, the school drama teacher agrees to be the faculty sponsor. The first meeting is successful, with several people attending a long discussion on same-sex marriage in California, but during football practice at the same time, the coach calls the players "ladies," rants that "kids can't even say prayers in class, but the fags... get their own club!" He then asks his team if they want to "put a little muscles into these plays or go meet [their] boyfriends at the Gay Scouts of America," to which they answer that they want to "play ball."

At the end of the Gay Straight Alliance meeting Tru meets a gay-rights supporter, hipster-geek senior Trevor. She initially thinks he's gay, but they quickly form an intimate relationship. Raised by his gay fiction-author uncle, Trevor is open-minded about Tru's family arrangement. Later, Tru discovers that Lodell and Walter are sexually involved, and she ends her faux-relationship with Lodell. When Lodell and his teammates destroy a Gay Straight Alliance banner, Trevor sends out a mass coming out e-mail from Lodell's account. Tru is upset by this but eventually forgives him.

Tru's mothers have a small backyard commitment ceremony attended by teachers and other locals. Lodell arrives to announce that he has left another faux-relationship, and he has the opportunity to reconcile with Walter and meet David Kopay. Manuel arrives with his football coach and punches Lodell for not revealing his sexuality. He refuses to accept homosexuality, but promises to continue being a friend to Lodell. Lodell performs a self-penned song, the school principal dances with Trevor's uncle, and the closeted English teacher is advised by friend and fellow teacher Ms. Maple (Jane Lynch) to be open about his sexuality. In the short final scene, Lodell comes out to his mother and grandmother and introduces Walter as his boyfriend.

Cast

Reception

The film premiered at the Sedona Film Festival on 28 February 2008 and at the Frameline Film Festival on 21 June 2008. It received 14 awards at six film festivals. The film went into limited national release on 17 October 2008.

As of June 2020, the film holds a 39% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 18 reviews with an average rating of 4.66/10. [2] Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times called the film "engaging, timely and courageous", [3] but the Chicago Reader called it "worthless drivel for the gay-lesbian market". [4] Film critic Roger Ebert caused a controversy when his published review of the film revealed that he had stopped watching after only eight minutes, making it one of only four films he walked out on (the others being Caligula, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, and The Statue ). He explained: "At what turned out to be the eight-minute mark, I paused the disc, looked at my notes so far, and thought, 'There's my review right there.' The movie had left me not wanting to see more." He later watched and reviewed the entire film and promised to never again review a film he had not seen "in its entirety. Never. Ever." [5] In his review of the full film, Ebert gave it one star and suggested that the film would be appealing primarily to younger gay teenagers, and that "[t]he actors all have to deal with roles that are under- or over-written, and with characters that are one-dimensional stereotypes (the coach, the grandmother, both gay dad parents)." [6]

Related Research Articles

Helen Hunt American actress and director

Helen Elizabeth Hunt is an American actress and director. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, four Primetime Emmy Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards.

<i>Three to Tango</i> 1999 American-Australian romantic comedy film

Three to Tango is a 1999 romantic comedy film directed by Damon Santostefano, written by Rodney Patrick Vaccaro and Aline Brosh McKenna, and starring Matthew Perry, Neve Campbell, Dylan McDermott and Oliver Platt.

<i>In & Out</i> (film) 1997 comedy film directed by Frank Oz

In & Out is a 1997 American comedy film directed by Frank Oz and starring Kevin Kline, Tom Selleck, Joan Cusack, Matt Dillon, Debbie Reynolds, Bob Newhart, Shalom Harlow, and Wilford Brimley. It is an original story by screenwriter Paul Rudnick. Joan Cusack was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance.

<i>Elephant</i> (2003 film) 2003 drama film directed by Gus Van Sant

Elephant is a 2003 American psychological drama film written, directed, and edited by Gus Van Sant. It takes place in the fictional Watt High School, in the suburbs of Portland, Oregon, and chronicles the events surrounding a school shooting, based in part on the 1999 Columbine High School massacre. The film begins a short time before the shooting occurs, following the lives of several characters both in and out of school, who are unaware of what is about to unfold. The film stars mostly new or non-professional actors, including John Robinson, Alex Frost, and Eric Deulen.

<i>Victor/Victoria</i> 1982 film by Blake Edwards

Victor/Victoria is a 1982 musical comedy film written and directed by Blake Edwards and starring Julie Andrews, James Garner, Robert Preston, Lesley Ann Warren, Alex Karras, and John Rhys-Davies. The film was produced by Tony Adams and scored by Henry Mancini, with lyrics by Leslie Bricusse. Released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, it was adapted in 1995 as a Broadway musical. The film was nominated for seven Academy Awards and won the Academy Award for Best Original Score. It is a remake of the 1933 German film Victor and Victoria.

<i>The Object of My Affection</i> 1998 American film

The Object of My Affection is a 1998 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Nicholas Hytner and starring Jennifer Aniston and Paul Rudd. The film was adapted from the novel of the same name by Stephen McCauley and the screenplay was written by Wendy Wasserstein. The story concerns a pregnant New York social worker who develops romantic feelings for her gay new friend and decides to raise her child with him, and the complications that ensue.

David Marquette Kopay is a former American football running back in the National Football League who in 1975 became one of the first professional athletes to come out as gay.

<i>The Waterboy</i> 1998 film by Frank Coraci

The Waterboy is a 1998 American sports comedy film directed by Frank Coraci and starring Adam Sandler in the title role, Kathy Bates, Fairuza Balk, Henry Winkler, Jerry Reed, Larry Gilliard, Jr., Blake Clark, Peter Dante and Jonathan Loughran. It was written by Tim Herlihy and Adam Sandler and produced by Robert Simonds and Jack Giarraputo.

<i>Uncle Buck</i> 1989 film by John Hughes

Uncle Buck is a 1989 American comedy film written, directed by John Hughes, and starring John Candy and Amy Madigan with supporting roles by Jean Louisa Kelly, Macaulay Culkin, Gaby Hoffmann, Garrett M. Brown and Elaine Bromka. The film tells the story of a bachelor who babysits his brother's rebellious teenage daughter and her younger brother and sister while the parents are away.

<i>Boat Trip</i> (film) 2002 American film

Boat Trip is a 2002 American romantic comedy film directed by Mort Nathan in his feature film directorial debut and starring Cuba Gooding Jr., Horatio Sanz, Vivica A. Fox, Roselyn Sánchez, and Roger Moore. The film was released in the United States on March 21, 2003, and was a major critical and commercial failure.

<i>The Closet</i> (2001 film) 2001 film by Francis Veber

The Closet is a 2001 French comedy film written and directed by Francis Veber. It is about a man who pretends to be homosexual to keep his job, with absurd and unexpected consequences.

<i>Get Real</i> (film) 1998 British film

Get Real is a 1998 British romantic comedy-drama film directed by Simon Shore, based on the play What's Wrong with Angry? by screenwriter Patrick Wilde. The plot centres the coming of age of a gay teen while growing up in rural Britain during the Cool Britannia era of the late 1990s. The film was shot and set in and around Basingstoke, England. Get Real has since become a cult classic among fans of queer cinema.

Gerald Thomas Smith was a professional American football tight end for the National Football League's Washington Redskins for 13 seasons, from 1965 through 1977. By the time he retired, he held the NFL record for most career touchdowns by a tight end. Smith publicly announced he had AIDS in August 1986, being the first professional athlete to do so. He died two months later. A 2014 documentary from the NFL Network's A Football Life series profiles his career, as well as his "double life as a closeted gay man and a star athlete."

Common Ground is a 2000 Showtime television film directed by Donna Deitch and written by Paula Vogel, Terrence McNally and Harvey Fierstein.

<i>La Cage aux Folles</i> (film) 1978 comedy film by Édouard Molinaro

La Cage aux folles is a 1978 comedy film directed by Édouard Molinaro, based on Jean Poiret's 1973 play of the same name. It stars Ugo Tognazzi and Michel Serrault as a gay couple operating a drag nightclub in a French resort town, Rémi Laurent as the former's son, and Michel Galabru and Carmen Scarpitta as his new fiancée's ultra-conservative parents. The French-language picture was a Franco-Italian co-production by United Artists. This was the first film adaptation of Poiret's play, which was later adapted into the 1996 American film The Birdcage.

<i>Prom Night</i> (2008 film) 2008 film by Nelson McCormick

Prom Night is a 2008 slasher film directed by Nelson McCormick that is a loose remake of the 1980 film of the same title. The film stars an ensemble cast including Brittany Snow, Scott Porter, Jessica Stroup, Dana Davis, Collins Pennie, Kelly Blatz, James Ransone, Brianne Davis, Johnathon Schaech, and Idris Elba.

<i>Doubt</i> (2008 film) 2008 American film by John Patrick Shanley

Doubt is a 2008 American drama film written and directed by John Patrick Shanley, based on his Pulitzer Prize-winning and Tony Award-winning 2004 stage play Doubt: A Parable. Produced by Scott Rudin, the film takes place in a Catholic elementary school named for St. Nicholas, led by Sister Aloysius. Sister James tells Aloysius that Father Flynn might be paying too much attention to the school's only black student, Donald Miller, thus leading to Aloysius investigating Flynn's behaviour. The film also features Viola Davis as Donald Miller's mother, Mrs. Davis, in her first notable role.

<i>Beginners</i> 2010 American film by Mike Mills

Beginners is a 2010 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Mike Mills. It tells the story of Oliver, a man reflecting on the life and death of his father, Hal, while trying to forge a new romantic relationship with a woman, Anna, dealing with father issues of her own. The film is based on the coming out of Mills' own father at the age of 75, five years before his death.

Homosexuality in American football LGBTQ history in American Football

There has been only one player who has publicly come out as gay or bisexual while being an active player in the National Football League (NFL): Carl Nassib, who revealed himself as gay on June 21, 2021. Six former NFL players have come out publicly after they retired. Michael Sam was selected by the St. Louis Rams in the 2014 NFL Draft, and thus became the first publicly gay player drafted in the league, but was released before the start of the regular season. He became the first publicly gay player to play in the Canadian Football League in August 2015.

<i>G.B.F.</i> (film) 2013 American teen comedy film

G.B.F. is a 2013 American teen comedy film directed by Darren Stein and produced by School Pictures, Parting Shots Media, and Logolite Entertainment. The film had its first official screening at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival in April 2013 and was released theatrically on January 17, 2014, by Vertical Entertainment. G.B.F. focuses on closeted gay high school students Tanner and Brent. When Tanner is outed, he is picked up by the cool girls and he begins to surpass still-closeted Brent in popularity.

References

  1. ↑ "Tru Loved". Box Office Mojo . Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  2. ↑ "Tru Loved (2008)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  3. ↑ "'Tree of Life' isn't sturdy". Los Angeles Times. 24 October 2008. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  4. ↑ "Tru Loved". Chicago Reader. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  5. ↑ Ebert, Roger (21 October 2008). "Definitely read me second". Roger Ebert's Journal. Sun-Times News Group. Retrieved 7 March 2009.
  6. ↑ Ebert, Roger (15 October 2008). "Review". rogerebert.com. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.