I swear I meant to see the Broadway revival of Maury Yeston's Nine in 2003.

It had one the best casts ever: Jane Krakowski, Mary Stuart Masterson, Laura Benati, Chita Rivera. But despite my best intentions, I was a big loser and I never got around to seeing it. Alas.

Now I know next to nothing about the show, just that it's based on Federico Fellini's 8½, which I've never seen. I also know that the show features only one man and the rest of the cast is women. (And the New York Times review made it clear that the heart of the show was the women.) Basically, I wish I had not passed up the chance to see another Chita Rivera show, and I'm sorry that I missed Mary Stuart Masterson and Jane Krakowski onstage. And, of course, Laura Benati has been fantastic every time I've seen her on Broadway.

But now I — and everyone else who missed it — will have an opportunity to see a different version with a cast full of amazing women. Rob Marshall (Chicago) is directing a film version, tentatively scheduled to begin production in the fall. … continue reading

Wow, there are a lot of movies I haven't heard of. And at least a few I'm really looking forward to. It's time for another poster-and-trailer extravaganza!

First, the Baby Mama poster hasn't really been released yet, but I came across this snapshot of the actual paper object. Cute. Is it April 25 yet?

Next, Smart People, featuring the smart and adorable person named Ellen Page (yeah, and Sarah Jessica Parker, too, but I find her less smart and less adorable, and occasionally less human).

This film debuts April 11. Here's the trailer: … continue reading

Recently, I have been contemplating getting another tattoo. After all, it has been scientifically proven that they are hot. Before I get inked, however, there are two things I have to decide on first: the design and the placement.

Now you see why I am holding out. There is nothing worse than a bad tattoo.

Let's be real, though: The design options are endless; the placement options are not. And what better way to decide where to permanently mark my body than by looking to celebrities for guidance? It seems to be the trend.

First, there's the old-school armband that Pamela Anderson made popular.

Her thoughts on body art?

"Tattoos are like stories — they're symbolic of the important moments in your life. Sitting down, talking about where you got each tattoo and what it symbolizes, is really beautiful."

But what exactly does barbed wire symbolize? Oh, right: There was that 1996 movie written by someone named Ilene Chaiken. But I digress.

Moving on, I present to you arms and wrists.

Clockwise from top left: Winona Ryder, Jessica Alba, Alanis Morissette and Tegan and Sara.

(See more of Tegan and Sara's tattoos here.)

Of course, I could follow the examples of Megan Fox, Alyssa Milano and Christina Ricci and choose the back of my shoulder. … continue reading

Hey, did something happen in Hollywood last night? Oh, right; a bunch of people went home with shiny naked golden men. While some may quibble with a few of the winners, last night’s Oscars telecast was a night when Tinsel Town pretty much got things right. Sure, I would have loved for Juno to sneak in and steal No Country for Old Men’s Oscar for Best Picture. But that might have incurred the wrath of Anton Chigurh, and the last thing you want to do is to make a man with a Dorothy Hamill haircut and a compressed-air gun angry.

The evening was largely a classy affair, with lots of first-time winners, loads of heartfelt speeches and even a couple genuine surprises. So in the spirit of honoring excellence, here are a few awards of my own. May I have the envelope, please?

Best Straight Allies: Cynthia Wade and Vanessa Roth

The filmmakers won for their short documentary Freeheld, about a lesbian couple’s fight to win survivorship benefits. (Look for more details in Best. Lesbian. Week. Ever. this Friday.)

Best Upset I Didn’t Know I Wanted: Marion Cotillard

I thought I’d be mad at Marion for upsetting my personal favorite Julie Christie for Best Actress, but after hearing her exuberant, charming and sincere speech, I’ve fallen in love instead.

  … continue reading

Sometime over the last decade or so, glasses became cool. And hot. And the world began to see what lesbians always have known: that women who wear glasses are both cool and hot. And downright sexy.

Personally, I'm glad views have changed. As a little tomboy, I resisted glasses as long as I could, to the point of memorizing the eye chart every year so I could pass the vision exam. When I finally was too blind to resist specs any longer, my family was about to move to Texas from Pittsburgh. One of my friends said, "Wow, glasses don't seem very Texan." At the time, I was devastated. Now I know better. Texans with glasses rock. … continue reading

This winter, word started circulating about Penelope Cruz working with Pedro Almodóvar on an adaptation of the revenge novel Mygale. Now Variety reports that Almodóvar has tabled La piel que habito in favor of an original screenplay, to feature Cruz, her Volver co-star Blanca Portillo, and Bad Education's Lluis Homar.

We all know that Cruz is stunning, but she also truly deserved her Oscar nom, so I'm looking forward to seeing her tackle another demanding role. Sexy is great; sexy and talented is far superior.

Portillo's participation is even more reason to anticipate the new project. Mixed reviews and Keira Knightley have kept me away from her current release, Goya's Ghosts, but as mysterious, dying caregiver Agustina, she was my favorite part of Volver — and not just because of Agustina's distinctly lesbian flavor. Portillo's understated and beautiful performance stood out in an overwhelmingly beautiful film. … continue reading

I thought I'd check in to see how Penelope Cruz is handling her Oscar loss. Seems she has skipped right over denial and gone straight to the anger phase. When presented with a mini chocolate golden man recently, Penelope promptly bit the little guy's head off. Ouch.

Perhaps her next move shows that the lovely Spanish actress is now in the bargaining phase. Why else would she agree to make sweet love to Gandhi, er, I mean Ben Kingsley? Cruz will display her animal instinct in her next project, an erotic drama based on Philip Roth's novella The Dying Animal. The story centers on a student (Cruz) who has a torrid affair with her professor (Kingsley). The film will also star Patricia Clarkson. OK, fine, with all that talent on board, maybe it's not such a bad bargain.

And just in case you needed a visual of what half (the good half) of this May-December tryst would look like, voila. I am nothing if not helpful.