The birth of the gay rights movement is re-created in this fictional drama based loosely on the book of the same name by Martin Duberman. In 1969, Matty Dean (Fred Weller) arrives in NYC's Greenwich Village hoping that life there will provide sexual liberation. Matty falls in love with La Miranda (Guillermo Diaz), a drag queen who introduces him to the regulars at the Stonewall Inn, a popular gay bar. He is shocked to learn that the NYPD regularly raids the Stonewall, harassing the clientele and closeted owner Vinnie (Bruce MacVitte). After a raid, Matty ends up in jail, where he's attracted to Ethan (Brendan Corbalis), a gay activist preaching a moderate policy of conformity and peaceful protest. They are bailed out by Bostonia (Duane Boutte), the African-American "mother" of the family of queens who hang out at the Stonewall. Bostonia is the secret lover of Vinnie. At a Mattachine meeting Matty is disgusted by the guest speaker, a psychiatrist who explains that homosexuality is a disease, and leaves. Peaceful protest becomes impossible when police storm the Stonewall yet again. As Bostonia is led out, the arresting officer says "Poor little faggot don't know whether to kill me or kiss me." Bostonia smashes him in the face, saying "I guess I made up my mind." Led by Bostonia, enraged drag queens fight back in a riot of historical significance, the beginning of the gay world's militant movement for equal rights. The soundtrack features a dozen pop songs, and Michael Kamen composed the original music. Rikki Beadle Blair wrote the screenplay, based on the memoir by Martin Duberman. Nigel Finch directed.
