Happy birthday, Todd Haynes!

I’m still waiting for his critically lauded experimental Bob Dylan biopic, I'm Not There, to open in my neck of the woods, but that isn’t stopping me from celebrating the birth of visionary gay director Todd Haynes today.

From the eerie sterility of Safe to the gender-bending antics of the vastly underrated 70s glam-rock epic Velvet Goldmine, Haynes’ films are always overflowing with inventive ideas. Now how often can you say that about the crap that gets released these days?

After the jump, check out a lengthy clip from one of my favorites, the gorgeously shot ode to Douglas Sirk-stye melodrama, Far From Heaven, as well as one of the wacky music videos from Velvet Goldmine.