Closing Night NY Film Fest 2022
The Inspection
Elegance Bratton, 2022, U.S., 93m
U.S. Premiere
Filmmaker and photographer Elegance Bratton is known for his affecting and documentary Pier Kids, about homeless queer and transgender youth in New York, and Viceland series My House, on underground competitive ballroom dancing,
Now, in his ambitious narrative debut, Bratton has made a powerful drama based on his own experiences as a gay man in Marine Corps basic training, following a decade of living on the streets.
Gay Directors: Almodovar, Davies, Haynes, Van Sant, John Waters.
By Emanuel Levy (Columbia University Press)In a breathtaking first cinematic starring role, Tony and Emmy–nominated actor Jeremy Pope is run through an emotional and physical gauntlet as a young man dealing with the intimidation of a sadistic sergeant (Bokeem Woodbine), his desire for a sympathetic superior (Raúl Castillo), and his complicated feelings toward the mother who rejected him (a revelatory Gabrielle Union). Bratton’s film is a nuanced portrait of American masculinity and evocation of the military during the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” era, as well as a forceful, electric work of autobiography. An A24 release.
