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Julianne Moore And Ellen Page Star As Passionate Couple In First 'Freeheld' Trailer - Another Oscar For Julianne?

Julianne Moore And Ellen Page Make A Passionate Couple In 'Freeheld'
Caroline Frost
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Come Awards Season, and Julianne Moore might just be adding another golden statuette to her mantelpiece with her performance in 'Freeheld', bringing to screen the real-life story of Laurel Hester and her partner Stacie Andree.

Julianne stars as Laurel Hester, a decorated New Jersey police detective who was diagnosed with cancer and wanted to leave her pension to her domestic partner, Stacie (played by Ellen Page).

Hester lived with and jointly owned a house with her registered domestic partner, Stacie Andree, who would not be able to afford mortgage payments upon Hester's death. A married heterosexual with Hester's years of police service would be able to pass on pension benefits to a spouse, but this privilege was not accorded to same-sex domestic partners in Ocean County.

Hester appealed to local authorities to change this policy, and was supported by the local Policemen's Benefit Association. Instead, in a private meeting on 9 November 2005, the five Republican county freeholders voted against the proposal, with freeholder John P. Kelly arguing that it threatened "the sanctity of marriage".

In the film, when county officials, called Freeholders, conspired to prevent Laurel from doing this, detective Dane Wells (Michael Shannon) and activist Steven Goldstein (Steve Carell) team up to fight for Laurel and Stacie's case, rallying police officers and ordinary citizens to support their struggle for equality.

In real life, on 23 November, a rally of between 100 and 200 supporters gathered to protest the county's inaction.

Julianne Moore owned Awards Season 2015, winning an Oscar, Golden Globe and a clutch of gongs for her portrayal of an Alzheimer's patient in 'Still Alice'.

Ellen Page scooped admiration around the world with her coming-out speech back in February 2014, which she gave as part of Human Rights Campaign's 'Time To Thrive' conference.

33 Great Moments In Cultural History That Wouldn't Have Happened Without LGBT People
'The Negro Speaks Of Rivers,' By Langston Hughes (1902-1967)(01 of07)
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A leader of the Harlem Renaissance, poet, writer and playwright Langston Hughes is one of the most prominent historical black cultural figures. Hughes shed light on the lives of African-Americans in his work, drawing both support and criticism from the community. Many of his poems also had homosexual allusions and advocated for gay rights.Photo Courtesy of Hyperion Book CH (credit:Photo Courtesy of Hyperion Book CH)
'The Glass House,' By Philip C. Johnson (1906-2005)(02 of07)
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American architect Philip C. Johnson designed many buildings throughout the U.S., including the Seagram Building and Lincoln Center in NYC and the One Detroit Center in Michigan. But The Glass House he designed and finished in 1949 in New Canaan, Conn. became a National Trust Historic Site. Johnson died at 98 in 2005, leaving behind his partner, David Whitney, of 45 years.Photo Courtesy of Wiki Commons / Staib (credit:Photo Courtesy of Wiki Commons / Staib)
Various Uses Of The Peanut By George Washington Carver (1864-1943)(03 of07)
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Born into slavery, black and LGBT history icon George Washington Carver overcame his misfortune by becoming a successful scientist and inventor. Carver’s crop research, especially of the humble peanut, led to his inventions of plastics, paints, dyes and even a type of gasoline.Photo courtesy of Flickr user Vinni123 (credit:Photo courtesy of Flickr user Vinni123)
'Campbell's Soup Cans,' By Andy Warhol (1928-1987)(04 of07)
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Deemed the godfather of the '60s Pop Art movement, Andy Warhol, originally from Pittsburgh, moved to NYC in 1949 to pursue his career as a commercial artist. Warhol, who was openly gay, was most famous for his whimsical paintings of Campbell’s soup cans, using unconventional (consumer) products as subjects, and fun, colorful portraits of celebrities including Marilyn Monroe and Elvis and changed the face of modern art. (credit:Alamy)
'Leaves Of Grass,' By Walt Whitman (1819-1892)(05 of07)
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The revered and influential poet Walt Whitman was best known for his collection of poems “Leaves of Grass." Whitman was a pioneer for equal rights and treatment of all people, often showing his views in his poetry, as well as his homosexuality, writing suggestive poems such as “We Two Boys Together Clinging.” Photo Courtesy of Penguin Classics (credit:Photo Courtesy of Penguin Classics)
'Three Lives,' By Gertrude Stein (1874-1946)(06 of07)
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Gertrude Stein, who was born in Pennsylvania, was a patron of the arts, opening a famous literary and artistic salon with her brother in Paris. The venue hosted writers from all over the world such as T.S. Eliot, Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. The French capital is also where Stein met her lifelong companion and lover, Alice B. Toklas. Stein was a writer herself, publishing titles such as “Three Lives” (1909) and “Tender Buttons: Objects, Food, Rooms” (1914).Courtesy of Penguin Classics (credit:Courtesy of Penguin Classics)
'Notes Of A Native Son,' By James Baldwin (1924-1987)(07 of07)
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James Baldwin was a renowned author who wrote about race and sexuality in the middle of the 20th century. One of his many notable works, “Nobody Knows My Name,” was a best seller, and sold more than a million copies. Baldwin was openly gay and appeared on the cover of TIME magazine in 1963. Photo Courtesy of Beacon Press (credit:Photo Courtesy of Beacon Press)

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