Thai Volleyball Comedy Starts U.S. Run

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Thai transvestite volleyball players hit the big screen on Friday as the movie ``The Iron Ladies'' opened in New York to start the first U.S. national run for a Thai film.

The movie, based on a true story about a Thai male volleyball team made up mostly of gays, transvestites and transsexuals who won a national championship in 1996, will open in San Francisco and Los Angeles over the next two weeks, according to distributor Strand Releasing.

``The Iron Ladies'' will then head to about 25 to 30 U.S. cities, the company added.

The movie, a comedy about the battles of unlikely underdogs, was the second-highest grossing domestic film in Thai history and has played to packed theaters at art house cinemas in Asia.

It tells of two amateur volleyball players who are rejected from teams because of their homosexuality. They band together with other skilled players, including a gay army sergeant with a penchant for lipstick who is also a vicious presence at the net.

A transsexual cabaret star, a set of triplets and a few other outrageous players join the team, which is dubbed the ''Iron Ladies,'' and it starts winning local tournaments.

The movie is from first-time director Yongyoot Thongkongtoon, who also wrote the screenplay.

The film is cast with mostly nonprofessional actors and is high on camp. The mascara flows freely when the Iron ladies sweat their way through a tough match.