Movie Reviews -
Gay Themed

‘My Sweetheart Jom’ is essentially a light comedy, featuring caricature-like villains and a slow-burn love story, with the community spirit and the silly shenanigans of its younger characters driving the plot forward. Despite its occasional charm and two very charming leads, the show tries to juggle too many plots all at once and letting some of the down. It feels like the show was supposed to be your classic love story, but some plots were introduced, some characters were forgotten, while the episodes duration kept getting stretched. The show has 12 episodes and each episode is like 75 to 90 minutes and a couple of them even longer. There is a lot going on here and s much of it could have been easily edited out. City boy Yo, who is now 19, did not finish 12th grade because of some drama. His girlfriend was also being pursued by a politicians son and they have a fight, so his parents send him to a rural village as an ultimatum to finish his high school. If he doesn't do that, he do...

This film, set in 2015, is a feel-good comedy about people trying to follow their hearts, whether it involves an inter-generational romance, a middle-aged interracial throuple or an artistic trans man looking for love in all the wrong places. Sadly a treatment of a subject like me would have likely worked in early to late 2000's but somehow in 2022, this subject feels a bot dated, especially the way it has been directed. It feels very obvious and simple and the plot feels contrived and a bit corny at places. It was good to see Matthew Montgomery after a long time. I do remember when I had just started watching gay films, he used to feature in a lot of films. In 2015, just as Supreme Court rules on marriage equality, long term couple Max and Josh decide to get a divorce, except that they have a hard time separating. We see Josh occasionally hooking up with a cop Pete while Max still harboring feelings for his ex. When a young guy named Conrad moves into Max's old apartment, he g...

"Oh, Otto!" is a wonderful coming-of-age story, which will be incredibly recognizable to their twenties and thirty-somethings. The series seamlessly captures the messy reality of growing up, and all the issues that come with it. The characters are not perfect and make everyday mistakes, making the story feel very real and not forced. With 7 episodes of about 25 minutes and a criminally handsome and charming lead, this series should be on everyone's watchlist. The series starts with Otto's boyfriend Boris returning from a 3 month trip, and breaks up citing that Otto needs more fun and Boris is bored of his mundane life. Otto lives in the huge apartment by his grandmother, hasn't renovated the place, as if he is stuck in time loop. This breakup comes as a shocker to him and he is not ready to move on. His best girlfriend Lente suggests Grindr. Otto is new to Grindr and creates a new identity and starts to hook up, gets to experience the surprisingly vibrant (and at ...

A heartwarming tale of dreams, identity and acceptance, set in a small community in the picturesque Westfjords of Iceland, this film was quite alright. I wouldn't call this film a gay film per say, but stories of self acceptance and being true to yourself and such themes are integral part of the film, so it does make sense to review it here. We meet two childhood friends Hjalti and Bjorn who run a fish restaurant in a fishing village they both grew up. Hjalti's wife and son moved to Reykjavik, after the son came out gay and was constantly bullied in school, so things between him and wife are not ok. Also he cannot accept that his son is gay. When Bjorn's father dies, he decides he has had enough and decides to come out as trans to his friend and the entire community. This is the same time when the dup also are getting an opportunity to keep their restaurant open throughout the year with a. New tour group starting northern light tours. When Bjorn comes out, suddenly Hjalti...

My second American BL, shot in Phone format, released as multiple episodes on DramaBox. Thankfully I watched the version where all episodes were stitched together and overall the duration is just under an hour. It is an easy watch even though the plot is filled with loopholes but once you start to watch it, it is easy to ignore some aspects. The protagonist, Ace, is a ruthless and decisive mob boss who has firmly established his position at the top of London's underworld. However, during an ambush orchestrated by his archenemy, Jack, a younger stranger named Max unexpectedly steps in to save him. This act of bravery sparks Ace's interest and earns his trust. Ace brings Max into his inner circle, as his bodyguard. What he doesn't know that it was all Jack's plan. Ace likes to flirt and is gay and he does that constantly with Max making him feel uncomfortable. Max succeeds in planting care in Ace's room who does the same. So Ace knows that max is watching him have sex...

A very interesting story of finding love in unexpected places and circumstances. It is not just about love but also trying to see what life has in store for us. Sometimes your life goals and ambitions are right in front of you, but somehow it is still far. This is when an angel of sorts come in to your life and things are not the same. WIth just 6 episodes each of 25-30 min duration, the best thing about the show is that it never overextends its welcome. Hayakawa is a student who lives in this dazy lost, emotionally shut down place. He lets girls have sex with me totally emotionless , pretends to behaving greta time with friends but something dark deep is bothering him. He hums music and likes to sing but anytime anyone mentions about singing , he completely shuts it off. He sometimes goes to school roof to be alone with his thoughts and music. His pain is hidden behind masked smiles and soft teasing. One such day he meets Konno, a school student and a photographer. Their platonic frie...

Delta (Denmark) Julie visits her father Nicolas after her parents' divorce, to meet Nicolas' much younger boyfriend, Christian and talk about something personal stuff. Christian tries to use her visit to resolve a fight with Nicolas in his favor and manipulate the situation. Father mows better that he is being used as a sugar daddy but is extremely fearful of Christian leaving him left alone by himself. Skin To Skin (Ireland) An experimental documentary exploring the beautifully messy relationship between intimacy and LGBTQ+ hook-up culture. In bedrooms and on couches. Late at night and in the early hours of the morning. Strangers, acquaintances and casual flings open up to each other - revealing some of the most private, occasionally uplifting, sometimes shameful parts of themselves in the fleeting intimacy after a sexual encounter.  Brothers (France) Damien and Francois are a gay couple but their friends somehow find it hard to believe that they are a couple or they dont look...

This beautiful film started off really well and I was quite into it, but somehow the second half felt quite disconnected, almost as if two different film makers had made the film. An honest depiction of teenage sexuality, the film is about coming out story of a 17-year old, overcoming bullying and a hate crime to find happiness and self-acceptance. The film doesn't specify the time period, but lack of phones and chat style on computer suggest that this was likely set in the 90s when the times were very different. Leo, a handsome Greek-Italian teenager lives with his parents and younger brother. His best mate is Boof and they are quite close doing all silly things together. Leo is sort of rushed into dating Monique, a girl from the class who really likes him and whose best friend is also Boof's girlfriend. But Leo can’t stop himself from stealing glances at red-headed Tom, a buddy of his younger brother. At a house party, when Leo is unable to have sex with Mo, he just goes out ...

This series is a classic case of likely the makers realizing that sex sells even in BL stories. Enough of this high school love and romance, we need to throw in more kisses and lot of hot bodies and sex and we will have a winner on our hands. Honestly this is what I feel the conversation must have gone when this show was being greenlit. 12 episodes of 50-60 minutes each, the story just keeps going in circles for no reason at all. I am honestly baffled at why these Thai film makers still insist on longer duration of episodes. Almost 80% of the narrative includes unhindered & unapologetic sex scenes between the main leads. I’m yet to find an episode where they weren’t kissing or having a full-blown sex session. Let's try to summarize the story if I can. Show starts with this guy Sorn jerking off in a public place. A younger boy Jun is watching him and Sorn watches him. But he then says that "hey I see you are hard, let me teach you and kiss you " and the young boy gives...

OMG! This was such an unexpectedly beautiful and emotional film. It tells the story of a man who adopts a baby with Down's syndrome and navigates the challenges of parenthood while surrounded by the people he loves. And in the end when we see photographs of the real man and his daughter, it is bound to bring a smile on your face and leave you with wet eyes. Based on the true story of Luca, who was the first case in Italy of a single, gay person succeeding in adopting a daughter. By refusing to give up, he has helped to smooth the way for other single and LGBTQ parents. The film begins with a woman giving birth to a child and leaves her when she hears the baby has Down's syndrome. A kind nurse gives her the name Alba. When Luca, founder of a home for children and adults with developmental disabilities, finds out about Alba in 2017, he applies to serve as her foster parent, a two-year commitment. A former seminary student, he has the requisite experience, but the rules favor coup...

This series is the Japanese remake of Thai series of the same name. I wasn't sure of what to think of this remake, but as I started watching it, the memories of original Thai show kept coming. The premise and everything is same but with the Japanese flavor. The show has 8 episodes plus 2 special episodes and each varies between 24-30 minutes of run time. I am so glad that they reduced the runtime of this show drastically compared to the original Thai version (maybe something that Thai shows need to learn). The series follows the chaotic, steamy romantic lives of architecture students Rei and his best friend Kai, both architecture students. The show doesn't run them parallels, rather divides 4 episodes each to focus on their love life. Rei's meeting with his college alumni Arashi doesn't start on a good note. Arashi likes cars and bikes and works in a mechanic shop but also participates in illegal races. Although starting on the wrong foot, their romance eventually grows...

There is a scene in this film where the film maker takes his script to show to a producer (?) and he remarks saying, 'I don't understand what this film is about' and that is exactly what I felt having watching the film. I just wasn't sure what the film is about. Online reviews call it a self-reflective fiction that muses on what we find comic about the human condition, and what can reduce us to tears. Made for festival circuits and arthouse cinema, there was absolutely nothing that I liked about this film. Joseph is a gay man and a film maker who has a 3 year old son Pino with his best friend Sonya. He broke up with his boyfriend more than 3 years ago and is now planing to make a passionate comedy film. Sonya returned prematurely from the clinic dealing with depression and she needs to go back there. His meetings with the producer who keeps asking for what he wants to make next creating another weird scenario especially when producer chews dog treats and gives it to t...

I am not much of a standup comedy viewer. I might have seen a few clips/reels here and there but watching a whole TV special is something, so I apologize of I dodged not know anything about Jerrod Carmichael. I went into this comedy special, blank, hoping to just enjoy it with no baggage of either the person or his previous work. In this latest HBO comedy special, he talks about the most intricate details of his life, his long-time boyfriend Michael and his current relationship with his family – to hilarious effect. Witty, brash, and funny, he reconciles that how much the fear of being outed made him forget about the one other thing that affects his everyday life: racism.  The show starts with his struggles with internalized homophobia and rampant infidelity. He talks about online trolling for having a white boyfriend and how maybe he has something against black folks. He also admits rather sheepishly that he still seeks the approval of Black people, which likely has to do with his...

I wouldn't call this series as a typical BL. This was actually a classic gang/revenge story between 2-3 underworld clans and just bit of romance thrown between the lead guy and the other boy. It was never developed, was never the focus. With 12 episodes each of about 55 minutes, I went into the show hoping for a gay love story, but I was disappointed. Having said that, if you watch the show for the grit and novel story that it says, it is actually quite good. But it's all about managing your expectations. Even this poster is soooo misleading. The plot centers on a young man named Sun, who is the son of a benevolent gang leader. After his father and best friend, Kong, are tragically murdered, Sun is wrongly accused and sent to prison. Once he is released, he works to expand his power and uncover the truth behind the deaths of his loved ones, his life becomes intertwined with Peach, a sensitive Korean artist. Unbeknownst to Sun, Peach is the son of the rival Korean gang leader, M...

Plainclothes is a gripping film that effectively captures the tension of 1990s gay identity and the struggles of remaining in the closet. The film's electric tension utilizes grainy VHS style narration at multiple places probably trying for the audience to visualize the fear and anxiety that our protagonist is going through. Set in Syracuse in 90's the film is told from the perspective of an undercover cop. Lucas is a closeted gay cop assigned to special task force in the local mall to its bathroom, a known gay pick-up spot. The special police unit entrap the gays and arrest them for violation of the sex code and given Lucas' youthful and good looks , his job is to to find such folks, trap them and then his partner would arrest the guy. His family has a loving mother, a sick father and Uncle Paul. He recently broke off with his girlfriend, who is th only person he confided in the fact that he actually maybe attracted to guys. What happens though is that Lucas ends up fallin...