We have gay spies, queer icons, and Japan-set horror this week in home entertainment!
Out actor Ben Whishaw stars in an under-the-radar BBC series about a gay spy, London Spy, while Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda head up the first season of hit comedy Netflix series Grace And Frankie.
Finally, Japan’s famed and super-creepy “suicide forest” is setting for a sister’s search for her missing sibling in horror flick The Forest.
Now for the trailers and details…
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Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
($29.98 DVD; Lionsgate)
This hit Netflix series, which debuts its second season on May 6, reunites 9-to-5 stars Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda as a pair of seventy-something women who learn their husbands are gay and have fallen in love. Never quite friends, the pair become best of frenemies, and so begins the laughter and tears. Even if you have Netflix, this DVD release packs awesome extras like a featurette, gag reel, commentaries, and Ultraviolet digital copy.
($24.99 DVD; Warner)
This 5-episode BBC thriller miniseries stars out thespian Ben Whishaw — Q from the James Bond films — as Danny, a nightclubbing gay warehouse laborer who falls hard for a banker, Alex. When Alex goes missing, it sets Danny off on a mission to find out what happened, and of course there is plenty of danger in those murky waters. Both gay love story and thriller, with plenty of twists and a gruesome 2010 real-life incident as inspiration, London Spy also benefits from strong supporting turns from the always excellent Jim Broadbent and Charlotte Rampling.
($34.98 Blu-ray, $29.98 DVD; Universal)
Japan’s tree-lined Aokigahara Forest is scenic, beautiful, and a choice final destination for those who commit suicide (and a setting for other recent films like Gus Van Sant’s The Sea Of Trees). In fact, its nickname is “Suicide Forest.” When an American, Sara, learns that her twin sister Jess has gone missing while visiting the forest during a school field trip, she hikes out to Japan to search for her with help from a local guide and American expat. Will the forest consume her, too? Natalie Dormer of Game Of Thrones and The Hunger Games fame stars as the sisters. Extras include a featurette, commentary, and image galleries.
mmedesevigne
Memo to whoever is casting the movie about the rock group Queen: Please cast Ben Whishaw as Freddie Mercury. For my money, he’s the best choice.