Movie Reviews -
Gay Themed

There are plenty of films that I have already seen which talk about a few church priests taking advantage of young boys and the aftermath of that many years later. This subject has been presented in movies format, short films and commentaries. But sadly there are so many cases all around this subject, that I keep finding out about more and more new stuff. This is one such film that chooses to describe itself as a fiction based on known facts. It shows how grown men who had been abused by Father Preynat as young boys courageously decided to take action by bringing charges. The scale of the abuse is staggering, and there’s an explanation; the Church knew of the abuse and rather than stop it, they covered it up, allowing it to continue. The film is almost episodic where it focuses on three of its central characters, who are introduced to us through their distinctive narratives. The first is Alexandre, a well-to-do media advisor with five kids, a wife, and a beautiful home. He’s only recen...

This film is a coming of age story of the growing pains of a privileged 16 year old teenage but for some reason he despises all that because he feels nothing is real. It is a drama about youth and desire – and destiny, sexuality and class. I am struggling to define this as a LGBTQ friendly film, because in a way it is about this kid realizing about his sexuality, accepting it and figuring out ho to live with it, but this is just one part. The film is so much more than that. 16 year old Enzo comes from a very wealthy family but he is spending his summer at a construction site doing menial jobs. Their son is sensitive, artistic, unused to manual labour; he’s arguably equally unsuitable for it, though he persists, despite the disapproval of his boss. But Enzo insists he wants be there. Slowly we start o realize that this may be for the company of these two Ukranian guys who work alongwith him. Out of these two, Vlad shot more compassion, friendliness and  a sensitivity toward Enzo tha...

Sexual abuse within the Catholic Church is a topic that has long fascinated film makers and we can find plenty films in this zone from various countries. Manipulations, suicide, fear and the shame are some things that these priests often use to lure kids and get the kids in doing things they don't want to. I remember having seen a few already (full length and documentaries both), but there are many more to follow. It's always a dilemma on whether or not to add these films on my blog and review them, but here we are. Gabriel, an adult now is reminded of his childhood when he hears a catholic school's now famous choir cd. Through flashbacks we are told how he was admitted in the school run by Father Vincey. He was mesmerized by Gabriel's voice and soon he became close to the priest. A couple of students are a bit abusive to him but Gabriel soon realizes that something is off between another student and a priest. That student died in a car accident. We see how systematical...

La Pampa is a sensitive, spirited and quietly profound film, that reminds you of the strength of friendship, the messiness of the families and most importantly how you need to be true to yourself. Exploring themes of rebellion, shame, and unresolved anguish, La Pampa delves into the profound challenges of articulating inner turmoil, set up in a motor pass setup with dirt bikes. This coming-of-age drama excels at portraying teenagers navigating an adult world,  and silly wrong turns that the collective makes sometimes. The story is of two blood brothers and friends Jojo and Willy. Inseparable since childhood, they both share a love of motocross and a burning desire to leave their small town. While Willy struggles to balance his love of the sport and the academic expectations set for him by his widowed mother, Jojo is pushed to his limits by his father and his trainer, both former motocross champions who see in the teenager a chance to relive their glory days. One night Willy finds J...

Even though this show had a soap opera like feel to it, but My god! What a fantastic series. The show is 6 episodes of about 45 minutes each, but the twists and turns and surprises that are thrown at you in every episode is fantastic. The storyline is genuinely intriguing and I genuinely could not guess the perpetrator. A suspenseful mystery about a man trying to understand how his husband of many years died in a car crash, the secrets he kept; especially his family members that were always kept a secret. A fatal car crash happens in rural France. Back in Paris, we see cops come to famous author's Manuel Ortega's home to inform him that his husband of six years had a fatal accident in rural France. Manuel is baffled because his husband Aymeric was supposedly on a business trip to Brussels. We soon learn that Aymeric is the son of a wealthy marquis who’d inherited the title and responsibility for running the family business and properties, of which Manuel knew nothing. As we beg...

I am not sure I fully understood what this film was about. I mean, yes, I get that it was a story about a group of drag queen performers and their life, but I was quite confused between so many characters and what was the film actually trying to show. The plot tracks drag queens of The Bearded Mermaid cabaret, who put on a riveting show featuring singing, circus, and dancing—something never seen before in the small town of Dieppe in France. One night, a lonely fisherman stumbles into “The Bearded Mermaid,” a faded little cabaret that turns out to be anything but ordinary. He steps into a world of laughter, glitter and love that he totally embraces, opening up to these characters as joyful as they are morose. Run by a fiercely committed trio of drag performers - firecracker Sweety, anxious stage manager Beluga who is also the 'mother' of them all, and gentle aerialist Alonso - the cabaret is struggling to keep its doors open. Their dream? A glitter-filled, lip-sync-and-circus sp...

I am not much of a video game fan, but like me, if you were trying to avoid this film, because of that, STOP! This film is actually pretty decent. It is a compelling look at how a video game can provide not only entertainment, but a sense of community for those lacking it in their real lives. It's about the loss of love, safety, and human interaction. The video game is just the catalyst for it all, and it all actually ties in pretty good. I found myself liking the film. Pablo and his sister Apo are very close siblings. They both have been playing a game called Darknoon, a fantasy role-playing game that has no real aim, but provides an alternative world in which you can create an ideal version of yourself, and run around fighting battles, slaying monsters and meeting other characters. But it is announced that Darknoon will soon shut down for good. While Pablo doesn't care much, she is devastated by the idea, especially since all her connections have been in the virtual world. Pa...

This gay film has a lot that it unpacks. Tackling with the deep themes, such as budding love, the unsaid, the complexity of adolescence and the cruelty of bullying, the film is an interesting take. Set in two different timelines, the film is set in early 2000's with taking a flashback into the summer of 1983 when the two protagonists Paul and Joseph met. The sensitivity with which the sincere portrait of adolescence is drawn up in the first part and the reunion 20 years later of Paul and Joseph having made their adult life a vibrant, this touching story remains intact in their relationship despite the vagaries of life. On his wedding day, Paul's very pregnant wife surprises him by inviting an old friend of his Joseph, whom he hasn't seen for almost 20 years. With the burning memories of their meeting that summer of 1983, Paul is overwhelmed by doubts about the choices of a lifetime and the emotions of this forbidden relationship. Back in 1983, we see Paul was a shy teenager...

An atmospheric drama that tries to delve into joys of being alive, what could prompt folks to end their own life and is there a way that we can remind people on how precious the life is. Sounds good, isn't it? Sadly the execution of the subject leaves lot to be desired. For a sensitive subject like this, it is important that you connect with the characters and feel empathy, but for me, that did not work in this film. Evan is on his way to a beauty spot in the middle of the night. Suicidal, he intends to kill himself there (since he lost his boyfriend a year ago and cannot get over it), but when his car breaks down on a bridge en route, he is stopped from jumping from it instead by the enigmatic young Léo, who was just passing by. In place of talking him out of it, Leo agrees to drive him to his intended destination. Along the way, romantic tension ensues as the pair reckon with traumas of the past, conflicts of the present and the potential of the future – together or apart. They m...

I find it very fascinating that back in the 80s prominent gay films had started to emerge where the central theme was gay and not just a side character. This crime thriller with a gay romance at its center must have been quite a stir when it came out in 1984. Although I do have to say that French and German cinemas were always way ahead of times, so part of me is also not surprised. Sure, they don't show any intimate in-your-face scenes but it's all very obvious here. Set in Bordeaux, the emcee of local drag nightclub is killed one night, and Inspector Michel is called in to investigate. The film started with us seeing Michel with another man in Paris, so we know that likes men but we are then told that back home he has a loving wife and a kid. Back to the murder, As Michel starts to interview various staff and performers, he pays special attention to cute blonde musician Bernard. He is young and cute and before they both realize, they eventually have an intense love affair.  W...

I am not sure why this film was made. Featured in Cannes festival, I have too ay that when it comes to experimentation in movies, French are way ahead, but this film remains very much an oblique a non-needed film. Mostly delivered through VoiceOver by various characters, while we see multiple gardening scenes, this film is another great example of film makers taking vanity to another level. Pierre-Joseph is a young man years old when he joins a training center to become a gardener. There he meets Françoise Brown, the director, Alberto, his botany teacher, and Adrien, his employer, all of whom are decisive in his apprenticeship and the discovery of his sexuality. At multiple given opportunities he hooks up with these older men a they are all sort of happy in a commune sorta situation. All this while we keep hearing of this India guy Kutta, born to a French mother, owner of this. Agriculture institute and how everyone is waiting for him. 40 years later, Kutta arrives and is now owner of ...

This documentary is primarily about the maker searching the clubs and red-light districts of Tel Aviv for a trans woman rumored to have traveled there secretly from Gaza on foot. While the camera remains trained on various women through piercing close-ups, rare are the moments when the movie widens its scope, despite gesturing toward a larger picture. There is an old photograph that the maker have of this girl, a rumored trans woman who escaped the militarized confines of Gaza. The exact story of this phantom beauty seems to shift with each new person interviewed — one subject leads to the next in search of the Belle — and whether she exists at all, as a real person or a political fantasy, is frequently in doubt. Each girl tells a different possibility, implying what might happen to this Belle were she or her Palestinian origins discovered — deportation, or worse — while hinting toward the nightly troubles each of these women must navigate. The documentary interweaves the often tragic ...

I have to hand it to the audacity of these French film makers to try and come up with a sequel to a film that was likely panned by most people. I remember I did not like the film at all and felt that the title totally suited the film. Imagine my surprise when I saw this sequel and once more, there could not have been a more apt title than 'Bizarre Again'. We are back in the world of Maurice and Lucas, this time 7 years later to witness whats transpiring in their life. We are 7 years later. Lucas and Maurice have never seen each other again and have no contact since the tragic events of the BIZARRE cabaret in New York. Lucas (is he a trans person? I am not sure since it is never clarified or maybe he is gender fluid) now lives in Denver, Colorado. He is married to a slightly older man who is the father of a 16-year-old child. One night Maurice just visits Lucas and sadly a shocking incident happens the same night. John/Lucas' son Marlon has just stabbed two black guys one of...

This love story feels like a typical love story, but it flips on you towards the end, which was a pleasant surprise. I may not have understood the end 100% but I think I have gotten just of it. That said, the film does feel like a very long short film of sorts. It's essentially a gay road trip film where you are two guys, going through their own issues come together for love. Starting on a Tuesday night, we meet Noah, an introverted young engineer who needs to take pills due to a traumatic experience and has visions of a child. Next to him in Lohan, a tattoo artist and an asthmatic who likes to smoke and they both are apparently on a road trip with their best straight friend couple. A bond grows between the two men during the trip, they have fun visiting a church where Noah sits and Lohan confesses his impure thoughts, there is a first kiss after a Karaoke night, and there are arguments while bowling.  As days go by they get to know each other while moving from one place to another...

Sometimes some shows are so bad, that you cant stop watching them. The third and hopefully final season of this French amateurish show falls in that category. Things continue to happen haphazardly but it's ok since you probably already saw the first two seasons and your expectations are set accordingly. This season has 10 episodes averaging to about 7-8 minutes and a longer season finale. Season 2 had ended with Maykel proposing to Johaness, and this season is all about their wedding preparation. While they are busy with planning for wedding, they have another idea, what if they had a baby. Characters from previous two seasons keep re-entering the show. They ask one of their friends to be a surrogate and she agrees. Meanwhile another friend of theirs decides to become there wedding planner and helps them with all the arrangements and planning. The couple is excited and everyone is doing their thing, until in a shocking event the girl ends up losing the baby in the third month. Time...

Wow. This was such a beautiful tender film. A story of love, longing, freedom, loss an most importantly a tender gay love story in the midst of it all set in a juvenile center showing us the angst of some vulnerable teens. This film is so important in so many ways. The film is set in a juvenile center where a few teen boys and waiting for what's to become of their life. We meet Joe, who is three weeks shy of being presented before a judge who will hopefully grant him freedom. He has been waiting patiently along with many of the boys in the center, but the arrival of a new troubled boy William changes things. Suddenly his huger for that freedom dissipates. Frantic, passionate moments, typical of any teenagers exploring their sexuality, are snatched whenever possible in a place where all physical contact is forbidden. And before you know it, a relationship blossoms, awakening new, disruptive desires in Joe. They spend late nights listening to the radio and knocking against the connec...

This film attempts to explore the complexities of human relationships and the fluidity of sexual orientation. It s a brutal, almost realistic take on messy modern relationship with twist of sexual fluidity adding more to the complication of the relationships. From the very first scene of the film we are given to believe that our lead Tomas obsessive need for control without compromise: offering detail-orientated notes that quickly become demeaning. For cinephiles, they would know what to expect of the characters behaviour going forward. Tomas is a film director married to his husband Martin who have known each other for 5 years. At the wrap part you his film, Martin goes back home since he is tired and Tomas ends up dancing with Agathe, a French schoolteacher with a beautiful face and a bright, inquisitive nature. The night ends in them both having sex. The next day when he reaches him, he casually tells his husband that he had sex with a woman whose reaction is subdued saying “This al...

Having somehow endured the first season of the show, I was dreading g the time, when I will somehow be forced (by myself) into watching this second season. Thankfully the expectations after first season were so low that this season two fits perfectly the bill. The story sort of continues but even if you haven't seen the first season, you will not miss any context. Maykel not has his own work business, which is not important in the context of larger story. Him and Johannes seem to have broken up, but it feels like they both still love each other but are afraid to do anything about it. Thanks to Johannes' friend; he thinks maybe if he makes Maykel jealous by pretending to be with someone else, Maykel will admit his love. Somewhere during this tine, on a drunken night, Maykel ends up sleeping with J's friend. When he and Johannes are back together as a couple, he don't tell him the truth. Enter a new girl, who happens to be Johannes' old friend form younger days, who i...

A hauntingly beautiful, heartwarming and touching film; this is exactly what I needed today. Within first 10 minutes I knew I am going to like this film, but I didn't know how much. But the time it's almost ending and the last 10-15 minutes just take the film to another level. It is hard to explain in words, why this movie works. The plot is not new, but it's the execution and most importantly two fantastic actors. It takes a certain kind of restraint from a filmmaker to tell a small story so tenderly and moving. Just a few days back I was wondering why we don't get to see some good old gay romance. This film may to be a typical happy ending romance that I wanted, but it was one of the most beautiful closure I have seen on a lost love. Stéphane, a celebrated author and openly gay, is visiting his hometown in countryside after almost 35 years. He has been invited by local council to celebrate his work and thank him on outing their small town on map. He is a bit uncomfort...

Moving away from the usual gay portrayal and life in big cities, the film maker here uses the rural areas of French countryside to tell an atmospheric three-part tale about the solitude experienced by gay youngsters during the long, slow days spent in communities deep in the provinces. All three of them give the same sense of desertification and of time spent waiting somewhat aimlessly, with no hope of daily life ever changing. The film is a combination of three different stories or snippets, which I didn't know before I started watching the film and left me confused to some extent, when I noticed a sudden shift in tone after the first story had finished. (By the way: this poster, just doesn't represent the spirit of the film at all. I wish there were some better ones, but I couldn't find any) A small colorful, joyous group of dancers (various eccentric gay men) arrive in a very small town for an evening show. One of the members in the petite Twink Jonas, who is also the le...