Wakefield Poole, Volume 1
"Great films that are thankfully being restored properly. This was one of our best art filmmakers and he never got the credit he was due. Not really. So I am happy this exists and hope that we get more releases soon."
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This listing is for the standard edition Blu-ray. The limited edition slipcover was limited to 1,000 units and is sold out. The two versions are identical, aside from the slipcover.
Muscle is a new film distribution company with a heavy repertory slant from historian, programmer, and filmmaker Elizabeth Purchell. Borne out of an understanding of the role that accessibility plays in shaping cultural histories, Muscle is dedicated to complicating and expanding the canon by shining a light on works that either never received their proper due or that have unjustly faded into obscurity, and championing new works by some of today’s most exciting underground filmmakers. Muscle loves scrappy, misfit films that don’t fit into any particular box.
There Are No More Closets is a three-volume anthology collecting the complete works of pioneering gay film and videomaker Wakefield Poole. This first volume brings together Poole’s final three feature films and first two videos.
In the wake of the disastrous release of Bible! (1973), Poole relocated from New York to San Francisco and marked the occasion with Moving! (1974), a trio of vignettes starring Casey Donovan (Boys in the Sand) and Val Martin (Sextool). Three years later, he teamed up with local experimental filmmaker Edd Dundas to make Take One (1977), an ambitious “docufantasy” about the lives and lusts of a group of real gay men, including the iconic Richard Locke (Forbidden Letters).
Poole returned to New York at the turn of the decade and reunited with Donovan once again for his final feature film, Hot Shots (1981). He made the transition to shooting on videotape in 1984 with Split/Image (1984), another trio of vignettes themed around a magazine photoshoot, and The Hustlers (1984), a narrative feature about two roommates who earn their living on their backs that began its life as a semi-autobiographical vehicle for Donovan and Robert La Tourneaux (The Boys in the Band).
directed by: Wakefield Poole
starring: Casey Donovan, Val Martin, Burt Edouards, Curt Gerard, Peter Fisk, RIchard Locke, Sal Guange, Nick Ritter, Dutch Valentino, Rudy Valentino, Glenn Robinson, Bill O'Connell, Philip Borden, Alexander Stewart, Guillermo Ricardo
1974-1984 / 382 min (combined) / 1.33:1 / English DTS-HD MA 2.0
Additional info:
Overall rating: 4.793103 / 5 from 58 reviews.
This limited edition Blu-ray collection of Wakefield Poole's films, curated by Muscle, offers a comprehensive look at the pioneering works of a gay filmmaker. The set includes restored features and videos, along with insightful commentaries and featurettes. Customers praise the release, the quality of the films, and the overall presentation.
Review topics: [packaging, upgrade, looks, set, quality, material, film, release, collection, extras, feature, wakefield poole, capsule, transfer, filmmaker, movie, buy, classic, start, work, see, addition, title, footage, age, interview].
"Great films that are thankfully being restored properly. This was one of our best art filmmakers and he never got the credit he was due. Not really. So I am happy this exists and hope that we get more releases soon."
"An invaluable time capsule that is also far more enjoyable than the phrase “invaluable time capsule” usually suggests. Watching Poole’s transition from film to video is fascinating, and the presentation respects the limitations of the varied source materials. A thoughtful and generous collection."
"I'm so excited these great films are finally being upgraded to blu-ray!"
"Not just truly essential adult cinema, but essential cinema full stop"
"Wakefield Poole set the bar for gay adult films. Though the films depict an age of erotic entertainment that has passed, the fantasy's depicted are ageless. You get your moneys worth with this collection of films."
"It's great to finally upgrade these titles from DVD to BR. Looking forward to the more from the series."
"Aces! Superb transfers of Wakefield Poole classics."
"Seminal works."
"An excellent collection of movies by one of the best gay adult filmmakers !"
"Just in time for Pride, queer film historian extraordinaire Elizabeth Purchell has launched the new label Muscle Distribution. The first collection is the first volume in a series commemorating the legendary Wakefield Poole. Focusing on his last three films and first two videos, There Are No More Closets, Vol. 1 is a fascinating time capsule of the film into video era in the early 80s. They've done an excellent job with the restorations working with what I assume to be fairly damaged materials. (Moving! is shot on Super 7 and is ironically the best looking feature in the bunch. ) The extras are too bountiful to list here, not that I've had the time to peruse them all. Love the pink vintage feel of the slipcover and the two essays by Purchell and KJ Shepherd are expectedly fun reads. Highly recommended."
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