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These films contain queer content or deal with issues important to many queer people, including gender as a construct. The fact that a video is listed on this guide is not an indication that I approve of the constructs presented or the conclusions drawn.
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Accattone! (116 min., 1990, Italy) The first of Pasolini's films presents a vivid picture of the Roman slums through a story of a pimp, his friends, his enemies and his girls.
The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (102 min., 1994, Australia). You've seen this, right?
Advise and Consent (139 min., 1994, USA). Blackmail, suicide and scandal follow the President's appointment of an unpopular Secretary of State, and put the stability of the entire U.S. Government at risk in this highly praised political drama.
Akermania, volume 1 (89 min., 1992, France). J'ai faim, j'ai froid (I'm hungry, I'm cold): Two young Belgian girls run away from their home in Brussels. They spend a day and an evening in Paris looking for food and love, with comic and poignant results. Saute ma ville: A young woman comes home to her apartment in Brussels, where she cooks pasta and seals herself in with duct tape. The story ends with a bang. Akerman's first film made at the age of 18. Hotel Monterey: A stark, silent look at a N.Y. pension hotel.
All God's Children (28 min., 1997). This video features a mostly black, mostly gay and lesbian, choir singing gospel music. It also contains interviews with African American leaders, such as the Reverend Jesse Jackson, and U.S. Senator Carol Moseley-Braun, who support gay and lesbian rights. This video discusses how to work against homophobia in the African American community, particularly in/through the church. This video is available from United Campus Ministry (593-7301).
L'amour Fou. M.M. Serra's exploration of his gay male friends' sexuality; "documents the fragility and vibrancy of life in a time dominated by AIDS."
Another Country (90 min., 1984). This is the romanticized version of the Guy Burgess and Donald MacLean story, in which homosexual love among British schoolboys causes them to grow up to be notorious traitors to their country.
Antonia's Line (102 min., 1995, Netherlands). By the Dutch film maker Marleen Gorris (The Question of Silence), this lovely subtitled film won the Academy Award for the best foreign film of 1995. It is a family chronicle, following the female line, for a change. It has been compared with the Mexican "Like Water for Chocolate," which is also told in flashback and includes magical realism. The film tells the story of Antonia, who returns in the aftermath of World War II to the tiny Dutch farm village she had left twenty years earlier with her teenage daughter, Danielle. After the death of Antonia's mother, the two women make a life farming the land they have inherited and deal with a widowed farmer who proposes to Antonia, a female schoolteacher with whom Danielle falls in love, and Danielle's precocious daughter-- as the cycle of life continues.
Apartment Zero (114 min., 1989, Great Britain). "Part black comedy and part erotic thriller, this debut feature film from Argentinian director Martin Donovan revolves around the relationship that develops between Adrian (Colin Firth), an introverted film buff, and his mysterious new roommate Jack (Hart Bochner). Adrian, smitten with the charismatic and apparently omnisexual Jack, welcomes him into his apartment and develops a peculiarly obssessive relationship with him" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
The Art of Cruising Men. I haven't seen this one yet--will write up a thingy when I do.
Because This Is about Love (28 min., 1992). This is a touching profile on five lesbian and gay couples from multicultural backgrounds who have made a lifelong commitment to each other and have gone through a marriage ceremony. Without legal status or religious sanction, they are validating their commitment to each other. The video portrays, in warm, nonthreatening terms, a revolutionary act that questions the very foundations of family structure.
Beautiful Thing (90 min., 1996, Great Britain). "Based on the stageplay of the same name by Jonathan Harvey, Hettie Macdonald's film debut delves into the working class housing projects of southeast London with all the sweet giddiness of the teenage love story that unfolds there" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
A Bigger Splash (105 min., 1973, Great Britain) "David Hockney, one of the most brilliant and successful painters of our time, is the subject of this unique film about his life and art."
The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (Die Bitteren Tranen der Petra von Kant) (124 min., 1972, Germany). This West German film follows a fashion designer who plays the dominant role in a sadomasochistic relationship with one of her employees until she meets someone who turns the tables on her. German with English subtitles.
The Boys in the Band (119 min., 1970). This was the first major Hollywood movie to feature male homosexuality. The story line revolves around a straight man who is the accidental guest at a birthday party for a gay man and his friends. The film, adapted from the stage, includes nearly all the stereotypes!
Brincando El Charco: Portrait of a Puerto Rican (57 min., 1994, USA) . "In Frances Negron-Muntaner's film Brincando El Charco, a young Latina artist serves seven years of exile in Philadelphia. When her father dies suddenly, Claudia copes with detachment. While she considers her obligation to a family who abandoned her because she is a lesbian, Claudia spends her days photographing and documenting other Latina/o gays. Her gay white publishing agent, however, discourages Claudia from pushing "the people-of-color issue" onto the rest of the community. Although she steers clear of becoming too involved in her lawyer girlfriend's political activism, Claudia copes inwardly with the effects of what has happened to her people politically since the colonialization of Puerto Rico. Race, language, birthplace, and economics surface as fractures in a culture as diverse as the world itself. As a light-skinned, island-born, mainland-living, bilingual lesbian Claudia struggles for a place on the spectrum." (review exerpted from popcorn q).
La Cage Aux Zombies (84 min., 1995, USA). Writer, producer, and director Kelly Hughes achieved "fame" with this masterpiece of camp, which has been called "the Naked Gun of drag queen movies.
Carrington (126 min., 1995, Great Britain/France). "A swoony film about art and madness, Christopher Hampton's Carrington concerns an early 20th-century painter named Dora Carrington, played in all her frumpy glory by Emma Thompson. The real Carrington, who dumped her first name as vaingloriously as Madonna, Cher, et al., ditched their patronyms, was a lifelong misfit who hacked off her hair, resisted the advances of an ardent suitor (played by hot thesp Rufus Sewell), thumbed her nose at Victorian niceties, and fell into a passionate, mostly platonic affair with gay writer and fellow dissident Lytton Strachey (Jonathan Pryce)" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Celluloid Closet (102 min., 1996). This film assembles footage from over 120 films showing the changing face of cinematic same-sex sexuality, from cruel stereotypes to covert love to the activist triumphs of the 1990s. Many actors, writers, and commentators provide funny and insightful anecdotes regarding the history of the role of lesbians and gay men on the silver screen. It is narrated by Lily Tomlin.
Changing Our Minds: The Story of Dr. Evelyn Hooker (75 min., 1992). This documentary, nominated for an Academy Award, portrays the life and work of the woman described by the Los Angeles Times as the "Rosa Parks of Gay Rights." During the repressive fifties, Dr. Hooker undertook ground breaking research that led to the radical discovery that homosexuals were not, by definition, "sick." Her findings, along with gay activism, helped win a major victory for gay rights, forcing the American Psychiatric Association to remove homosexuality from its official manual of mental disorders. The video includes archival footage of medical procedures used to "cure" homosexuality, images from the underground gay world of the McCarthy era, and home movies of literary icon Christopher Sherwood.
Chicks in White Satin (25 min., 1993, USA). A mother expresses her dismay as a daughter plans to marry another woman.
The Children's Hour (107 min., 1962, USA) OK, so I heard that this movie, adapted from a Lillian Hellman play of the same name, changed the lesbian insinuations to insinuations of a menage aux trois, without changing the dialog, but reviews I read indicate otherwise. Decide for yourself, I'm going to.
Claire of the Moon (90 min., 1992, USA). "Claire of the Moon is an independent production by writer/director Nicole Conn. It’s been heralded as a lesbian love story for the ‘90s" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Clay Farmers (90 min., 1993). Clay farmers weaves the poetry of friendship into the dark fabric of small town life. Also includes "My first suit," a short film about the daily triumphs and tragedies of a wistful New Zealand teenager.
Colonel Redl (143 min., 1985). So why does he die? This subtitled Hungarian film tells the story of the head of the Austrian imperial secret service who is outed as a homosexual and a spy.
Coming Out under Fire (71 min., 1994). Nine World War II gay and lesbian veterans candidly share their memories of daily miliary life. These powerful interviews are combined with an array of vintage declassified documents, photographs, and rare archival footage of medical examinations, psychiatric sessions, boot camp training, sex education lectures, and "drag" troop entertainment. This documentary uncovers the history of a military policy that labeled homosexuals as mentally ill and sought their discharge as "undesirables." It is a rare personal look at war, secrecy, and the pain of exposure.
Consenting Adults (40 min., 1996). Consenting adults presents a study of homosexuality in men and women, using filmed interviews with practicing homosexuals, to provide insight and bases for understanding and discussion. "The male nudists" features two burly young men entertaining one another. "Gay-in III" presents footage from an event sponsored by the Gay Liberation Front. "Caught in the can" is a short about 2 guys who dress in drag to roll a couple of suckers.
The Crying Game (112 min., 1992). Read Popcorn Q's review of this movie at http://www.planetout.com/pno/popcornq/. Some found the film, centered on secrecy, gender identity, illusion, and homoerotic bonds, astounding, some irritating.
Cynara (34 min., 1996). A lesbian romance between women located on the Northwest Coast in 1883.
Daddy and the Muscle Academy (55 min., 1992, Finland) "Tom of Finland was one of the gay world's few authentic icons. His hypermasculine drawings have had a lasting influence--not only on the visual appearance of gay men (the `70s clone look, the fetishism of leather)--but also on their self-understanding. Daddy and the Muscle Academy combines interview material with Tom and hundreds of his drawings, with testifying "Tom's men," from Drummer daddies to fellow artists. Ilppo Pohjola's controversial film also includes some steamy, invented sequences--a sort of journey to the center of Tom's psyche. Daddy and the Muscle Academy gets so close to the mystique of Tom of Finland, you can smell the leather" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
The Damned (155 min., 1969, Italy/Germany). "'Soon he would become the 2nd most powerful man in Nazi Germany' smirked the original ads, over a photo of Helmut Berger in poutiest Marlene-the-Blue-Angel cabaret drag. Visconti's operatic tendencies began to bloat with this once "controversial" multinational epic, in which a Teutonic clan's moneyed decadence is offered as partial explanation for the rise of Hitler's Ultimate Evil. Dirk Bogarde grimaces from the conscience strain; Baroness/monster-mother Ingrid Thulin frets incestuously over gender-confused trouble child Berger. The infamous Nazi gay-slaughtering "Night of the Long Knives" is staged as a postorgy slumber-party-cum-bloodbath. Good for a few howls, though the cumbersome length (and pace) suggests everybody really thought they were making a Serious Artistic Statement" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
The Dear Boys (90 min., 1992, Netherlands). "An exploration of the problem older homosexuals have in holding on to their younger lovers, as exemplified by the sexual fantasies of a middle-aged writer and the young men who dominate his life" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Desert Hearts (96 min., 1986). An English professor goes to Reno to get a divorce and falls in love with a young woman who lives at the same dude ranch and works in a nearby casino. The movie was made from the novel, Desert of the Heart, by Jane Rule. Much better book.
Dog Day Afternoon (125 min., 1975). A gay man robs a bank to pay for his male lover's sex-change operation.
Dominique in Daughters of Lesbos (90 min., 1967). The man-haters club meets weekly for "some great food, fine wine, topped off with some wild sexual escapades". When one of the members of the club is assaulted by a peeping Tom, the others, led by Dominique, take the law (and a large tile-knife) into led by Dominique, take the law (and a large tile-knife) into their own hands.
The Doom Generation (85 min., 1995, USA) "Araki's alleged first "heterosexual movie" is just as homoerotic as The Living End, if not more so. It's an over-the-top road movie determined to out-shock Natural Born Killers, as punky L.A. teens Amy (a foul-mouthed Rose McGowan) and Jordan (Keanu-ish James Duval) cross paths with slightly psycho, very sexy Xavier Red (Johnathan Schaech). Blood, tears, and sweaty bisexual chemistry soon soaks the screen" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Drifting (80 min., 1982, Israel). This is a subtitled Israeli film that follows an aspiring Israeli film maker as he works in his grandmother's store while dreaming of making gay films.
An Early Frost (97 min., 1997). A drama about the tragic effects of the fatal disease AIDS on an average American family.
Ed Wood (127 min., 1994). This is Tim Burton's pet project, exploring the career of Ed Wood's B movie career. Explores Ed Wood's transvestism at some level, but leaves out more complex aspects of his personality.
Everything Relative (110 min., 1996, USA) " Everything Relative is a multi-protagonist romantic comedy-drama. A kind of lesbian Big Chill, the film centers around a group of women (lesbian and straight) who went to school together and who were in a political street theater group in the late 1970's. When a long-standing couple among them has a baby, they reunite" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Farewell My Concubine (174 min., 1993). "Farewell, My Concubine" is a movie with two parallel, intertwined stories. It is the story of two performers in the Peking Opera, stage brothers, and the woman who comes between them. At the same time, it attempts to do no less than squeeze the entire political history of China in the twentieth century into a three-hour time-frame. Summary written by Michael Kim {leda@imsa.edu}
Female Misbehavior (80 min., 1983-92, USA/Germany). "Female Misbehavior consists of four shorts made by German director Monika Treut over the last ten years, and running from ten to thirty minutes each. The subjects include performance porn, transexuality, bondage, and Camille Paglia. The film is an exploration of sexual deviation up against mainstream feminism and orthodox female heterosexuality" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Flavor of Corn (93 min., 1994, Italy). The relationship between a young first-year professor and his 12- year-old pupil in an isolated Italian village provide the theme for the film about male friendship and the confusion of first love.
For a Lost Soldier (90 min., 1992, Netherlands). "For a Lost Soldier was voted Best Feature at the 1993 Turin Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. It's a lush, moody, and romantic movie, based on the best-selling Dutch autobiography by Rudi van Dantzig. A chain of events leads contemporary choreographer Jeroen (played by The Fourth Man's Jeroen Krabbe) to recall his first erotic friendships. Sent away as a boy during World War II to a small fishing village, young Jeroen develops a strong friendship with another new boy, Jan" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Forbidden Love (85 min., 1992). Bringing several aspects of lesbian history out of the closet, this video is a combination of an (often humorous) fictional drama about a young lesbian's coming out and interviews with ten lesbians, many familiar with the bar culture, who survived the repressive world of the 1950s and early 1960s. There is also discussion with author Ann Bannon about how lesbians were portrayed in the popular fifties' lesbian "trash novels."
Fox and His Friends (123 min., 1974, Germany). "Although the narrative of Fox and His Friends unwinds in a totally homo milieu, it would be wrong to describe it (as it has been) as a "film about homosexuality." Fassbinder depicts Munich's gay environment in which young Fox (played by Fassbinder himself) moves as an uncommented norm. It is a masterfully constructed space in which the intersections of class, sexuality, and race are sharply and poetically drawn" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
French Twist (Gazon Maudit) (105 min., 1994, France). "In French Twist (a.k.a. Gazon Maudit, French slang for "dyke"), Marijo, a butch lesbian (played by director/screenwriter Josiane Balasko), befriends Loli (Victoria Abril), a housewife whose husband (Alain Chabat) is cheating on her. When Loli decides Marijo can give her the tenderness her spouse cannot, she kicks him out of her bed and invites Marijo in. Though this scenario may sound like a recipe for stereotyping, Balasko instead crafts the best lesbian comedy of the year. With its deft delineation of the shifting power dynamic of a three-way homo/hetero relationship, French Twist is also the season's most sophisticated lesbian film--if one can apply this label at all, given the equal focus on heterosexual concerns" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Gay for a Day/Costumes on Review (35 min., 1988). This video documents the 1976 Gay Pride Parade (11 min.) and Costumes on Review (24 min.).
Gay Voices, Gay Legends (58 min., 1988). Famous and lesser known gay men talk about their lives.
Gay Youth (40 min., 1992, USA). Explores the emotional strain placed on gay youth by intense feelings of isolation. Isolation frequently leads them to drug and alcohol abuse, violence, homelessness and even suicide. Designed to break the silence surrounding adolescent homosexuality and show that information, acceptance, and support can make differences in the lives of these young people.
Gertrude Stein: When This You See Remember Me (89 min., 1995 ). This documentary on Gertrude Stein, writer and renown art collector, combines photographs, interviews, black-and white-film footage, and paintings from Stein's collection with a soundtrack of her words and music from the opera (written by Gertrude Stein and Virgil Thompson) entitled Four Saints in Three Acts.
Girlfriends (77 min., 1995). A collection of four "lesbian-friendly" short features exploring a variety of topics. Watching her sleep: a young woman's imagination runs wild after spotting a drop-dead gorgeous woman in a supermarket check-out line. Little women in transit takes a ride with a young girl in the backseat of the family stationwagon as she writes the Louisa May Alcott-inspired Girls galore. Playing the part: a college girl tries to come out to her parents, but her angst-ridden efforts keep ending in futility. Barmelita Tropicana: an East Village Latino performance artist winds up in jail with some other riot grrls: mayhem ensues!
Hollow Reed (106 min., 1995 Great Britain). A gay man discovers that his son is being abused by his ex-wife's lover. This is very worth a see.
Homophobia in the Workplace (58 min., 1985). Boston activist Brian McNaught presents his highly acclaimed workshop on video, generating sensitivity, awareness, and open communication about homosexuality and demonstrating how companies can create a supportive work environment for all employees. McNaught assumes that we are all "born" one way or another and argues for inclusion on that basis.
Homo Promo (60 min., 1991, USA) . "Jenni Olson, former co-director of the San Francisco International Lesbian & Gay Film Festival, makes her presentation, Homo Promo, as tantalizing as these sometimes antiquated films themselves, by wisely avoiding the heavy lecture that sometimes attends such events. We bring the context -- our own lived history to balance what we see on-screen -- with us. There are some fascinating facts that help enhance the viewing experience, however, particularly the studios' use of a simultaneously titillating and damning "red band" of film on trailers with adult subject matter -- the stigma of homosexuality actually integrated physically onto the film! These clips (and the movies they encapsulate) fall into three basic categories: the liberal problem picture, in which the poor faggot/lez is an emotional wreck in need of hetero salvation (Tea and Sympathy, Victim); the psycho-homo film, in which homosex equates with a violent insanity capable of destroying society (The Sergeant, The Damned); and perhaps most commonly, the gay world as a glittering demi-monde of hypercomic/pathetic figures enacting frivolous or bizarre melodramas straight audiences can observe without being emotionally involved (The Gay Deceivers, The Boys in the Band, The Christine Jorgensen Story)" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Improper Conduct (Mauvaise Conduite) (112 min., 1984). This French documentary assesses the persecution in Castro's Cuba, including that of gays. Spanish with English subtitles.
The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls in Love (94 min., 1995). Working-class tomboy Randy meets the well-to-do Evie, when Evie brings her Range Rover in to the repair shop where Randy works after school. This coming-of-age film by new film maker Maria Maggenti makes the perfect date movie.
In the Life: The Funny Tape (60 min., 1993). Gay and lesbian television like you've never seen before! The video presents an hour of the best and brightest comedians on public television, including Karen Williams and Lily Tomlin.
It's Elementary (77 min., 1996). This video explores what happens when experienced teachers talk to their students about lesbians and gay men. Students are asked to consider issues related to homosexuality at six elementary and middle schools. Footage of classroom activities and discussions are presented with students exploring questions and issues presented to them by teachers and guest lecturers who come into their classes. Schoolwide presentations, activity days, and how these events affect faculty, parents and teachers are also discussed.
I've Heard Mermaids Singing (82 min., 1987, Canada). Canadian film about an "organizationally impaired" person Friday, who falls in love with her boss, the sophisticated curator of an art gallery.
Kamikaze Hearts (80 min., 1986, USA). "A raw story about an impossible relationship between a young woman, Tigr (Tigr Mennett), who becomes obsessed with a beautiful porn star, Sharon Mitchell. From their first meeting Tigr is mesmerized by "Mitch"--by her joie de vivre and flamboyant sensuality. Tigr's life is changed forever when she is drawn underground into Mitch's world, a world of strip joint rock and roll, mainlined cocaine, and high-paying commercial sex. Filmed on location in San Francisco, notorious home of the XXX film industry, where North Beach provides an existential backdrop to Tigr's dark odyssey" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Kiss of the Spider Woman (120 min., 1986, USA/Brazil). A gay prisoner falls in love with the revolutionary he's supposed to be spying on for the prison authorities. This moving film was based on the novel by Manuel Puig.
La Cage aux Folles (Birds of a Feather) (99 min., 1970, France). The French comedy (based on the play) about Renato, whose son is bringing his fiance's conservative parents home to meet the family--his gay father, and Albin, Renato's lover, an aging female impersonator who helped raise the boy.
Last Call at Maud's (77 min., 1993, USA). " Until its closing in September 1989, Maud's was the longest-lasting lesbian-owned lesbian bar in the world. Like many, I took Maud's for granted, assuming it would always be around as a sometime alternative to the dance and cruise clubs which had begun to spring up in the mid and late `80s. And like many I was sad to see it go. Thanks to the director Paris Poirier and her lover, producer Karen Kiss, we now have a film all about the venerable institution and its role as a lesbian watering hole throughout the late `60s, `70s and `80s. This film will be a special treat for those regulars who formed the core social group: the softball team, the yearly Pussies talent line-up, the bartenders, the friends of owner Rikki Streicher, and other associated Maudies. For those like myself, who were more peripheral customers, it's great fun to share the memories with those who kept the place going and who kept Maud's open for three generations' worth of lesbian shenanigans.Last Call at Maud's features interviews at the bar with lesbian luminaries such as Judy Grahn, Sally Gearhart, Del Martin, Phyllis Lyon, JoAnn Loulan, Mary Wings, Pat Norman, Susan Fahey and of course, Rikki Streicher" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Lesbian Humor: Barbara Hammer (59 min., 1989, USA). "Six inventive, rough, and spirited underground mini-chronicles from a pioneer lesbian/feminist director. More likely to please fans versed in the avant-garde than viewers seeking pre-"Ellen" gay comedy." review from (reel.com).
Lesbian Sexuality (57 min., 1989, USA). "Explicit, groundbreaking short films about lesbian desire from a pioneer director. While surely disappointing to those desiring "lesbian chic," films offer hot, spirited fun to avant-garde fans of all persuasions" review from (reel.com).
A Litany for Survival: The Life and Work of Audre Lorde (60 min., 1995). This is a portrait of the eloquent, award-winning, Black, lesbian, poet, mother, teacher and activist, Audre Lorde, whose writing--spanning five decades--articulated some of the most important social and political visions of this century. This moving film explores a life and a body of work that embodied the connections between the civil rights movement, the women's movement, and the struggle for lesbian and gay rights.
The Living End (85 min., 1991, USA). "Two fatalistic L.A. boys--one's an impulsive, on-the-edge psycho cutie; the other listens to The Smiths a lot, and likes Godard movies--discover they're HIV positive and set about on an unplanned, unhinged serio-comic spree of violence and abandon. The Living End has been described as a homo Thelma & Louise, which is true enough--but it's also far more than that. Director Gregg Araki has taken on the issues and energy of gay youth in 1992, and turned them into a mad, anarchic and unsettlingly powerful experience" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Longtime Companion (100 min., 1990) Several friends in 1970s' New York face the AIDS epidemic.
Looking for Langston (45 min., 1989). This film is a musing meditation on the poet Langston Hughes. Across its multitextured elements, the video attempts to reclaim Langston Hughes as an important black gay voice in American culture. It is a lyrical exploration of black and white gay identities, which include, original footage of the Cotton Club in the 1920s and period blues numbers, setting the scene for this examination of attitudes toward homosexuality, then and now.
Love! Valour! Compassion (120 min., 1997, USA). Several men get together to laugh, reminisce, and contemplate life and death.
Macho Dancer (136 min, 1996, Philippines). "In the landscape of Lino Brocka's Macho Dancer, sexual agency is inseparable from economic necessity. The film follows the travails of Pol (Allan Paule), a young man from the provinces who migrates to Manila after his American GI sugar daddy leaves and cuts off his family's sole source of income. After finding work as a go-go boy and male prostitute, Pol meets his mentor, Noel (Daniel Fernando). Their camaraderie lapses into shower dances and porn videos as Pol becomes enmeshed in Noel's search for his sister, who has been abducted to work in a brothel. When Noel is killed, Pol avenges his friend's murder and eventually returns to the countryside alone" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Maedchen in Uniform (89 min., 1931, Germany). A young girl falls in love with her female teacher within the confines of a German boarding school, during the rise of Hitler. Excellent video in German, with English subtitles, that parallels the repression of lesbian love and an independent spirit with Nazi rule.
Massillon (70 min., 1992, USA). William Jones directs this film about Massillon, Ohio. "Massillon is a remarkably sensual film, evoking a feel of the Midwest in essence--seasons change, wind blows, birds chirp, cars pass by, cows stand in a field--you are there. Divided into three parts (Ohio, The Law, and California), Massillon ranges through the personal to the political and back again. The film's gentle editing is complemented by the reassuring intonation of Jones's voice-over as he describes his childhood, his researching of state sodomy laws, and the etymology of the language of sexuality . . .In the first part of the film, road signs, construction sites, churches, fields, and highway overpasses fill the screen as Jones relates anecdotes of growing up gay in a small town in Ohio. In the last part of the film, the arid landscapes of his new home in Santa Clarita, California, are accompanied by his voice-over analysis of theories of homosexuality. A very dense concluding quotation from Diderot ties the film's strands of personal sexual politics into a brilliant knot of childhood memories, etymological meanings, and historical analysis" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Maurice (140 min., 1987, Great Britain). In this British film, based on E.M. Forester's novel of the same name (published posthumously), two English boys are drawn to one another, but one insists on keeping the relationship platonic. The other finds a physical/affectional relationship with another man, from a different class.
Men In Love (87 min. 1989, USA). "Men In Love begins in San Francisco at a memorial service for Victor Charpier, a beloved teacher who has just died from AIDS. Among the many left in his wake is Steve, a young man in his late twenties who was one of Victor's primary caretakers in the final months. Victor has requested that Steven scatter his ashes on Maui in Hawaii, so Steven travels there. On the island he meets an extraordinary community of people who are striving to lead their lives in a balanced and harmonious way. Far away from his own urban world, Steven is able to step back and take a look at the crucial issues in his life. He falls in love with Peter, a native Hawaiian. Steven is slowly transformed by his experiences on Maui. With Peter, Steven finds ways he can practice safe sex and be fulfilled. Through the practice of Tantra yoga, he also learns how to be in touch with his own feelings and to increase his awareness of others, as well as the world around him" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
My Beautiful Launderette (94 min., 1986). This terrific film from Great Britain addresses race, social class, and sex when two men, a British street punk and a young Pakistani entrepreneur, fall in love.
My Own Private Idaho (105 min., 1992). A young narcoleptic hustler looking for some love in his life and a bisexual hustler who'd do anything to outrage his father go on a search for their own identities.
The Naked Civil Servant: the autobiography of Quentin Crisp (80 min., 198?). "The biography of an English homosexual who came out of the closet long before it was fashionable to do so.... Quentin Crisp ... introduces the film. The film dramatizes his youth in the 1930's, his ill-fated friendships, his encounters with authority and the law, his rare moments of real happiness"
On Being Gay (80 min., 1986). This video catches award-winning author, counselor, and lecturer Brian McNaught at home, at the lectern and at peace with himself as he talks with enthusiasm and authority about the fallacies, the facts and most importantly, the feeling of being gay in a straight world.
One Nation under God (83 min., 1993). Film makers Teodoro Maniaci and Francine Rzeznik have created a bizarre and fascinating look into the history of religion and medicine's attempts to "treat" homosexuality. They show the often absurd lengths that straight religious and medical people have gone to in their efforts to change gays and lesbians. The video includes interviews with writer Joan Nestle, historian Martin Duberman, and others.
Oranges are Not the Only Fruit (165 min., 1989 Great Britain). This is a wonderful coming of age lesbian film. Adapted from the Jeanette Winterson novel of the same title. Funny but scary.
Orlando (93 minutes, 1993, Great Britain). Sally Potter directs Tilda Swintin in this adaption of the classic by Virginia Woolf.
Other Families (49 min., 1993). This video explores the perceptions and feelings of seven adults raised by lesbian mothers. These individuals reflect on their relationships with their mothers, family members, and friends and discuss specific problems they experienced growing up in nontraditional families.
Out for a Change: Addressing Homophobia in Women's Sports (29 min., 1994). This was produced and directed by Dee Mosbacher.
Out of the Past (70 min., 1997, USA). "Jeff Dupre's Out of the Past delves into the politics and battles behind Kelli Peterson's controversial 1996 "Gay-Straight Alliance" at a Salt Lake City high school. A thread of portrait vignettes about notable (and sometimes obscure) figures in gay history (Michael Wigglesworth, Sarah Orne Jewett, Henry Gerber, Bayard Rustin, Barbara Gittings) is interwoven with Peterson's story, coming together in the end to point towards a hopeful vision of the future of queer activism in America. With an all-star cast pitching in on the voice-overs (Stephen Spinella, Gwyneth Paltrow, Cherry Jones, Edward Norton, Leland Gannt), this earnest if sometimes simplistic documentary should get plenty of visibility" (popcorn q).
Paris Was a Woman (1995, USA/Great Britain). "Written by Andrea Weiss and directed by Greta Schiller (the same team that brought us Before Stonewall, International Sweethearts of Rhythm, and Tiny and Ruby: Hell Divin' Women), Paris Was a Woman tells the story of the extraordinary community of lesbian artists, writers, photographers, and editors who were drawn to the city of Paris between the two World Wars. This in-depth exploration features home movies and rare archival footage of Collette, Janet Flanner, Gertude Stein, Sylvia Beach, and other luminaries of the time" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Parting Glances (90 min., 1986, USA). "Bill Sherwood's romantic seriocomedy made a charming gay addition to the mid `80s Amerindie production boom. Charting 24 hours before two handsome young NYC lovers part (one leaving for a job abroad), the film has a sweet tenor somewhat compromised by the fact that its yuppie protagonists are far less interesting than one subsidary role: Steve Buscemi's marvelous, antic PWA/artist best-friend. Sherwood himself died of AIDS in 1990 at the age of 38" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Pink Triangles: A Study of Prejudice against Lesbians and Gay Men (35 min., 1986). This is an excellent, moving historical view of homophobia from the Nazi era through the present.
The Queen (68 min., 1968, USA). This documentary charts the world of competition surrounding the drag queen event known as the Miss All-America Camp Beauty Queen Pagaent from 1967. A glimpse of the pre-stonewall queer world.
Question of Equality (four parts, each 55 min., 1995). Part One, Outrage, revisits key historical moments that sparked the sixties gay/lesbian rights movement, including the Stonewall riots and the 1977 Anita Bryant "Save Our Children" Crusade. Part Two, Culture Wars, probes the violent antigay backlash and covers the murder of Julio Rivera in Queens in New York City. Part Three, Hollow Liberty, looks at Bowers v. Harwick and the Clinton administration's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. In Part Four, Generation Q, activists and students in a gay alternative school candidly discuss coming out, suicide, relationships, and family issues.
Raising Heroes (85 minutes, 1996, USA). " A gay action hero is brought to his fighting feet in this story of two men fighting against the mob and for their right to adopt a child! Josh and Paul are a successful gay couple in the midst of the most important event of their lives. Everything seems to be going their way until Josh witnesses a mob hit and becomes the next target on their list. With the final court hearing only three days away, it is a race for time as Josh and Paul fight to keep their dreams of family alive while being stalked by professional killers that want them dead" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Red Ribbons (100 min., 1994). Red ribbons, shot in the style of a documentary, is a touching story of a sensitive person coming to grips with his life, and the loved ones he leaves behind. The divine Mr. Crisp is a short interview filmed at the Lesbian & Gay Community Services Center (New York) in 1994. Aunt Fannie is the story of a gay man who is visited by his dead aunt's spirit.
Resident Alien (85 min., 1995). Presents a revealing portrait of the gay life-style and wit of Quentin Crisp who emigrated to New York from the United Kingdom at the age of 73.
The Right to Marry (72 min., 1996). This video explores the various issues surrounding lesbian and gay marriages including those dealing with religious, legal, social, and economic problems. The video includes both random interviews with people on the street and more formal statements from a variety of people and shows footage of a number of gay marriages.
Rock Hudson's Home Movies (58 min., 1992, USA). "In Mark Rappaport's new tape Rock Hudson's Home Movies, Rock, played by a Rock-alike, journeys through an array of cleverly-edited clips and 'fesses up to the homosexual connotations. This new Rock is more militant than the old, and he never fails to point out a `90s way of looking at his pre-'60s persona. The result is a dizzying, smart-ass, high-wire comedy about Hollywood and homosexuality" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Salmonberries (94 min., 1991, Germany). The story takes place in Kotzebue, a small town in northwest Alaska. A 20-year old, whose name is also Kotzebue, is in search of parents and self when she meets Roswitha, a middle- aged librarian from East Berlin. Twenty years ago Roswitha's husband was killed as they made their escape from East Berlin. A friendship develops between Kotz and Roswitha as they search for the truth about their respective pasts.
Salo: 120 Days of Sodom (117 min., 1975, Italy). Based on the work of the Marquis de Sade and set in Fascist Italy, a party of Fascists have rounded up a goup of attractive young people in a mansion to satisfy their depraved desires.
Sebastiane (90 min., 1977, Great Britain). "Long the subject of fascination among gay men (Yukio Mishima had his first orgasm while looking at a print depicting his martyrdom), St. Sebastiane was an obscure Roman mystic who might barely be remembered today were it not for the homoerotic rumors which have persistently clung to him. In Sebastiane, directors Derek Jarman and Paul Humfress bring all the implied into the foreground, creating the frankly homosexual world of their St. Sebastiane" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
She Must Be Seeing Things (90 min., 1987, USA). " She Must Be Seeing Things, Sheila McLaughlin's first feature, is both very personal and nearly universal in its understanding of the dynamics of intimate relationships. Funny, touching, and very real, the story of Agatha, a lawyer, and Jo, her filmmaker girlfriend, is a deft exploration of jealousy's effect on a lesbian relationship" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Silence=Death (58 min., 1991). "Explores the reactions of New York's artistic community to the ravages of AIDS."
Silent Pioneers (42 min., 1996). Elderly homosexuals discuss the changed social conditions which
have allowed them greater freedom in their relationships.
Silverlake Life: The View from Here
Something Special (28 min., 1986, USA). "Cleverly written and brilliantly cast, Something Special is a Hollywood teen transgender comedy about a girl who gets to be a boy. Try to imagine an ABC Afterschool Special with a queer sensibility and a sophisticated sense of humor--Something Special is super fun for boys and girls, and for girls who want to be boys" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Straight from the Heart (24 min., 1994, USA). Parents of gay children tell of their struggles with homophobia.
Strawberry and Chocolate (Fresa y Chocolate)(104 min., 1993, Cuba). About a friendship between a straight guy and a gay guy. Also about Cuban intolerance and government repression of homosexuals. Also about some very complex and interesting characters. A good companion to the 1983 Cuban documentary Improper Conduct. Strawberry and Chocolate has, however, been criticized as propaganda.
Sunday bloody Sunday (110 min., 1971). A bisexual man carries on an affair with a woman and man at the same time, and claims to love them both.
Susana (25 min., 1980). Susana is a lesbian who leaves her native Argentina to live her life away from the family and societal pressures of her country. An autobiographical collage of snapshots, home video, and interviews with Susana's family and lovers, this video examines the shaping of a woman's sexual and ethnic identity within a culture.
Swoon (92 min., 1991, USA). "Swoon is inspired by the story of Nathan Leopold Jr. and Richard Loeb, two Jewish law students who, in 1942, kidnapped and murdered a young boy to illustrate their intellectual superiority to others. Their capture and trial led to international media coverage, and to two movie variations: Alfred Hitchcock's Rope and Richard Fleischer's Compulsion. But the movies neglected to mention that Leopold and Loeb were more than just a criminal couple; they were also partners in bed" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Taxi zum Klo (Taxi to the Toilet) (92 min., 1981). This autobiographical, subtitled film from Germany, is based on the director's experiences and details the escapades of a gay man who wants as much sex as he can get, while his lover just wants them both to stay home.
The Times of Harvey Milk (88 min., 1986). This moving video documents the life and death by assassination of San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk. Ti Pa Cha (Before Dawn) (95 min., 199? ). The troubled relationship of a mother, Mok Siu, and her son, Ah-pao, and the events preceding her tragic suicide is the subject matter. It is a complex tale, set in Hong Kong and told with many flashbacks, of various love affairs: the mother's, the son's, and his friends. etc. Gay sex ends in a murder (of which Ah-pao was innocent). Cantonese with English and Chinese subtitles.
The Terence Davies Trilogy (101 min., 1984, Great Britain). "Before Distant Voices, Still Lives, Terence Davies spent seven years making three darker films about his working-class, Catholic upbringing in Northern England. Part One (Children) introduces Robert Tucker and flashbacks to scenes from his childhood--bullying at school; a violent and sick father; early sexual fantasies. Part Two (Madonna and Child) is a portrait of Tucker, middle-aged and trapped between public and private personae. In Part Three (Death and Transfiguration), Tucker revisits his life with a new and less tortured perspective. He seems to accept his sexuality, which is transfigured by the love between his mother and himself" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Therese and Isabelle (102 min., 1968, France). "In this film based on the novel of the same name by Violette Leduc, Therese returns to the scene of her sexual awakening. She remembers her desolation after being sent away to a boarding school by her adored but newly married mother, and meeting Isabelle, a classmate, quite adjusted and unconcerned that her parents have left her at the school. An immediate and intense friendship develops between the adolescent girls. Their intensity leads to hurried caresses in the school chapel, in the bathroom, and ultimately to a brothel that the sophisticated Isabelle knows. Leduc's whispered poetic imagery of the "secret pearl" is narrated during the love scenes, conjuring images the screen does not reveal" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Tongues Untied (55 min., 1989). This film by the late Emmy Award-winning director Marlon Riggs, is a tribute to the joy and complexity of black gay life. Using poetry, personal testimony, rap and performance, it describes the homophobia and racism that confront black gay men.
Torch Song Trilogy (120 min., 1988). Harvey Fierstein wrote and stars as a professional drag queen looking for love and respect all through the 1970s in New York. This is the film adaptation of the smash Broadway hit.
Total Eclipse (110 min., 1995, USA). Paul Verlaine, a writer, is torn between his growing infaturation with the genius poet Arthur Rimbaud and the domestic demands of his patient wife.
Totally F***ed Up (85 min., 1996). The story of the troubled world of gay and lesbian teenagers who hang around empty parking structures and deserted car washes and agonize about drugs, sex, dating, suicide, violence, family and gay identity.
Treyf (54 min., 1998, USA). Official Selection: Margaret Mead Film Festival (November, 1998: American Museum of Natural History, New York City). "This smart, politically-engaged exploration takes a trek from the delis of New York's lower East Side to the streets and settlements of Israel as the filmmakers (a lesbian couple who met at a Passover seder) discuss their Jewish identity, their lesbian identity and their love for one another" (popcornq).
Turnabout: The Story of the Yale Puppeteers (60 min., 1993, USA). "They're entertainers, they're 92 years old, and they're gay. Turnabout is the amazing story of the Yale puppeteers--Harry Burnett, his cousin Forman Brown, and Brown's lover Roddy Brandon--who traveled through America for more than 70 years with their unique puppets and satirical songs" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Urinal (100 min., 1988, Canada). I haven't seen this yet, but the description sounds hilarious. From Popcorn Q (http://www.planetout.com/pno/popcornq/): Curiously transported to the present day, a group of dead lesbian and gay artists, including Sergei Eisenstein, Frida Kahlo, Langston Hughes, and Yukio Mishima, find themselves guests in the home of Toronto sculptors Frances Loring and Florence Wyle. They have been mysteriously summoned to Ontario to research the systematic policing of public washroom sex . . . With an irreverence for historical propriety and a story structure that doesn't discriminate between burlesque, surrealist tableaux, and bitter fact, Greyson employs a mad pastiche to confound straight narrative, as he seeks a solution to gay harassment.
Via Appia (90 min., 1989, Germany). " Frank is a German Lufthansa steward who travels the world, taking photos of boys he has sex with--he's a collector. One hot night in his favorite city, Rio de Janeiro, Frank picks up Mario and takes him to his hotel. The morning after, Mario is gone, leaving only a chilling epitaph, written in lipstick, on the bathroom mirror, 'Welcome to the AIDS club'" (review exerpted from popcorn q).
Victim (100 min., 1961, Great Britain). "While we were filming, we were treated as though we were attacking the Bible and the film's lawyers said they wanted to wash their hands after reading the script . . . yet it was the first film in which a man said 'I love you' to another man. I wrote that scene in. I said to them, `Either we make a film about queers or we don't.'" --Dirk Bogarde
A Virus Knows No Morals (84 min., 1989, Germany). One of the most abrasively original works of art to emerge from the AIDS crisis. A satiric look at how AIDS affects its victims and those who have medical and social contact with them.
Watermelon Woman (79 min., 1996). Cheryl Dunye directed, wrote, and stars in this production. Done as a pseudo-realistic story about a woman researching and producing a documentary about a 1930's actress who is involved in an interracial lesbian relationship.
When Night Is Falling (94 min., 1995, Canada). This beautiful Canadian film tells the story of Camille, a teacher in a fundamentalist Christian school in Toronto, who comes to recognize after the death of her dog, Bob, that she loved him more than most people she was supposed to love, including her colleague and lover, Mark. Grieving in a laundromat, she is comforted by Petra, a performer in an avant garde circus, and a romantic relationship between the two very different women begins.
Women Like Us (49 min., 1989). Several older British lesbians relate their experiences growing up as a young gay women in the years prior to the gay liberation movement. The women talk about work, love, aging, and social acceptance.
You Are Not Alone (Du Er Ikke Alene) (92 min., 1982, Denmark). This is a Danish coming-of-age love story about two adolescent boys in a boys' school. It is Danish with English subtitles.
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