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When you think about summer movies, big-budget blockbusters tend to come to mind. But it’s smart to diversify your viewing list. For the movie lovers who enjoy watching films in stunning clarity with bonus-scenes and extra content, all from the comforts of home, Criterion Collection Blu-rays are the way to go. To help with your summer movie list, we rounded up a handful of new Criterion Collection movies due out this month, and that you can pre-order right now. The selection includes LGBTQ stories to celebrate Pride Month, a gripping documentary on homeless teens, and much more. Below, find our selection of Criterion Collection Blu-rays to pre-order for the month of June,...
When you think about summer movies, big-budget blockbusters tend to come to mind. But it’s smart to diversify your viewing list. For the movie lovers who enjoy watching films in stunning clarity with bonus-scenes and extra content, all from the comforts of home, Criterion Collection Blu-rays are the way to go. To help with your summer movie list, we rounded up a handful of new Criterion Collection movies due out this month, and that you can pre-order right now. The selection includes LGBTQ stories to celebrate Pride Month, a gripping documentary on homeless teens, and much more. Below, find our selection of Criterion Collection Blu-rays to pre-order for the month of June,...
- 6/1/2021
- by Latifah Muhammad
- Indiewire
Focus Features has scheduled a June 29 livestream showing of Dee Rees’ 2011 drama “Pariah” and Q&a with cast members as a Pride Month commemoration.
The movie premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, where it won the excellence in cinematography award. Adepero Oduye portrays a 17-year-old woman who lives with her parents, played by Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell, and younger sister (Sahra Mellesse) in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood. She has a flair for poetry, is a good student at her local high school and is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian.
“Pariah” was based on Rees’ 2007 short film of the same name. It won the top independent film awards at the NAACP Image Awards and the African American Film Critics Assn. Oduye was nominated for best female lead at the Spirit Awards.
“Pariah” will screen at 5 pm Pst/ 8 pm Est on the Focus Features Facebook page.
The movie premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, where it won the excellence in cinematography award. Adepero Oduye portrays a 17-year-old woman who lives with her parents, played by Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell, and younger sister (Sahra Mellesse) in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood. She has a flair for poetry, is a good student at her local high school and is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian.
“Pariah” was based on Rees’ 2007 short film of the same name. It won the top independent film awards at the NAACP Image Awards and the African American Film Critics Assn. Oduye was nominated for best female lead at the Spirit Awards.
“Pariah” will screen at 5 pm Pst/ 8 pm Est on the Focus Features Facebook page.
- 6/26/2020
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Newcomer Adepero Oduye plays 17-year-old high school student Alike (Le for short), an A-grade achiever in class but a confused sexual loner battling the knowledge she's also a lesbian. She lives with her girly sister Sharonda (Sahra Mellesse) and parents, including In Living Color star Kim Wayans, a diehard Christian whose prejudice tempers her love for her daughter. Writer-director Dee Rees' thoughtful drama steers away from cheap sentimentality to make a compelling plea for tolerance.
- 1/4/2013
- Sky Movies
Chicago – 2011 featured a series of uncommonly affecting films from female directors about young women grappling with their sexual identities. In all three cases, the heroines strain to keep their lesbianism a secret from their families. Céline Sciamma’s “Tomboy” centered on a 10-year-old girl who posed as a boy, while Maryam Keshavarz’s “Circumstance” explored the forbidden romance of two Iranian teens.
These films are so good that it makes one wonder why there aren’t as many accomplished films about young men coming to terms with their homosexuality. Queer cinema too often falls under the stereotypical categorization of soft-core art house fare with earnest messages and amateurish production values. They seem tailor-made for a niche audience, but what makes “Tomboy,” “Circumstance” and Dee Rees’s “Pariah” so powerful is their resonance as universal human stories. These characters aren’t defined by their sexual orientations, despite what society would lead them to believe.
These films are so good that it makes one wonder why there aren’t as many accomplished films about young men coming to terms with their homosexuality. Queer cinema too often falls under the stereotypical categorization of soft-core art house fare with earnest messages and amateurish production values. They seem tailor-made for a niche audience, but what makes “Tomboy,” “Circumstance” and Dee Rees’s “Pariah” so powerful is their resonance as universal human stories. These characters aren’t defined by their sexual orientations, despite what society would lead them to believe.
- 5/8/2012
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Pariah joins a long line of coming of age dramas set in New York ( in this case Brooklyn ). It deals with a young African-American woman about to finish high school and explore the world. Unlike many of these films, this protagonist is concealing her sexuality from her family and many friends. The title refers to the reaction many have gotten when they’ve come out. They’re treated as pariahs-outcast and ostracized. Writer/ director Dee Rees tells this story with great sensitivity and avoids exploitation and stereotyping.
The film follows Alike ( Adepero Oduye ) during her last few months of high school. She lives with her religious mother Audry ( Kim Wayans ), usually absent policeman father Arthur ( Charles Parnell ) and bratty, spying kid sister Sharonda ( Sahra Mellesse ). Alike is a quiet student who excels in her writing class. After school she meets up with her best pal, the hard-working, living on her...
The film follows Alike ( Adepero Oduye ) during her last few months of high school. She lives with her religious mother Audry ( Kim Wayans ), usually absent policeman father Arthur ( Charles Parnell ) and bratty, spying kid sister Sharonda ( Sahra Mellesse ). Alike is a quiet student who excels in her writing class. After school she meets up with her best pal, the hard-working, living on her...
- 1/20/2012
- by Jim Batts
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
If Lee Daniels‘ Precious made for a heightened, melodramatic, and mostly satisfying expression of the external trials — poverty, an abusive mother, a runaway father — plaguing a New York City-based African-American teenager, then Dee Rees‘ Pariah takes a similar character in a similar locale and tosses her into an opposite realm, one of internal struggles and ultimatums. While that choice is ultimately what hinders Pariah narratively — Rees‘ script is too pinned-down in its protagonist’s inner workings to generate a consistently compelling plot — it’s also what gives the film its unique identity. The events may seem recycled, but the character and the film’s personal perspective certainly do not.
Adepero Oduye, the recent recipient of an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Actress, stars as 17-year-old Alike, an exceptionally intelligent student who shows particular promise with her poetry. She’s reserved for her age, not very talkative, and her enclosed...
Adepero Oduye, the recent recipient of an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Actress, stars as 17-year-old Alike, an exceptionally intelligent student who shows particular promise with her poetry. She’s reserved for her age, not very talkative, and her enclosed...
- 12/28/2011
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
This year has given us films that have taken us to slightly darker places from living with sex addiction (Shame) to life within a cult (Martha Marcy May Marlene, Sound of My Voice) to struggling with personal and sexual identity (The Beaver, Pariah), just to name a few. But even within these darker landscapes, these films have given us brilliant and captivating performances set against backgrounds and settings we may otherwise never experience. The music accompanying these various films help create their different tones and degrees of darkness from full soundtracks (as I looked into with Shame) to hardly any music at all in the stark and stripped down Sound of My Voice (I swear I’m starting a letter writing campaign to get this film released, like, yesterday). This week I wanted to call to attention a film that premiered back in January during the Sundance Film Festival and has stayed with me over the past...
- 12/15/2011
- by Allison Loring
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Clips and interviews from Dee Rees-directed Pariah, starring Adepero Oduye and Kim Wayans The winner of the Cinematography Award and Grand Jury Prize nominee at this year's Sundance Film Festival opens December 28th via Focus Features. We've added 6 new clips as well as interviews with Adepero Oduye, Kim Wayans, Charles Parnell, Pernell Walker, Aasha Davis, director Dee Rees and producer Nekisa Cooper. Also in the cast are Stephanie Andujar, Nina Daniels, Raymond Anthony Thomas and Chanté Lewi. Adepero Oduye, who had earlier starred in the short film, portrays Alike (pronounced ah-lee-kay), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents Audrey and Arthur (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister Sharonda (Sahra Mellesse) in Brooklyn's Fort Greene neighborhood. She has a flair for poetry, and is a good student at her local high school. Alike is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian. With the sometimes...
- 12/2/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Clips and interviews from Dee Rees-directed Pariah, starring Adepero Oduye and Kim Wayans The winner of the Cinematography Award and Grand Jury Prize nominee at this year's Sundance Film Festival opens December 28th via Focus Features. We've added 6 new clips as well as interviews with Adepero Oduye, Kim Wayans, Charles Parnell, Pernell Walker, Aasha Davis, director Dee Rees and producer Nekisa Cooper. Also in the cast are Stephanie Andujar, Nina Daniels, Raymond Anthony Thomas and Chanté Lewi. Adepero Oduye, who had earlier starred in the short film, portrays Alike (pronounced ah-lee-kay), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents Audrey and Arthur (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister Sharonda (Sahra Mellesse) in Brooklyn's Fort Greene neighborhood. She has a flair for poetry, and is a good student at her local high school. Alike is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian. With the sometimes...
- 12/2/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Clips and interviews from Dee Rees-directed Pariah, starring Adepero Oduye and Kim Wayans The winner of the Cinematography Award and Grand Jury Prize nominee at this year's Sundance Film Festival opens December 28th via Focus Features. We've added 6 new clips as well as interviews with Adepero Oduye, Kim Wayans, Charles Parnell, Pernell Walker, Aasha Davis, director Dee Rees and producer Nekisa Cooper. Also in the cast are Stephanie Andujar, Nina Daniels, Raymond Anthony Thomas and Chanté Lewi. Adepero Oduye, who had earlier starred in the short film, portrays Alike (pronounced ah-lee-kay), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents Audrey and Arthur (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister Sharonda (Sahra Mellesse) in Brooklyn's Fort Greene neighborhood. She has a flair for poetry, and is a good student at her local high school. Alike is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian. With the sometimes...
- 12/2/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
We're thrilled that Dee Rees's acclaimed feature film Pariah will soon (December 28) be opening in theaters, especially since we've championed Rees and the film since 2007, when Pariah was a short film making the rounds at Lgbt festivals. Rees and company sent us videos documenting their experience at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, where the film was picked up by Focus Features.
In case you aren't familiar with Pariah, it stars Adepero Oduye as Alike, a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents Audrey and Arthur (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister Sharonda (Sahra Mellesse) in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood.
Here's the official description via Focus Features:
She has a flair for poetry, and is a good student at her local high school. Alike is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian. With the sometimes boisterous support of her best friend, out lesbian Laura...
In case you aren't familiar with Pariah, it stars Adepero Oduye as Alike, a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents Audrey and Arthur (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister Sharonda (Sahra Mellesse) in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood.
Here's the official description via Focus Features:
She has a flair for poetry, and is a good student at her local high school. Alike is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian. With the sometimes boisterous support of her best friend, out lesbian Laura...
- 11/9/2011
- by Karman Kregloe
- AfterEllen.com
Director: Dee Rees Writer: Dee Rees Starring: Adepero Oduye, Kim Wayans, Pernell Walker, Charles Parnell, Aasha Davis, Sahra Mellesse Alike (Adepero Oduye) is very shy and totally unsure of herself. At 17-years of age, Alike attempts to define herself by her tomboy wardrobe, as if wearing a placard that boldly states "Kiss me, I'm a lesbian"; because that is really all she wants, a kiss. Hanging around her bull-dyke best friend, Laura (Pernell Walker), further accentuates her boyish traits. Of course Alike's overprotective Christian mother (Kim Wayans) does not like that. She wants Alike to wear clothes that flaunt her girlish figure; but that seems to only make Alike rebel more. Luckily, Alike's father (Charles Parnell) is oblivious enough to his surroundings that she is able to maintain a somewhat "normal" relationship with him; while her meddling little sister (Sahra Mellesse) is the only family member who is fully cognizant...
- 10/29/2011
- by Don Simpson
- SmellsLikeScreenSpirit
By Sean O’Connell
Hollywoodnews.com: Focus Features conducted an online outreach on behalf of Dee Rees’s Sundance award winner “Pariah” ahead of the film’s bow at the Toronto International Film Festival. Moviegoers were asked to select the official theatrical release poster for the contemporary drama, which Rees both wrote and directed.
Their tasteful, artistic selection is below:
Of the selection, Rees said, “When Focus came to Nekisa and me with the five potential posters, we were hard-pressed to pick a favorite. Since we made Pariah to open up a dialogue with everybody, it was ideal that people got to make their voices heard and choose our one-sheet. I’m looking forward to keeping the conversation going with the movie’s release.”
I haven’t head much about “Pariah” since it claimed the Excellence in Cinematography Award for Bradford Young at Sundance. From what I understand, Adepero Oduye...
Hollywoodnews.com: Focus Features conducted an online outreach on behalf of Dee Rees’s Sundance award winner “Pariah” ahead of the film’s bow at the Toronto International Film Festival. Moviegoers were asked to select the official theatrical release poster for the contemporary drama, which Rees both wrote and directed.
Their tasteful, artistic selection is below:
Of the selection, Rees said, “When Focus came to Nekisa and me with the five potential posters, we were hard-pressed to pick a favorite. Since we made Pariah to open up a dialogue with everybody, it was ideal that people got to make their voices heard and choose our one-sheet. I’m looking forward to keeping the conversation going with the movie’s release.”
I haven’t head much about “Pariah” since it claimed the Excellence in Cinematography Award for Bradford Young at Sundance. From what I understand, Adepero Oduye...
- 9/7/2011
- by Sean O'Connell
- Hollywoodnews.com
Debut Feature From Writer/Director Dee Rees,
Executive-produced By Spike Lee;
Release Date For Movie Also Set
New York, September 6th, 2011 - Following an online outreach, Focus Features has revealed the moviegoing public.s choice of the official theatrical release poster for the contemporary drama Pariah, written and directed by Dee Rees.
Pariah world-premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, where it was honored with the Excellence in Cinematography Award (Bradford Young). Spike Lee is among the feature.s executive producers. Pariah is produced by Nekisa Cooper.
With the public having now selected the Pariah one-sheet, Focus is also announcing the movie.s theatrical release information. Pariah will open in exclusive engagements in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco on Sunday, December 25th; and will expand to additional cities throughout the winter. The movie will also screen on Monday, September 12th at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Pariah has already received critical acclaim.
Executive-produced By Spike Lee;
Release Date For Movie Also Set
New York, September 6th, 2011 - Following an online outreach, Focus Features has revealed the moviegoing public.s choice of the official theatrical release poster for the contemporary drama Pariah, written and directed by Dee Rees.
Pariah world-premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, where it was honored with the Excellence in Cinematography Award (Bradford Young). Spike Lee is among the feature.s executive producers. Pariah is produced by Nekisa Cooper.
With the public having now selected the Pariah one-sheet, Focus is also announcing the movie.s theatrical release information. Pariah will open in exclusive engagements in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco on Sunday, December 25th; and will expand to additional cities throughout the winter. The movie will also screen on Monday, September 12th at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Pariah has already received critical acclaim.
- 9/6/2011
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Focus Features released the official movie poster for the contemporary drama “Pariah.” Fans selected the official poster on its Facebook page last month. The drama is about Alike (prounounced “ah-lee-kay”) as a seventeen-year-old African-American teenager who lives with her parents and younger sister in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood. As a gifted student, she quietly embraces her identity as a lesbian with the support of her best friend Laura and is eager to find a girlfriend. Wondering how much she can confide in her family, Alike strives to get through adolescence with grace, humor and tenacity. The film stars Adepero Oduye, Kim Wayans, Charles Parnell, Sahra Mellesse and Pernell Walker. “Pariah” premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and received the Excellence in Cinematography Award for Bradford Young. The Dee Rees-directed “Pariah” will open in limited release in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco on December 25 later this year.
- 9/6/2011
- LRMonline.com
Focus Features is encouraging fans to select the poster for the Sundance Film Festival hit Pariah.
Focus Features would like the help of their fans in selecting the official theatrical poster for their upcoming film Pariah. They have narrowed it down to 5 designs, and they are giving fans the opportunity to vote for the Official poster that will be showcased in theaters across the nation.
We invite your readers to cast their vote for their favorite poster by ‘Liking’ the Pariah Facebook page, watching the trailer and choosing one favorite poster at the link below. Fans can vote up to one time per day until August 12th, 2011.
To do so, click here.
A rousing success at its world premiere at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, this deeply felt human drama is the feature debut of writer/director Dee Rees. Adepero Oduye portrays Alike (pronounced “ah-lee-kay”), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives...
Focus Features would like the help of their fans in selecting the official theatrical poster for their upcoming film Pariah. They have narrowed it down to 5 designs, and they are giving fans the opportunity to vote for the Official poster that will be showcased in theaters across the nation.
We invite your readers to cast their vote for their favorite poster by ‘Liking’ the Pariah Facebook page, watching the trailer and choosing one favorite poster at the link below. Fans can vote up to one time per day until August 12th, 2011.
To do so, click here.
A rousing success at its world premiere at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, this deeply felt human drama is the feature debut of writer/director Dee Rees. Adepero Oduye portrays Alike (pronounced “ah-lee-kay”), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives...
- 7/27/2011
- by Jon Peters
- Killer Films
Movie trailer for Pariah, starring Adepero Oduye, Pernell Walker and Aasha Davis. Directed by Dee Rees. The drama which was a big success when making its premiere at this year's Sundance Film Festival, opens via Focus Features Winter 2011. De Rees directs the film which stars Adepero Oduye, Pernell Walker, Aasha Davis, Charles Parnell, Sahra Mellesse and Kim Wayans. Pariah is a deeply felt human drama and marks the feature debut of writer/director Rees. Adepero Oduye portrays Alike (pronounced “ah-lee-kay”), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister (Sahra Mellesse) in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood...
- 6/15/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Movie trailer for Pariah, starring Adepero Oduye, Pernell Walker and Aasha Davis. Directed by Dee Rees. The drama which was a big success when making its premiere at this year's Sundance Film Festival, opens via Focus Features Winter 2011. De Rees directs the film which stars Adepero Oduye, Pernell Walker, Aasha Davis, Charles Parnell, Sahra Mellesse and Kim Wayans. Pariah is a deeply felt human drama and marks the feature debut of writer/director Rees. Adepero Oduye portrays Alike (pronounced “ah-lee-kay”), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister (Sahra Mellesse) in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood...
- 6/15/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Movie trailer for Pariah, starring Adepero Oduye, Pernell Walker and Aasha Davis. Directed by Dee Rees. The drama which was a big success when making its premiere at this year's Sundance Film Festival, opens via Focus Features Winter 2011. De Rees directs the film which stars Adepero Oduye, Pernell Walker, Aasha Davis, Charles Parnell, Sahra Mellesse and Kim Wayans. Pariah is a deeply felt human drama and marks the feature debut of writer/director Rees. Adepero Oduye portrays Alike (pronounced “ah-lee-kay”), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister (Sahra Mellesse) in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood...
- 6/15/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Pariah is the feature debut of writer/director Dee Rees and showed to great acclaim at Sundance earlier this year.
A tale of finding acceptance and identity in a harsh Brooklyn neighbourhood the film was praised Rees direction and the talented cast. Focus Features have picked the film up and while there’s no news yet about when it will find itself in cinemas on either side of the pond we expect to be hearing more from this film shortly.
Rees talks about the film and the experience of premiering at Sundance here:
Iframe Embed for Youtube
The synopsis looks like this:
A rousing success at its world premiere at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, this deeply felt human drama is the feature debut of writer/director Dee Rees. Adepero Oduye portrays Alike (pronounced “ah-lee-kay”), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger...
A tale of finding acceptance and identity in a harsh Brooklyn neighbourhood the film was praised Rees direction and the talented cast. Focus Features have picked the film up and while there’s no news yet about when it will find itself in cinemas on either side of the pond we expect to be hearing more from this film shortly.
Rees talks about the film and the experience of premiering at Sundance here:
Iframe Embed for Youtube
The synopsis looks like this:
A rousing success at its world premiere at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, this deeply felt human drama is the feature debut of writer/director Dee Rees. Adepero Oduye portrays Alike (pronounced “ah-lee-kay”), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger...
- 6/12/2011
- by Jon Lyus
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
One of the most buzzed-about titles coming out of Sundance Film Festival this year was the feature-length directorial debut of Dee Rees, Pariah. Based off of her short film of the same name, the drama follows a 17-year old African American lesbian (Adepero Oduye) in Brooklyn who’s trying to find her place in the world.
Focus Features picked up the film in a seven-figure deal, as well as signing to Rees next film. We now have the first trailer via Apple and I can see why the film won Best Cinematography in the dramatic category. Also starring Pernell Walker, Aasha Davis, Charles Parnell, Sahra Mellesse, Kim Wayans, one can see the trailer below.
Synopsis:
A rousing success at its world premiere at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, this deeply felt human drama is the feature debut of writer/director Dee Rees. Adepero Oduye portrays Alike (pronounced “ah-lee-kay”), a 17-year-old African-American...
Focus Features picked up the film in a seven-figure deal, as well as signing to Rees next film. We now have the first trailer via Apple and I can see why the film won Best Cinematography in the dramatic category. Also starring Pernell Walker, Aasha Davis, Charles Parnell, Sahra Mellesse, Kim Wayans, one can see the trailer below.
Synopsis:
A rousing success at its world premiere at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, this deeply felt human drama is the feature debut of writer/director Dee Rees. Adepero Oduye portrays Alike (pronounced “ah-lee-kay”), a 17-year-old African-American...
- 6/9/2011
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
By Sean O’Connell
Hollywoodnews.com: In the latest of a steady stream of Sundance sales, Focus Features has acquired worldwide rights to the contemporary drama “Pariah,” which world-premiered In Competition at this year’s fest.
The debut feature from writer/director Dee Rees, “Pariah” expands on a short film about Alike (Adepero Oduye), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister (Sahra Mallesse) in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood. Alike is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian. With the support of her best friend Laura (Pernell Walker), she is especially eager to find a girlfriend. Wondering how much she can confide in her family, Alike strives to get through adolescence with grace, humor, and tenacity – sometimes succeeding, sometimes not, but always moving forward.
Focus Features CEO James Schamus said, “Dee Rees has made a debut film that...
Hollywoodnews.com: In the latest of a steady stream of Sundance sales, Focus Features has acquired worldwide rights to the contemporary drama “Pariah,” which world-premiered In Competition at this year’s fest.
The debut feature from writer/director Dee Rees, “Pariah” expands on a short film about Alike (Adepero Oduye), a 17-year-old African-American woman who lives with her parents (Kim Wayans and Charles Parnell) and younger sister (Sahra Mallesse) in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood. Alike is quietly but firmly embracing her identity as a lesbian. With the support of her best friend Laura (Pernell Walker), she is especially eager to find a girlfriend. Wondering how much she can confide in her family, Alike strives to get through adolescence with grace, humor, and tenacity – sometimes succeeding, sometimes not, but always moving forward.
Focus Features CEO James Schamus said, “Dee Rees has made a debut film that...
- 1/28/2011
- by Sean O'Connell
- Hollywoodnews.com
Out director Dee Rees has closed on an acquisition deal with Focus Features for her feature film, Pariah. Deadline.com reports at least two other distributors were interested in the film, which has garnered major buzz at Sundance this year, but Focus won out, as they did with last year's acquisition, The Kids Are All Right.
Pariah is a film that not only delves into a young girl's burgeoning sexuality, but the story of Alike, a 17-year-old black butch-identified girl who is trying to figure herself out amongst her peers and family in Brooklyn. She leads a double life of sorts, trying to be feminine enough at home to please her mother while attempting to be happy with herself and living life as an openly queer woman. (Check out our Pariah video diaries for more information on the film and its journey at Sundance.)
On Tuesday, Rees joined the directors...
Pariah is a film that not only delves into a young girl's burgeoning sexuality, but the story of Alike, a 17-year-old black butch-identified girl who is trying to figure herself out amongst her peers and family in Brooklyn. She leads a double life of sorts, trying to be feminine enough at home to please her mother while attempting to be happy with herself and living life as an openly queer woman. (Check out our Pariah video diaries for more information on the film and its journey at Sundance.)
On Tuesday, Rees joined the directors...
- 1/28/2011
- by Trish Bendix
- AfterEllen.com
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