We're here, we're queer, we're watching movies.
In the 12 years that I've been writing about movies for Windy City Times, I've recommended dozens of film to celebrate Pride.
It's no surprise that a quick poll of friends and colleagues reveals a lot of these same titles. These are movies that many of us cherish, returning to them year after year as June rolls around.
It's no surprise to find The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert, Torch Song Trilogy, My Beautiful Laundrette, Bound, The Birdcage, In & Out and pretty much every John Waters movie on the list. Adding to the prestige are critically acclaimed films like Brokeback Mountain, Carol, The Danish Girl, Beginners, Milk, Dallas Buyers Club, The Kids Are All Right, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Transamerica, Freeheld, Tangerine, The Killing of Sister George, Boys Don't Cry, Longtime Companion, Cabaret, Dog Day Afternoon, Sunday Bloody Sunday, The Color Purple, Midnight Cowboy and Philadelphia.
Some love goes the classic Hollywood route ( myself included ), breaking through the celluloid closet to find the queer content beneath. Morocco, The Wizard of Oz, Laura, All About Eve, Queen Christina, Rebel Without a Cause, Strangers on a Train, Rebecca, Tea and Sympathy, Rope, and Some Like It Hot would all definitely qualify. Then there are the indie queer movies that every fan of LGBT cinema can cite: Weekend, Pariah, Parting Glances, Desert Hearts, But I'm a Cheerleader!, Go Fish, The Living End, Shelter, My Own Private Idaho, The Boys in the Band, Big Eden, the entire Eating Out series, Poison, The Wedding Banquet, The Sum of Us, Blue Is the Warmest Color, Pride, Making Love and Beautiful Thing come to mind. I'm not even listing the foreign films—of which there are, like, a zillion ( European filmmakers being far ahead of their U.S. counterparts when it comes to gay movies ).
When it comes to documentaries there are many more choices, with films devoted to everything from a wide cross-section of queer historical figures ( Harvey Milk, Divine, Bayard Rustin, Ruth Ellis, Vito Russo, Larry Kramer, Christine Jorgensen, Billy Strayhorn, etc. ) to examinations of our lives from seemingly every angle: Word is Out, Before Stonewall, After Stonewall, Paris Is Burning, Queerborn & Perversion, Out & Proud, The Celluloid Closet, Tongues Untied, For the Bible Tells Me So, Chris & Don: A Love Story, Gay Sex in the 70s, Matthew Shepard is a Friend of Mine and Fish Out of Water. Those are just for starters.
In fact, there are so many queer movies to watch for Pride to get that Glad I'm Gay feeling that one could spend the entire month of June, 24/7 binging and not get even close to seeing them all. Here are four additional titles worth adding to your queer movie calendar.
1. Some of My Best Friends Are ( 1971 )—The gay community maxim "family is where you find it" is the underlying theme of this often melodramatic but nevertheless fascinating glimpse into queer history.
A group of regulars gather at their favorite gay watering hole in Manhattan on Christmas Eve and, throughout the night—as carols are sung and a lot of booze and various stimulants ingested—emotions run the gamut. There are stereotypical characters galore ( the desperate waiter pining for his married lover, the self-loathing hustler, the innocent, a recent arrival from the sticks, the raucous fag hag, etc. ) but, thanks to the expertise of many of the actors, the material has a certain emotional truth.
As noted, the real strength of the movie, written and directed by Mervyn Nelson, is its time-capsule look back into the early '70s. Rue McClanahan, trans actor Candy Darling, Fannie Flagg and even Gil Gerard ( who later became TV's Buck Rogers ) are part of the line-up. It's available VOD on Amazon.
2. The Hunger ( 1982 )—David Bowie reportedly detested this cult horror flick about a stylish Manhattan couple ( Bowie and the breathtaking Catherine Deneuve ) who just happen to be vampires who pick up other unsuspecting couples to satisfy their bloodlust.
Their centuries-long partnership is coming to an end and, as Bowie withers, Deneuve isn't wasting any time in choosing a replacement: the luscious Susan Sarandon, a scientist whose specialty is sleep and longevity. The seduction scene between the two women is still one of the hottest screen couplings ever filmed. Although the movie, helmed by the late Tony Scott ( Ridley's brother ), falters as it approaches the finish line, it remains a visual and aural feast. ( The soundtrack includes both "Bela Lugosi's Dead," by Bauhaus, and "Le Gibet," by Ravel. ) And Bowie is terrific in it—whether he hated it or not.
3. Maurice ( 1987 )—While seeing the breakthrough Merchant-Ivory success A Room with a View in 1986, I routinely replaced pouty Helena Bonham Carter with myself as sexy Julian Sands romanced her. Earlier in the movie he'd shared a very homoerotic swimming-hole scene that had full-frontal nudity ( gasp! ) with Rupert Graves, who plays Carter's brother.
Having Merchant and Ivory—gay lovers for much of their professional life—take on a gay subject ( with Hugh Grant, no less ) the following year in Maurice was cultured homo nirvana, and I saw the movie in the theater multiple times. I loved how Grant and James Wilby cuddled and barely kissed—it was so pristine and nice and cultured. When Wilby finally ( finally! ) gets it on with Graves ( as the "underkeeper" Scudder on the big estate ), it was like WASP meets rough trade. T
Although it was immediately apparent to me that the actors were straight—no gay men ever really kissed or touched that awkwardly in real life—this queer Downton Abbey ( decades before Downton Abbey arrived on the scene ) picked up the mantle from the queer-tinged miniseries Brideshead Revisited.
4. Edward II ( 1992 )—English queer activist/filmmaker Derek Jarman updated Christopher Marlowe's play about the tragic life and brief reign of England's gay king during the 14th century into this searing and highly artistic film, filled with Jarman's signature homoerotic touches and visual flourish.
Steven Waddington plays Edward II, torn between his sense of duty and his love for the fetching Piers Gaveston ( Andrew Tiernan ). Their love is tested by the usual court intrigue, instigated by Edward's icy wife ( Tilda Swinton, in her breakthrough role ) and her supplicants.
Filled with modern touches that underline Jarman's gay-activist leanings ( including Annie Lennox appearing out of the blue, gorgeously crooning "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye" ), this remains Jarman's most accessible film. The movie will have a rare ( and free ) public screening as part of the Queer Film Society/Chicago Public Library series "Queer Kings & Queens" on Monday, June 27, at 6 p.m. at the Bezazian branch library, 1226 W. Ainslie St. http://queerfilmsociety.org/pages/events.html
Gay Palestinians
Director Jake Witzenfeld's documentary Oriented follows three Palestinian men living in Tel Aviv—a bit of a rarity made even more so by the fact that they're all gay.
The trio include Khader, the vibrant, irresistible nightclub denizen who lives with his Jewish boyfriend David ( the serious one ); Fadi, a devout Palestine nationalist who is falling for an Israeli soldier ( and feeling extremely guilty about it ); and the closeted Naim, who is terrified of coming out to his family. Witzenfeld tracked the group for a little more than a year as they formed what they described as a "non-violent, cultural resistance group called "Qambuta" ( cauliflower ) to advocate for sexual ethnic and gender equality."
The three struggle to embrace their queer identities while still trying to hang onto their roots. In one memorable scene, Khader and his boyfriend crouch in the hallway of their apartment building, trying to calm their dog, as airstrikes threaten overhead. On the heels of the tragedy in Orlando, it is comforting and eye-opening to see a film that presents a little-seen aspect of Palestinian culture that is much more accepting than the usual stereotype. The film is now available on VOD. www.orientedfilm.com/
