Wow!! I should have known that I would find people on this site who have seen DIFFERENT FOR GIRLS. I have it on DVD and watched it just the other night. And SECOND SERVE--Vanessa Redgrave is awesome. I taped that film off of TV. It doesn't seem to be available in any format.
What movie helps me with being trans? I self-identified as FTM a long time ago, but I've been suppressing my identity for years. This summer, I had a humongous breakthrough. One TV show and a movie made this possible: QUEER AS FOLK (US version) and BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN. For Pride month, QAF was on sale, so I bought the first three seasons and watched them through in a few days. Got the last two seasons and watched them in a few days. Obviously the show has its flaws, but it had a profound effect on me. First, I was so saturated in the show that I couldn't go back to suppressing my identity. It just wasn't possible anymore. Second, seeing all of those gay guys made me realize something. It's not that I want to be a gay guy someday, after I get my doctorate and have time to explore my identity...I AM a gay boy, now, even though I'm no-ho and no-op.
It was an amazing experience to realize that. I'm still high on it.
BROKEBACK illustrated the coping mechanism that I've been using for many years. Like Ennis and Jack, who were able to hang out and sleep together only occasionally, I only allowed myself to think about my identity issues a few times a year, when I would watch a few movies or read a few books (gay or TG fare) that tend to trigger me. Then I'd go through a whole range of feelings: anger, envy, frustration, depression. Then I would put myself together again and go on with "normal" life.
This coping strategy was largely unconscious, but when I saw BROKEBACK on the heels of QAF this summer, it suddenly hit me.
Both of these shows freed me. Of course, my life is once again filled with uncertainty and confusion over my identity and its future, but the dam had to break sometime.