Some of My Best Friends Are...

1971 "They're cool, flip, witty and charming, talented, creative, intelligent and lonely."
5.9| 1h50m| R| en| More Info
Released: 27 October 1971 Released
Producted By: Astral Films
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Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Synopsis

Regulars gather at The Blue Jay, a gay bar in Manhattan's Greenwich Village, to celebrate Christmas Eve 1971 with people they consider family.

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Reviews

CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.
Dirtylogy It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.
Humaira Grant It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.
Brenda The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one
drednm This story takes place on Christmas Eve in 1971 in an old-fashioned gay bar (there doesn't seem to be a "back room") in Greenwich Village.We get a bunch of vignettes as the major players tell their stories amid the increasingly uproarious night. No gay cliche is left untold. What defeats much of the film is a murky lighting and lines that are drowned out by noise.This is not to say that the film is a total dud. It's an important look at that pre-AIDS world and in many ways is a more honest look at gay and closeted-gay life than better known films like THE BOYS IN THE BAND or TORCH SONG TRILOGY or THE RITZ.There are also several very good performances. In his NY Times review, Vincent Canby noted that the women come off better than the men and he's right. Rue McClanahan is good as the aging "fag hag" who cavorts with gay men as a glamorous token female in a gay world. She dresses like a drag queen and drops acid lines with the best of them. But it's also a sex-free world and therefore a safe world for her.Sylvia Syms, not to be confused with the British actress of the same name, is excellent as the bar owner Sadie. She's sort of the over-arching mother of all the "boys" and she loves them all. At one point she poignantly tells that she never married, never had children, but she never missed out because she's always had her "boys." On the other hand, Peg Murray plays the hysterical Mrs. Nabour, who pitches a fit when she discovers her son is gay. She disowns him.Gary Sandy plays a gay hustler who constantly boasts (it seems to be a lie) that he swings both ways, but after a bad drug trip, his self-loathing turns into a blind rage as he beats a timid cross-dresser. The cross-dresser is played by Candy Darling. Fannie Flagg plays the cheerful hat-check girl with her hair stacked high (a la drag queen) and she even sings a number. David Drew plays a timid man who finally work up the courage to ask someone back to his apartment. Gil Gerard plays a gay man who poses as a straight guy in real life.James Murdock (billed as David Baker) plays a drama queen who has tricked a guy (Dick O'Neill) into meeting him at the bar by posing as a woman on the phone. Then there's Carleton Carpenter as a silent older man who simply watches all the action without ever getting involved. Paul Blake plays the sarcastic Kenny.Here and there a character utters a memorable line. One says "Facing death does not take courage. Two men facing a life together does." Another says "Everybody wants someone. Some want anybody."As a sign of the time, there's a cop prowling around and there's a sign warning the men about dancing together. Although the film takes place after Stonewall, it's still a dangerous time.If the film had had a central plot and central characters, this might have worked better as a film, As it is, however, it's worth a look into the dark recesses of this very dark bar.
lightkeeper-1 This title is just another of the many gay oriented flicks that needs to be released on disc. (Dinah East and Boys In The Band are two others.) I use to live in Birmingham where Flannie Flagg is from so when this movie first played there, we went to see it, not really knowing what to expect. I was thoroughly entertained, although every time I see Carlton Carpenter, I think of he and Debbie Reynolds doing "Aba Daba Honeymoon" in the 1950 Two Weeks With Love starring Jane Powell. Anyway, getting back to this movie, Rue, of course, went on to be known best for her Golden Girls role and Gary Sandy in WKRP in Cincinnati. Since it has been so many years since Some Of My Best Friends Are, was released, it's hard to remember that much about the movie so hopefully some film distributor can acquire the rights for a DVD release.
Lubin Odana I saw this at the London Lesbian and Gay film festival a few years back and it was the highlight of the festival for me. Similar to Boys in the Band, it deals with a large colourful cast of characters who are regulars at a local gay bar. These include Gil Gerard (who went on to be Buck Rogers) as the straight-acting hunk who everyone wants, Rue McClanahan (Blanche from the Golden Girls) as a spiteful fag-hag and Candy Darling (of the Warhol factory), playing a sensitive transvestite, who after being beaten up by a sexually-confused lout asks "Has anyone seen a contact lens?" The title theme "Where do you go" is suitably haunting and there are some excellent funny lines in this movie - I can't understand why it hasn't come out on DVD yet. Well worth seeing if you get the chance.
Michael This film now plays a lot of gay film festivals..billed as.... " The movie you love to hate"! Of course it now looks very politically incorrect. But there was a time that it really was like this. I know..I was there! P.S. It's so much fun to see so many people who went on to greater things. Michael Bluegrass