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"Gun Hill Road"U.S. Dramatic competition** 1/2Isn't the "dad can't accept his gay son" plot something from Sundance circa 1998? Writer-director Ernesto Rashaad Green runs through the familiar hoops in this tale, in which Enrique (Esai Morales) returns to his Brooklyn home after a three-year prison sentence to learn that his son Michael (Harmony Santana) is transgendered — and known outside the house as Vanessa. The performances by Morales and by "Scrubs'" Judy Reyes as Michael's understanding mom overcome the cliches — and Santana's sensitive portrayal, highlighted by a revealing sequence that shows her step-by-step physical transformation, is heartfelt and real.
"Gun Hill Road" screens again at: Wednesday, Jan. 26, at 6 p.m. at the Sundance resort; Thursday, Jan. 27, at 2:30 p.m. at Prospector Square Theatre, Park City; Friday, Jan. 28, at 8:30 a.m. at the Egyptian Theatre, Park City; Saturday, Jan. 29, at noon at the Broadway Centre Cinema VI, Park City.
- Sean P. Means