This documentary is nearly twenty years old now, and it follows a gay couple as they navigate the stressful and exciting journey of their first pregnancy through surrogacy. You get to see it all— the hope, the nerves, and the dramatic hurdles they have to clear along the way. Back in the day, this was probably a massive deal, but since I’ve known a few gay couples who’ve gone through this exact process, some parts felt a bit dated to me. I liked bits and pieces of it, but I also felt like the film stays pretty surface-level. It doesn't really dive into the deep, complicated reality of life after the baby actually arrives. If only raising a kid were actually as simple as this movie makes it look! Erik and Mark have been together in New York for ten years, and since they feel solid in their relationship, they decide they’re ready to raise a child. They start the hunt for a surrogate and eventually connect with Wen, a wife and mom from Maine who agrees to carry the baby for a standard...
This is a documentary about men who break the silence about their homosexuality. They talk about their difficulty to accept and to make others accept their difference, of the place of sensuality in their lives, of their fierce desire to love freely. A film that ,in celebrating the love of a young couple, proposes to break the sometimes negative image around the gay world.
Examining relationships between men - from long-standing monogamous partnerships to brief encounters - the film features men of all ages talking openly about their sexuality and the challenges of self-acceptance in a straight, often homophobic society. Drawing from intimate interviews as well as action scenes ranging from a steamy dance floor in Montreal's gay village to a gay ex-policeman lecturing to future officers, When Love is Gay brushes a realistic portrait of an evolving gay culture. This is an advocacy doc, aimed at giving a voice to gay Canadians as they discuss their experiences and opinions on matters such as coming out, promiscuity, and gay bars. The stories are interesting to hear, since t came out back in early 90s, and most men interviewed are in their prime, so the context they share with us is probably from 60s, 70s timeframe. It is always fascinating to hear how everyone's story is so different from one another. Unfortunately, the subjects are broad, and the interviewees are cut away from before their stories ever become too personal or specific, which prevents this from being either a valuable time capsule or an act of testimony. Given the documentary is just about 50 minutes in length, it is an easy watch to reminiscence the times some of us have forgotten about. (5/10)

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