Gay Days is a documentary that dives into how the LGBTQ+ community really started to find its voice in Israel. Back in 1985, there were literally only three gay men who were officially out in the whole country, but by 1998, that number had jumped to 3,000. It’s a look at this super short, intense, and dramatic window of time where Israel went through one of the fastest and most vibrant social revolutions at the end of the 20th century. What’s wild is that this whole shift happened without any blood being spilled; instead, it was this rare team-up between professors, sex workers, trans people, singers, barbers, and even military officers. The director, Yair Qedar, was right there filming it all for his own newspaper called The Pink Times . He uses some really cool old footage, personal stories, and his own private diary to piece together this energetic and bittersweet musical mix of a movie. The film follows Qedar’s own path as a kid from middle Israel who moved to Tel Aviv in...
In 1977, the same year that the first liberation march paraded through Stockholm, three pivotal queer films began production: Bögjävlar/Damned Queers, Kvinnan i ditt liv är du/The woman in your life is you and Eva & Maria. For the first time, open lesbians and gay men were granted state funding for depicting their own realities, stories about finding love and community and confronting society’s rampant homophobia and traditional gender roles. In this documentary, rich archive is brought to life and recharged with urgency in dialogue with newly shot documentary scenes and interviews with the film activists of the 1970s, capturing the strength and magic in creating another world and living one’s own life. By reclaiming the image of themselves, the fearless queer filmmakers of the 1970s took revolutionary steps out of invisibility and stigma. These vital and empowering moving images are crucial testimonies of a history of activism and resistance in dire need of becoming part of our cultural memory today as we face the new threats of right-wing extremism.
It’s a beautiful and fascinating piece of history, and is recent enough to have most of the main players still around. Ryberg reunites them and has them reminiscing, which they do with gusto. Several lived together in radical communes, and even had schedules on the refrigerator on who would sleep with whom that night. After a couple of decades in oblivion, these films are now being seen again, by an appreciative new generation. Sweden became the first country in the world to remove homosexuality as an “illness”. Just around the corner, HIV would cause a great deal of damage, and still today, homophobia is very present in many places. Our radical heroes worry, but they also look both back and forward with positivity. It's a reaffirmation that nothing should be taken for granted. I feel the idea behind the documentary was quite interesting to see these film makers and how their life turned out between the 70s and current times and them reminiscing old days. But from an entertainment perspective, it leaves a lot to be desired. I do understand that documentaries are not always supposed to be seen from fun angle but from knowledge, but I have a feeling maybe Swedes may appreciate the film more or the folks who have a better idea of the three films it talks about. (4/10)
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