This film is part of Rentals

The Book of Gabrielle
Lisa Gornick's funny and frank drama sketches the relationship between a sex-obsessed lesbian illustrator and a randy hetero author, who bond over their favourite subject.
Drama 2016 79 mins
Director: Lisa Gornick
Overview
Lisa Gornick's funny and frank drama sketches a most unexpected meeting of minds. Gabrielle (Gornick herself) is a London-based illustrator hoping to publish her book of risqué sex drawings. She gets an unlikely boost from an encounter with an established author, Saul Bernard (Allan Corduner), who is similarly sex-obsessed. Despite their opposing sexual orientations, the pair strike up a platonic yet mildly flirtatious friendship, in which they reveal innermost sexual secrets and muse on their shared Jewish heritage.
The last film from the multi-talented one-woman production outfit Lisa Gornick is a marvel of modestly budgeted craftsmanship, which revels in its quirky characters and insightful dialogue in a manner more familiar from US independent cinema. Gornick envisaged the film as a multiplatform event which variously encompassed a live show and the production of Gabrielle's book itself; but the film stands alone as a sexy and provocative delight that veers away from predictability at every turn, anchored around Gornick's mature performance and an impish turn from veteran character actor Corduner (Defiance, Topsy-Turvy).

Accessibility
Related
Drama

White Colour Black White Colour Black
Drama 2016 83 mins Director: Joseph A. Adesunloye
A young mixed heritage man confronts the psychological complexities of his identity in this essential, truly cinematic discovery for anyone interested in Black British cinema.

In the Mood for Love In the Mood for Love
Drama 2000 100 mins Director: Wong Kar Wai
Wong’s masterpiece is a heartbreaking story of illicit love that pulses with the ache and agony of repressed desire.

Happy Together Happy Together
Drama 1997 98 mins Director: Wong Kar Wai
A trip to Buenos Aires reveals the dark side of love as a gay couple (Leung and Cheung) struggle with jealousy, co-dependency and possessiveness as their turbulent relationship falls apart.

Chungking Express Chungking Express
Drama 1994 103 mins Director: Wong Kar Wai
Shot off-the-cuff in 23 days, this bright and breezy comedy was Wong’s international breakthrough hit, and it’s not hard to see why.

Fallen Angels Fallen Angels
Drama 1995 99 mins Director: Wong Kar Wai
Stylish drama laced with quirky humour that glimmers with the neon magic of Hong Kong at night.

Days of Being Wild Days of Being Wild
Drama 1990 95 mins Director: Wong Kar Wai
Leslie Cheung gives a magnificent performance as a rakish playboy in the 1960s searching for identity while callously breaking hearts.
LGBTIQ+ Best of 2018

God's Own Country God's Own Country
Drama 2017 105 mins Director: Francis Lee
A troubled young sheep farmer falls for a hired hand in this stunning debut from Francis Lee.

Freak Show Freak Show
Comedy 2017 91 mins Director: Trudie Styler
Alex Lawther is outstanding as a teenage rebel in this tale of an unrepentant high-school outsider, directed by Trudie Styler.

Mario Mario
Drama 2018 119 mins Director: Marcel Gisler
On the pitch Mario and Leon are teammates; off the pitch they are becoming so much more.

The Happy Prince The Happy Prince
Biopic 2018 105 mins Director: Rupert Everett
Rupert Everett astounds as Oscar Wilde, depicting the fallen star in the final years of his life, in this heartfelt and captivating passion project.

McQueen McQueen
Biopic 2018 111 mins Director: Ian Bonhôte
In scintillating fashion, this compelling documentary explores the dark dreams that drove the brilliant, lamented designer, Alexander McQueen.

Anchor and Hope Anchor and Hope
Comedy 2018 113 mins Director: Carlos Marques-Marcet
Sweetly swaying houseboat comedy about a couple whose river-bound existence is upended by the arrival of an old friend.
New

Poly Styrene: I Am A Cliché Poly Styrene: I Am A Cliché
Documentary 2021 96 mins Director: Celeste Bell
The death of punk icon and X-Ray Spex frontwoman Poly Styrene sends her daughter on a journey through her mother’s archives in this intimate documentary.

White Colour Black White Colour Black
Drama 2016 83 mins Director: Joseph A. Adesunloye
A young mixed heritage man confronts the psychological complexities of his identity in this essential, truly cinematic discovery for anyone interested in Black British cinema.

IWOW: I Walk on Water IWOW: I Walk on Water
Documentary 2020 199 mins Director: Khalik Allah
The monumental new diary film from New York-based director and photographer Khalik Allah.

Synchronic Synchronic
Science Fiction 2019 102 mins Director: Justin Benson
Anthony Mackie and Jamie Dornan star as a pair of New Orleans paramedics who encounter a series of bizarre deaths linked to a new designer drug with otherworldly effects.

In the Mood for Love In the Mood for Love
Drama 2000 100 mins Director: Wong Kar Wai
Wong’s masterpiece is a heartbreaking story of illicit love that pulses with the ache and agony of repressed desire.

Happy Together Happy Together
Drama 1997 98 mins Director: Wong Kar Wai
A trip to Buenos Aires reveals the dark side of love as a gay couple (Leung and Cheung) struggle with jealousy, co-dependency and possessiveness as their turbulent relationship falls apart.