Stilettos for Shanghai Review

Distributor: NakedSword Film Works Edition Details: Standard Streaming Movie Specs: Genres: Documentary, Gay Also known as: Love is all Around Run Time: 65 minutes Rated: not Release Year: 2017 Director: Monet Allard-Wilcox Written by: Monet Allard-Wilcox Cast: Neil Grungras, Mark Leno, Tom Ammiano, Sister Anni Coque I'Doo, Schwester Katharina Lætitiam Donans (as Schwester Katharina Laetitiam Donans), Grand Mother Vish-Knew (as Sister Vish Knew and Kenneth Bunch), Sister Eden Asp, Sœur Rose de Paname (as Soeur Rose de Paname), Sister Risqué of the Sissytine Chapel (as Sister Risqué of the Sissytine Chapel and Christopher Nathan), Charlene Liu, Pope Dementia the Last, Sister Flatulina Grandé, Roma (as Michael Williams), Steven Crow Voices: Monet Allard-Wilcox Release Specs: Audio: English Stereo Subtitles: none Video: Widescreen, 1.78:1 (anamorphic) Video Format: NTSC Format: Streaming Regional Code (for DVD/Blu-ray): N/A Number of discs: N/A

Stilettos for Shanghai is a documentary by Monet Allard-Wilcox on The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a San Francisco based advocacy group — that now has chapters worldwide — that provides “community service, ministry and outreach to those on the edges, and to promoting human rights, respect for diversity and spiritual enlightenment.”

In 2014, The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence were invited to take part in the 6th Shanghai Pride event, the only pride event in mainland China. Filmmaker Monet Allard-Wilcox accompanied The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence to Shanghai, China and used Shanghai Pride as a backdrop for her documentary on The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.

Monet Allard-Wilcox has done a great job with the structure of Stilettos for Shanghai. The documentary starts by looking at rising anti-LGBTQ laws and hate crime in America and other countries. Then the documentary transitions into The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence themselves, and their history. The documentary then goes into what rights the LGBTQ community have in China before getting to la pièce de résistance, the Sisters' arrival in Shanghai and the time they spent there.

While The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence being at Shanghai Pride is the backdrop for the entire documentary, that isn't the actual focus of the documentary. The focus of the documentary is on The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence themselves and their activism and assistance to those in need. Going into the documentary, the viewer may have never heard of The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence; however, after completing the documentary, the viewer will have a good understanding of the unique nuns.

In addition to the voices of the nuns themselves and footage from The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence's archives, Monet Allard-Wilcox brings in voices from stateside and from China to create a nice well-rounded view of The Sisters and their ministry. In addition to the footage shot specifically for this documentary and the archive footage from The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence's archives Monet Allard-Wilcox also uses other relevant archival material to paint a full picture of The Sisters, from creation to the present day.

Stilettos for Shanghai is an excellent documentary on The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. Whether you have a cursory knowledge of the nuns due to Sister Roma's very visible presence or whether the nuns are entirely new to you Stilettos for Shanghai is definitely worth watching.

The edition of Stilettos for Shanghai screened is the streaming-only edition available on NakedSword.com. NakedSword Film Works has done a nice job with their streaming-only release of Stilettos for Shanghai. Stilettos for Shanghai was shot digitally and is presented in the anamorphic widescreen aspect ratio of 1.78:1 in 480p. The image quality for Stilettos for Shanghai exhibits no noticeable issues with a blemish-free image and nice colors. Since this is a documentary, some of the archival footage has problems like video glitches, but that is due to the quality of the existing source material.

Stilettos for Shanghai is presented with an English Stereo audio track. There aren't any noticeable issues with the sound quality either. The dialog in the movie is clear and easy to understand at all times.

NakedSword Film Works hasn't included any extras for their streaming-only release of Stilettos for Shanghai.

NakedSword has released Stilettos for Shanghai through their NakedSword Film Works (NSFW) division that was launched in 2016 to exhibit independent gay movies that aren't exactly pornographic yet aren't exactly mainstream. Stilettos for Shanghai is a documentary by Monet Allard-Wilcox that focuses on The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and their visit to the 2014 Shanghai Pride event. Monet Allard-Wilcox has done a great job of highlighting the nuns and their work. Stilettos for Shanghai is a must-see documentary. NakedSword Film Works has done a great job with their streaming-only edition of Stilettos for Shanghai with good video and audio quality.

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