Playing the Part

7 Reviews

"I think we can all relate to a film like this and the ways we can allow family expectations to affect our lives. This film examines the lives of the people we sometimes pretend to be in order to cope with family pressures. Mitch uses her documentary film as her path to come out to her parents." – Dan Savage, Columnist and Host of Savage Lovecast

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Release Date:	Mar 24, 1995
Running Time:	38 minutes
Country:	United States
Language:	English

synopsis

With a father who reconstructs breasts and a mother who coordinates fine china with window treatments, McCabe creates an angst-ridden yet humorous essay about the many obstacles to being honest with her parents as she tries to come out to them as a lesbian. The filmmaker explores the quirks of traditional family life in Grosse Pointe, Michigan from the perspective of her openly gay life in Boston. From hidden cameras and society balls to her obsession with quasi-cross-dressing, the filmmaker tries to spill the beans about her sexuality—but repeatedly runs back to the security of Boston and the safety of subterfuge. Playing the Part is about loving your family while being repelled by your roots, about wanting the familiar path while desiring a life that is true and your own; it is about fearing where either direction will take you.