Today, the Academy Awards narrowed down the potential Documentary Film nominees to fifteen, which will be narrowed down to a final five in January 2014 when the full list of Oscar nominations is announced. Among those included is the LGBT-themed documentary, God Loves Uganda.
Directed by Roger Ross Williams, God Loves Uganda captures American and Ugandan evangelicals attempting to bring America's right-wing conservative beliefs to Uganda. Of particular interest to these evangelicals is fighting "sexual immorality" by using the Bible to incite homophobia. The film originally premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2013 where it received an Audience Award, and continues to screen in select theaters. Check out the trailer below!
In addition to the good news about God Loves Uganda, this year has seen several other LGBT-themed documentaries worth noting. The film Bridegroom takes a compelling look at the issue of marriage equality after one of two men in a committed relationship tragically passes away. Check out Bridegroom's trailer here, and watch it now on Netflix, iTunes, and Amazon.
The documentary Call Me Kuchu follows Uganda’s first openly gay man and a retired Anglican Bishop as they work to defeat a law that would make homosexuality punishable by death. Check out the trailer here, and the DVD can be purchased on Amazon.
I am Divine is the biography of Harris Glenn Milstead – a.k.a. Divine – who starred in many of John Waters' most memorable films. You can check out the trailer here.
The HBO documentary Valentine Road tells the tragic story of Larry King's murder in Oxnard, California. Also from HBO documentaries, The Battle of Amfar is the story of Elizabeth Taylor and scientist Dr. Matilde Krim's founding of the first American AIDS research organization. Look for both films on HBO, take a look at the trailer for Valentine Road here and The Battle of Amfar here.
Be sure to check out all of these documentaries, and keep your fingers crossed that God Loves Uganda makes the final five for Academy Award contention!
