Movie Reviews -
Gay Themed

This little film from Philippines gracefully blends comedy and melodrama to make poignant observations around old age solitude, love and longing ness and an unexpected friendship with a cute stray dog. It may seem to be a simple look into the life of an old, gay, grumpy man but at its core is a story that has a lot to offer beyond its initial offering and setup. It may not be obvious at first glance but this is a very rewarding experience overall. Rene is an older man who is doing to terms with his homosexuality very late in life. He is generally grumpy and angry with all his neighbours despite them trying to be friendly with him. He has given up on life and just has death to look forward to whilst buying his coffin, making his funeral arrangements and writing and rewriting his will. His only companion is a stray dog Bwakaw, who unceremoniously has become part of his life and his closest friend. When Bwakaw suddenly falls sick and is diagnosed with cancer, Rene's life goes for a tu...

This film is based on Italy’s late 60's true events, Italian poet, playwright and artist Aldo Braibanti’s controversial imprisonment for homosexuality in 1968 after a four-year trial a quietly stirring portrait of institutional intolerance. What's interesting is the fact that homosexuality wasn’t strictly illegal then. That means Braibanti was tried on the antiquated charge of plagio — not the literal translation “plagiarism” but in the legal sense of psychological duress, effectively with brainwashing his partner in a consensual relationship between adults. I surprisingly found myself quite liking the film for the dignity and poise thatchy have made it. The film starts with an older Aldo with his young lover Ettore being found together in bed and Ettore being hauled away by his mother and brother and shipped off to a mental hospital for barbaric electroshock treatment. The film jumps 6-7 years back where we meet Aldo, artist, a teacher and a poet who also conducts studies in m...

These kind of silly, comedy of errors, films with stereotypical gay characters must have been quite common in non-western countries back in 80s and 90s. So you have to keep in mind, the time period, when we watch movies like this. A story  of comedy of errors, between twin brothers, between Israel and France, started off well and actually was quite funny till about half point, but then it just got weird and too campy for my taste. Twin brothers Papi and Max have not met each other for 20 years. Papi is a gay, over the top fashion designer in Paris with a young boyfriend and Max is in Israel, running a plumbing company with his wife. One day a lawyer shows up and finds Papi and tells him that an uncle has left them an inheritance of 20 million dollars each with the condition that both brothers need to be married and have three biological children of their own. Papi flies to Israel to meet his brother, who is a player, who has 2 kids so far and a very suspicious wife. He convinces hi...

A Korean office romance with some supernatural fantasy twist!! Sign me up!! Well, at leasts that was what my reaction was when I read the summary of this show and to be honest, the first two episodes were quite interesting and intriguing, but somehow for me the show just went downhill after that (which we will discuss in detail). The clunky narrative doesn't flow smoothly. It's like watching random events pieced together instead of a cohesive story.The show feels like more of the other Korean shows, which have probably been made as a film or something but broken down into episodes or series for whatever reason. This one was 10 episodes of about 12-15 minutes each, so thankfully an easy watch. Dongbaek is a new employee who is supposed to start work in Performance planning department for a celebrity agency managing work for famous singer Denis. However, unexpectedly he is transferred to be the CEO's assistant. He isn unhappy but needs a job, so he stays. When they meet, the ...

Wu Tsang was a 25-year-old art student when he and some friends decided to start a weekly club night at the Silver Platter, an immigrant gay bar near MacArthur Park. On most nights, dolled-up transgender Latinas swirled around a checkered dance floor, singing in Spanish and sipping $4 glasses of champagne. But Wildness, as Tsang’s Tuesday night party was called, drew a different crowd. Now each week, flocks of artists, queer punks and dance music junkies packed the bar for boundary-pushing performances and DJ sets. This collision of the two underground scenes and the unintended consequences of the party’s growing popularity is what this documentary tries to cover. We are introduced to a small town bar called 'The Silver Platter', a bar and beacon of sanctuary for the Trans community. We spend some time learning and appreciating how this small club has been a safe heaven for Latin trans members giving them opportunity to be themselves, perform on stage, hang out with people with...

I appreciate the ambition shown by Till the World Ends, which does something different than your standard BL romances. A Thai BL dystopian drama, where the moon is about to collide with earth in a few days and we see a new love story brewing up. The circumstances that led to these two individuals meeting, falling in love and then dealing with what's going on forms the crux of the plot. I have mixed feelings about the show but we will talk about that later. The show is 10 episodes of about 45 minutes each. According to news, moon will strike the earth soon and government has asked people to son move to bunkers, but some popped still continue to live ordinary lives. We meet Golf, a medical student, who doesn't believe the news and is very much in love with his girlfriend but is also possessive about her. When he sees her talking to and cozying up with a new student Art. When he confronts, she breaks up with him because of distrust issues but he pleads to get hr back. In a violent...

A Cohabitation (Taiwan) 2013, Taipei, a gay couple who just moved in together are forced to separate because one of them has HIV. The rules eventually change in 2015. The film is very realistic and the two actors do an amazing job. The support they gave each other was too good and hopefully more people do that. Craving (Taiwan) An apartment. Two Nights. A strange romance between a lonely policeman and a bartender. When the cop returns the next night for another rendezvous, he finds the guy with another man completely crushing his feelings leading to devastating end. Midnight Tod (Taiwan) Because of his rebellious personality, Hao gets fired from his hair salon. He takes all his belongings to stay at Tod's place. Unsatisfied with the current situation but remaining hopeful to the future, they try to do something to against the world and get the rewards they deserve, even they have to go separate ways. Gentleman Spa (Taiwan) Hao, a chubby gay man, works as a janitor at a gay spa. For...

A high energy, over the top comedy is one way to describe this film. Part fantasy, part thriller and part love story, this is essentially story of one man, a transvestite who has always liked to dress up as a girl and his survival story after immigrating to France. Clearly the film is meant to showcase the immense talent of the lead actor, who single handedly shoulders the film and does an incredible job with it. Chouchou arrives in Paris migrating from Chile (although I feel from looks and setting that the arrival should have been from somewhere North Africa, but that detail is irrelevant). Trying to find place to stay, he is taken in by a kindly priest Father Leon and Brother Jean, who also help him get a job in a psychoanalyst office as a receptionist and cleaner. The lady doctor is very friendly and one days asks what Chouchou's wish is. He tells her he would love to b a woman from head to toe. Unsurprised the doctor asks her to come dressed as woman and be herself. Chouchou is...

I am having a hard time reviewing this film. There was something artistic and poetic about the film as to the way it was directed, but I just couldn't comprehend what it was really trying to tell. A Greek gay man meets a young Arab, acquires experiences and pays the emotional and existential price. It feels there's so much it want to say: be it a forbidden love story, or the whole idea of 7 wraths (which, by the way, is never really clear while watching the film), but it just never fully delivers. Petros, a 45-year-old office archaeologist, has just come out of a long-term relationship, disillusioned by the romantic notion of self-less love. During a visit to the ancient theater of Argos, he will meet Hussam, a young Arab immigrant who eventually becomes his lover. As you can imagine, Hussam sometimes has these guilt situations given his Arab origins, but also something about Petros that makes him want to be with him. Petros also helps manage a small music group of young Albani...

While the subject matter of this film is definitely ahead of its time, it’s the kind of film , where actors seem to be reading lines from a book trying to educate people about transvestism.Its like hearing a narrator telling a story without compassion and feelings. It is just not a good film, however noble the intention may have been to educate people back in the 50s. It’s poorly shot, atrociously acted and further butchered by a ton of editing mistakes. The director of this film is Ed Wood, a director known for some of the worst films of all times, mostly horror. It’s about a cop who, after having been called in to investigate the apparent suicide of a transvestite, consults a psychologist to better understand crossdressers. The good doctor then tells him the story of Glen, a man who struggles with telling his fiance that he likes to wear women’s clothing. He fears that she’ll reject him once she knows the truth, and his anxiety grows as their wedding date grows ever closer. Then the ...

A 10 episode short film series ( I guess a new phrase for web series). This series has its heart at the right place. Acting is overall ok, but I am still struggling to really dissect on what was missing, because something definitely was. And hopefully while I write this article, I would have figured that out. At 10 episodes of about 20 minutes each, the story is a realistic take on modern gay relationship, where our protagonists who seem to be stuck in toxic relationships get a chance to be happy with each other after a chance encounter. Apparently the show started in 2021 and ended almost after 1 year in late 2022 with every episode being released after a gap of 1 month or two (ouch!!). Thank God! I watch dit all at once now, because I can't imagine waiting this long to watch the next episode every single time. We are introduced to two couples. Shane's boyfriend Ethan loves to party and drink all the time. Has has also been cheating on Shane multiple times and Shane knows abou...

The biggest problem of this show is that it is stretched way beyond its needed to. The show has 12 episodes with two additional Episode 0 and Episode 13 to cover some before and after stuff, and each episode is over an hour long. Problem is that the real story is covered in first 3 episodes and after that its the repetition of same stuff from Episode 4 till the very end and it just goes round and round in circles without any meaningful result. And besides the story itself, I have serious issues with the characters of each of these individuals: Falling in love, blindly cheating, justifying it, workplace issues etc, this show has everything that is totally unacceptable in my life. Dao and Tee work in the same office and were boyfriends but are now separate. Dao takes a vacation by himself and there he meets Nine with whom he has a very passionate one night stand. But Dao never hears back from Nine for months, despite them promising to keep in touch. The company that Dao and Tee work for ...

I had been looking for a copy of this movie to watch ever since I found out that there is a film which is a follow up of one of my favorite and endearing series. And after having seen it, I can confidently say that is a true follow up which replicates the successful formula, carrying the same hilarious humour, nuanced storytelling, and tasty recipes. Beneath the charming comedy, the film gently approaches emotional themes about family, relationships, and long-term commitment. I had high expectations from the film and I am very happy to say that the film didn't disappoint at all. We know Shiro and Kenji as the loving couple now, who have been together for a while and despite their very contrasting personalities, make their relationship work and how! The film starts with Shiro taking Kenji on vacation, an event which is very unlike Shiro. Worried about the reason, it turns out that Shiro is doing this as an apology since his parents do not want Kenji to join the family for New Years,...

What a terrible terrible show. WIth just 7 episodes each of about 45ish minutes, the acting, story, direction; everything was so badly done (in the name of a high and posh production value) that the episodes seemed to go on forever. The story is disjointed with self-indulgent characters that bully and intimidate others around them. Filled also with over-the-top gay characters who portray 'gay' behavior in the worst possible way. The worst thing is that not only did I have to endure the show, I have to now relive the memories while I write this review. Ethon is a big shot actor who works in BL series. A new upcoming actor is his competition and since he is younger he starts to get work. The production company that he works for, the daughter of the boss throws herself all over Ethon. One day Ethon meets Bryce, a import from the village/mountain who is in the big city for art and to make some money for his family. Ethan likes Bryce and in some oddest way creates situations for the...

What the fuck was this film. Agreed it came way back in 70s, but even then I don't understand the whole point. It felt more like a collage of random still photographs and video edits some random scenes of kids playing, neighborhood events and just random events happening which are sown together. There is a hint f story which takes up like 15 minutes on the film but the rest 50 odd minutes is just this random montage. If these multiple characters that keep coming in and out are supposed to represent something, well then, this film definitely went all over my head. Shot in just four days, this film is a soap opera about the adventures of a double-dealing from Rio de Janeiro implicated with a strange and confused middle class family. A dysfunctional family, composed of a prostitute and two gays, one strong and the other fragile and stupid, lives a routine life in Rio de Janeiro. The gay couple just fool around and waste the all day, so when the prostitute threatens the other two to st...