Movie Reviews -
Gay Themed

This documentary shows the everyday experiences of the “muxes,” a group of homosexual, cross-dressing, and transsexual persons, who live their identities through a series of performative acts in the town of Juchitán. In doing so, they transgress the traditional roles and expectations that a patriarchal society has for both their men and women. Furthermore, their actions are presented in the film as everyday acts of defiance towards heteronormative patterns—that is, manners of interpreting the sexed body that have come to be considered acceptable by patriarchal societies. On the sun-baked Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Mexico lies the town of Juchitan, whose population of indigenous Zapotecs have for centuries warded off numerous invasions to preserve their identity. Today, Juchitan has an additional, more notorious, identity, as a "queer paradise" famous for its Muxes, effeminate homosexual men whose socially defined role within the Zapotec culture pre-dates the advent of gay libe...

Why o why was this film made? With a running length of almost 2.5 hours, the only thought that comes to mind after having finished watching the film is WTF!! Not only was the story problematic , but worse was the execution of the film. The makers probably have never heard of the role of an editor. So many scenes would just go on and on forever, really really testing patience of the audience. No wonder it Tok me a few years to even find this film since it was released and having seen it now, I would loudly scream to not waste your time. A simple young man Liam works in a hotel and the setting is during covid. A rich man Harry comes to stay at the hotel for a week and their first meeting does not go well. Harry is angry and Liam is clumsy, but. Turns out that's because Liam is enamored by how handsome Harry is. Anyway, they eventually become friends and one night while hanging out Harry tells Liam how he is super rich but after his parents separation neither wants them, so they keep ...

About Him series from Signal23 TV is something that we are used toot have too much expectations. Most of tenor work focuses on hot and handsome black men with barely a thread of storyline. Imagine my surprise when I saw this season, with a proper story line and actually much less sex scenes. Although, almost every episode had one big scene but it's nowhere compared to what we have seen in the past. Omari is a young man who runs an NGO that supports LGBT folks in all over Africa who are trying to see asylum and get a better life in South Africa, one of the few countries in Africa where it is not illegal and you do not fear for your life. An American guy mason is visiting for work and they hook up and start seeing one another, unsure of where this is all heading. In between all this, we hear that Omari's grandfather in Zimbabwe has passed away. SO the mother along Omari and younger brother visit their tribe. There we find out and are told with multiple flashbacks is that Omari...

No place on Earth does the kind of gentrifying, rapid-change history creation happen like in New York City. This phenomenon is perhaps the central source of tension in HBOMax’s newly-released documentary The Stroll. This documentary shares the stories of Black trans sex workers in Manhattan’s Meatpacking district during the 1980s and ’90s. It is a story of despair, sisterhood, and triumph. The filmmakers excavate decades’ worth of images to tell the story of trans sex workers in the Meatpacking District of New York City. It is honest, thoughtful, diligent and created very much for the people who lived it while remaining welcoming to the curious outsider.  The film stages candid conversations with a number of trans women who reminisce about their experiences in the streets. These interactions have the feel of well-worn chats between old friends, using shorthand and basking in each other’s glow, and lend “The Stroll” a warm sense of intimacy. This is a trans history project created b...

This series has absolutely nothing going for it. Except for the very pretty island location and the surroundings, the whole premise is something that just need not have to exist. The plot is devoid of any logic and sadly it keeps getting worse. What's bad is they have introduced so many characters for absolutely nothin, just to make more and more couples. Its as of someone said here you have 15 people and you HAVE to make a show with them at gun point. Thankfully with only 6 episodes each of 40-45 min, they didn't go through the 12 or 14 episode route hence torturing the public even more. Sun woks as a debt collector for an old man. He is not very good at his job but has managed to stay on just because the boss is a friend of his father. Sun's boss eventually gives him an ultimatum that if he doesn't finish his next debt collection, he will be fired (a young guy has already been hired). To his surprise, Sun must collect the debt from his father, who borrowed a lot of mo...

After watching the film, it feels like the film is full of metaphors, some that I understand but many that I probably did not. There are some odd moments story-wise, which seem out of place, and it is slow at points, but the film is nevertheless interesting to watch. Homosexuality issues are naturally mixed with religion and the authoritarianism of a patriarchy, showing us a snapshot of the society in a very small town of Northern Argentina. The movie also shows how important the legends of the country people are for that society and how they try to survive with that great weight and trying to solve it with their own weapons. Nino lives with his family and he is in the midst of exploring his early awakening sexuality. At age 14, Nino is already a victim of homophobic attacks. To protect him, his parents decide to leave the city temporarily and the whole family moves to a farm near a rural village. The place is surrounded by the "monte", a huge humid and dark forest where his ...

El Primer Beso (Spain) [The First Kiss] Andi, a teenager lives in a small town. No one knows that he is gay, except his older brother. Today is a special day because he is going to Madrid where he has a date with a boy his age whom he has met online. Things end in a drama, but with. Positive message acceptance and hopefully love. Ili-Ili (Philippines) [Little One] A pregnant mother, unsure of how to raise a child, arranges an interview with her two gay dads but fate intervenes when his dad suffers a heart attack. Her dad reflects on their family’s history, captured on an old camcorder. A heartfelt narrative told through animation, that carries a heartfelt message of love and family. Polywood (USA) A playful, tongue-in-cheek jab at the modern dating scene. Clayton, who has an unlucky love life, is on his first date with August, a guy he met on Grindr. When he meets him his anxiety fades, as he is fascinated by how easily they form a connection. The idyll is broken when August mentions h...

Kenya is a documentary that portrays the harrowing journey of Kenya, a trans woman sex worker in Mexico City, as she seeks justice and safety after witnessing the murder of her friend Paola by a client. The film begins shortly after this tragic event, capturing Kenya's immediate response and her interactions with Paola's family, who have trouble accepting Paola as she was in life: a vibrant and flamboyant trans woman. Walking on the streets of Mexico City in her shimmering high heels, Kenya is a tower of strength in a world that is devastatingly cruel to her community. A trans sex worker and an activist, she is spurred into action after witnessing the brutal murder of her friend Paola at the hands of a client. Despite ample evidence against him, the perpetrator is allowed to walk free, signifying how the judicial system turns a blind eye to the violence inflicted on trans women. The film captures the kind of care work needed in life as well as in death. When not leading protest...

The season 2 or part 2 of this series/film (depending on how you saw it) continues the story pretty much from where it ended in season 1. Having said that, even if you have not watched the first film, you can easily follow what is going on here. For me, just like the first part, I watched this one as well like a film, even though it was released as an episodic series on Dekoo. This season focuses more on the group of friends than just on either Aaron or Jordan, who wrestle the leads of the original film. The first part had ended on their breakup. Set few months after that, we see how Aaron now has a FWB in Julio. Aaron wants this to get into something serious by going on actual date, but something is holding back Julio. Over the course, we see how Julio's best friend manages to convince him that he needs to live his life and eventually Julio asks Aaron out on a date. It doesn't go as planned but it definitely brings the two men much closer. In parallel, we see that Jordan is no...

I am starting to love this fewer episodes a more concise and focussed storytelling in these BL series. This show is also a great example with just 6 episodes of 23 minutes each, the makers are able to show us a very good love story with an important and nice message. The basic idea of the show is if you get a second chance to love, should you give it a pass or jump at the opportunity and finally be happy? Also, if the second chance happens to be the same person whom you loved in the first place, what would you do? Actually the plot of the series is simple. Miyato works for a publication agency and is assigned a job to meet professor Iwanaga Takashi to write a column for his publication. Its only when Miyato meets Iwanaga, they bth realize they know each other form their school days. Back in the high school, they used to be star crossed lovers. What we are eventually told is how and why that relationship broke up, why Miyato  broke the affair completely, sealed the romantic episode,...

I am so glad that I heard my friend Sailor Maan's advice to stick with the show. After the first three episodes, I wasn't very impressed with what was going on and thought of this show as just another one of those regular BL stories (which it is to a certain extent), but by the time the show ended, there were a lot of things that I ended up enjoying and appreciate about the show. I will write those down in more details later. At 12 episodes of 50-55 minutes each, this show requires a good investment of your time, but eventually it pays out. There is an app called Zendaya that tries to focus only on positive comments for stars and their teams keep reviewing and deleting hurtful comments. One of their employees Krom, working in US, goes back on holiday but is also expected to continue to work from there. Once at home, he meet his neighbor Fueng, who also happens to be a popular star. Turns out, ever since he has become the neighbor, he has been visiting their house and has formed...