This Hindi movie is a pretty straightforward slice-of-life story that tries to give a modern look at what it's like to be a single, professional gay man. It dives into how he understands who he is, the chances he missed out on, and the personal choices he’s made along the way. The director used three parallel timelines to tell the story, which honestly didn't make much sense to me. While the core idea was actually pretty interesting, I really feel like this would have worked way better as a short film considering the point it was trying to make. Still, it wasn't a bad watch. The plot centers on Rachit, a city professional, and his friend Shikhar as they hang out for an evening. Rachit is a polished, urban guy, while Shikhar has more of a "small-town" rustic vibe, and you can really see the contrast between them when they talk. As the night goes on, Rachit starts thinking back to some old memories from a long time ago. He remembers being an intern after college in ...
Featuring some of the UK’s most famous LGBT faces, from artists and musicians to politicians, activists, entrepreneurs and more, these talking heads give personal accounts from the worlds of politics and entertainment alongside historical footage and commentary. They remember growing up in a culture in which they had to live a secret life. Some recount suicide attempts, or talk about finding hope in films like Victim (1961), even as men were going to prison after homosexuality was partially decriminalized in 1967. The laws only applied to men, but lesbians felt pressured to conform as well. Meanwhile, gay characters in film and television were still stereotypical, and in the 1980s politicians put discrimination back into the law. But the subculture grew, largely through the nightlife scene that created makeshift families. The arrival of Aids in the 1980s led to even more horrific public bigotry amid years of tragic death. But this also brought more defiance and openness. Bringing the film up-to-date, we see the legalization of same-sex civil partnerships and then marriage, as well as the repealing of Section 28 in 2000. The documentary concludes with Sir Ian McKellen's talk where he talks in detail about a brutal homophobic attack that happened in London a few years before. And the message that this film leaves us with is that we should celebrate how far we’ve come but not rest easy until the source of this prejudice has been eliminated.
Though only an hour and a half long, the film is extraordinarily comprehensive, exploring its subject decade by decade and contextualizing each major development with personal stories about the changes that resulted from it. A very competent and enjoyable documentary, this film entertains as well as educates, but mostly about the UK LGBT history. There is a lot that has happened. The struggles of the community continue but clearly the areas of focus are very different. The progress that’s been made from the very partial decriminalization of 1967, until 2017 when gay marriage was made legal, to today’s openness in discussing transsexual matters, is amazing. In the 70s and 80s, gays could still be prosecuted for exchanging phone numbers or having sex in a hotel bedroom. Today, in law at least, there is complete equality with straight life. And the film charts that progress. (5.5/10)
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