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Treading Water by Lauren Himmel
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DVD detailsActor: Angie Redman, Annette Miller, Nina Landey, Robert Harte (III), Shawn Nee Director: Lauren Himmel Brand: Wolfe DVD: Region Code 1 Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language) Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC Running Time: 95 minutes DVD Release Date: 2002-12-03 Audience Rating: Unrated Model: 3752D Studio: WOLFE VIDEO
DVD Reviews of Treading WaterDVD Review: The Tyranny of Family! Summary: 3 Stars
What a long, stange trip it's been for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered characters in American cinema. Characters with any kind of "alternate" sexual identity or orientation were all but invisible for most of the history of the movies made in the U.S. When we finally did get "representation", it was usually in the form of stereotypes and images which were unrealistic and/or demeaning. With the advent of independent cinema and cable TV, now we have more options, and filmmakers are less restrained by the shackles of the big studios to express themselves. For the first time ever, in the early '90's, we started seeing stories about people that always existed, and seeing characters who lived in real life but not on film. In "Treading Water", director Lauren Himmel exposes the drama and family dynamics that lie below the surface of (what seems like) just another Christmas day gathering for an "ordinary" middle class American family. Movie-goers always had a thing for family drama, but in "Treading Water", we get to see it from the viewpoint of Casey, a young lesbian fisherwoman. Casey (Angela Redman) and her partner Alex (Nina Landy) are a committed couple-- they live together, make love, fight, and deal with the pressures of the outside world. Casey and Alex are in love, yet Casey's overly-controlling, ice queen of a mother (Annette Miller) shows unyieding disapproval of her daughter's looks, lifestyle, and relationship, mixing equal parts guilt with borderline cruelty. The mother uses Casey as something of a scapegoat, seeming to blame her daughter's "defiance" for the family's overall discontent. The matriarch gives Casey an ultimatum: she either comes over for the Christmas holiday without Alex, or she doesn't come at all. Casey refuses to give in. In the middle of the movie, Alex reveals a secret which threatens to affect the couple's relationship, and which forces Casey to analyze her family situation with a new sense of importance. "Treading Water" realistically depicts the plight that many lesbians and gay men face when it comes to family matters: Do we remain true to ourselves, or swallow our pride to "keep the peace"? Ironically, Casey's father is willing to let his daughter be herself, and other members of Casey's family are also accepting, including a little girl who knows that Casey is gay and in unblemished childlike simplicity, doesn't know what all the fuss is about. "Treading Water" is a provocative drama, with some comedic touches by a character named Carmen, Casey and Alex's Latina spitfire of a friend. The film shows that there are no easy answers, but it forces us to realize that sticking to what we know is right is much better than trying to please everyone
More Treading Water reviews: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Description of Treading WaterTREADING WATER - DVD Movie
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