The Twilight of the Golds (film)
The Twilight of the Golds is a film directed by Ross Kagan Marks, based upon the play The Twilight of the Golds by Jonathan Tolins. The film was screened at the January 1997 Sundance Film Festival [1] prior to its broadcast in March. The cast included Jennifer Beals as Suzanne, Brendan Fraser as David, Garry Marshall and Faye Dunaway as their parents, and Jon Tenney as Suzanne's husband, with John Schlesinger and Rosie O'Donnell in supporting roles created for the film.
Beals tied with Alfre Woodard for the Satellite Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. Dunaway was nominated for the CableACE Award for Supporting Actress in a Movie or Miniseries and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries, and the film was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Made for TV Movie.
Plot summary
The controversial dramedy tackles the issue of fictional genetic testing that would determine the sexual orientation of an unborn child. When Suzanne Gold-Stein discovers her son is destined to be gay, she considers aborting the fetus, much to the dismay of her gay brother David, whose sexual orientation has never been fully accepted by his conservative family. In the stage version, she has the abortion late in the pregnancy, resulting in her inability to bear any more children, as well as David's estrangement from the family. In the film version, Suzanne chooses to have the baby, though this leads to a break-up with her husband, who does not wish to raise a gay son.