Maspalomas (Spanish/Basque)

This movie is such an interesting mix of laughs and heavy moments, diving into the whole idea of love and lust when you’re older. It’s a layered queer comedy-drama that puts a really fresh spin on what it’s like to be gay in your 70s. The story feels super grounded and real, especially since it sets the character study right against the backdrop of the early Covid-19 pandemic, which adds a whole other level of truth to the messiness of it all.

The story follows Vicente, a proud 70-something who ditched his closeted past years ago to live a hedonistic life in the gay-friendly Maspalomas resort on Gran Canaria. He’s recently single and spends his days hooking up in the dunes and partying without a care in the world, mostly because an old friend handles all the bills for him and his dog. But after a major medical emergency, he’s sent back to his hometown, where his estranged daughter—who barely knows him since he walked out on her and his wife decades ago—sticks him in a retirement home to recover. Vicente suddenly finds himself forced back into the closet because he’s terrified of how the other residents will react. He even gets weirded out when he realizes his young care assistant is gay. As he slowly heals and tries to patch things up with his daughter, he bonds with his roommate, a happy-go-lucky guy with some far-right views who has the exact kind of bold personality Vicente wishes he had. Just as the world starts spiraling into the Covid lockdown, Vicente finally finds the courage to be open about who he is again and leaves the home to head back to Maspalomas, choosing freedom even as the world shuts down.

What’s great about this film is how it really focuses on Vicente’s spirit. At the start, he’s this dapper, confident guy, but after his stroke, he’s in a wheelchair with a bushy beard and is barely recognizable. The heart of the movie is really about him regaining that lost confidence, and surprisingly, it’s his roommate who helps him the most by refusing to let him give up on life. It shows that Vicente was actually trapping himself in a new kind of closet built out of loneliness and fear. There’s some great humor involving his hostile attitude toward the gay care worker, too. The lead actor is in every single scene, and he’s incredible at showing that shift from being full of lust for life to feeling totally defeated and back again. It’s a beautiful tribute to dignity and the idea that we never stop having the right to feel or want connection, no matter how old we get. It doesn't shy away from sex or the quiet, awkward moments of aging, which feels like a pretty bold statement in itself.

The whole thing builds to this really emotional ending that makes you think about isolation and what family and friendship actually mean as you get older. Even with a bit of a sad undertone and the terrible subtitles on the version I watched, the film felt so real and charming. The visuals are stunning, from the sandy beaches to the raw intimacy of the opening scenes. For gay men, it hits home because it reminds us that we’re all heading toward that age where life becomes uncertain, but it’s still worth living on your own terms.

It’s a deeply moving and honest look at growing old without losing your spark, proving that coming out is a journey that never really ends. (7.5/10)