Reviews

Victor is back in Bulgaria for his grandfather's funeral. His last visit was 12 years ago, and we quickly understand that as a gay man, he felt safer abroad and was able to be himself in Madrid, Spain.

Coming back is an ambivalent, intense experience: everybody considers him a foreigner, although he was born and raised in this village. He remembers how it felt to grow up as a bullied kid at school, he catches up with his father and a few other people, and he befriends a gypsy boy, Liuben, who is desperate for a better future.

It's interesting that the title of the film is Liuben instead of Victor, maybe the director wanted to pay a tribute to the subaltern, most precarious character in the plot. The film is an excellent contribution to the topics of queer migration, as well as hybrid identities, corruption, representations of gypsies in cinema, and contemporary Bulgaria.

Like Joyland, And then we danced, and Land of Storms, Liuben is another illustration of how queer migrants need to find their way and voice elsewhere, and then come back to their country to direct some pioneering queer films as an invitation to move forward and be more inclusive.

Such a powerful documentary at the intersection of race, sexuality, social class and, obviously, gender identity. The pace is not slow and the interviews offer a great balance of anecdotes, humor, introspection, and philosophical/social observations.

The level of comfort and trust from the main actresses allows them to share intimate and original insights about their odyssey. It is not enough known that black transwomen in the USA face an alarmingly high mortality, including hate crimes related to sex work. However, and that's the strength of this film, Kokomo City does not portray its actresses as victims but as magnificent and inspirational hustlers who deserve our admiration, our respect, and above all our help to achieve their goals.

I hope some of the main women from Kokomo City will write their memoirs. This documentary pairs well with two books: Redefining Realness, by Janet Mock, and Bad Girls (or Las Malas), by Camila Sosa Villada.

Interesting and intimate portrait (60 minutes) of a trans teenager. We follow his transition during 4 years, and instead of filming a series of prolix interviews with the parents, the siblings, the neighbors, the friends, the director (who is the teenager's cousin) decides to focus on David: his body, his facial expressions, his gaze and few words as he is looking for a voice of his own.

On the topic of growing up as a trans boy, there are not many films (one would think of Tomboy, by Céline Sciamma), so this is a precious contribution to the representation of trans men. Also, the documentary pairs well with another great film from Chile, A Fantastic Woman (Una mujer fantastica), because they both highlight the need to have a new bill in Chile to facilitate the process of transition and have a faster, easier change of name and gender on official IDs. If I am not mistaken, this bill was finally passed on December 2019 (in part due to the reception of A Fantastic Woman).

I was very touched by this documentary. The flashbacks are well done and alternate with the current description of the company created by Sandra. In the end, it's a double portrait: a tribute to an extraordinary woman and a perspective on the special business of cleaning scenes affected by different kinds of trauma (suicide, crimes, neglect, addiction).

Sandra comes out as both a strong and vulnerable person. Strong because her resilience is exceptional, vulnerable because the hardships from the past took a toll on her health and she is now struggling to remain autonomous and active. I liked how she radiates with kindness and how kindness is not seen as weakness but rather as a combination of bravery, compassion and commitment.

A very good first movie, which reminded me of Songs my brothers taught me. Many topics are addressed, but maybe the most important ones are a realistic representation of life on a Native American reservation, the trajectory of a teenager and a young adult, both hustling and navigating the duties, stereotypes and expectations of what it means to be(come) a man. Physically speaking, Bill reminded me of Eros Ramazzotti when he was in his early 20s.

The actors are amazing and the plot quite surprising. I also enjoyed a few magical/poetic moments in this dramatic film. There is so much empathy towards the main characters and their struggles, it is in many ways a moving and eye opening movie.

What a powerful short movie, with an impressive photography and solid performance by the main actor.

I wonder what was the song (who sings, what's the title?) that played a key role in the plot.

It's all about vertigo: vertigo at the top of a crane, vertigo of the dance, vertigo of the prayer, and vertigo of expressing a hidden identity. The main character feels like a tightrope walker, navigating so much pressure and obstacles in his life (as a Syrian refugee in Lebanon, as an exploited worker, as someone living precariously and without privacy. And yet, what a tribute to the resilience and poetry of those who hustle on a daily basis.

Very touching and beautiful.

Powerful movie about the struggles of a young gay guy: survival, migration toward a big, gay city, and learning how to love (oneself and others) without much help along the way.

The two main actors are amazing and convincing, the photography is stunning, and the plot has a picaresque pace.

The movie reminded me of another Australian queer film, Head On (1998), which deals also about identity crisis, migration, and the difficulty to be at peace with oneself.

Lonesome also reminded me of My Own Private Idaho because of many factors: the appeal of the drifting cowboy, the family drama, and the ordeal of alcohol, drugs and chemsex.

What a touching, refreshing and original perspective on friendship between queers.

The movie does a great job at blurring the lines between love and friendship, showing how essential your best friend can be your life, to the point that you actually function as a couple together.

The movie is delightfully camp, but without erasing the vulnerability of the main protagonists. Beautiful photography and great choice of actors.

I thought that Bros was an interesting perspective on gay love centered in New York City, but I was more impressed and stimulated by Chrissy Judy.

I am not sure about the category "Dark Comedy", it felt more like a drama to me (and a feel good movie at the same time).

I was also impressed that find out that the main actor is also the director of this fierce film.

This documentary is well paced and includes interesting archives. It's a pleasant and extensive introduction to the life and books of Esther Newton. The documentary will certainly reinforce her status as a queer icon and a legendary lesbian feminist.

Humble, witty, and charming, the spectator discovers a touching person who was au audacious pioneer in the fields of anthropology and queer theory. The documentary is also interesting in the way it presents, through Esther Newton's life, key moments in the history of American feminism and the LGBTQ movement.

I liked how much this documentary conveys kindness and makes you want to read Newton's essays.

Powerful (and cathartic) movie on the classic topic of bullying.

It's also an audacious critique of social norms and hypocrisy in contemporary Turkish society. Not much happens with the plot but what matters is the rendition of an atmosphere of suffocation. The film is also very brave for its treatment of sexual minorities in a homophobic country. We need more parents to watch movies like Not Knowing. They have the best intentions but add too much pressure when support and empathy are urgently needed.

The movie reminded me of The Swimmer (Adam Kalderon, 2021) for the omnipresence of the swimming pool and the brutal dynamics between the athletes.

What a treat. This documentary can be appreciated simply for the poetic beauty of its images. As the images are all archives shot by Katia and Maurice, the documentary is above all a tribute to the lives and achievements of this amazing couple.

Everybody can relate to the beginning of their trajectory: as they were disappointed by humanity, they turned to nature in order to replace bitterness with amazement.

Something in their couple reminded me of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, and not just the contrast of their silhouettes.

A scene in particular fascinated me: they are dressed like science fictions characters and dance by the magma of an active volcano. It felt like a Daft Punk extravagant special effect, but here nature does all the show without special effects.

I enjoyed the sound track, very eclectic, mixing Dalida with the band Air, but in touch with the topic.

Finally, and maybe this is icing on the cake, the documentary is more than a tribute to two brave scientists, it can be seen as a existential meditation about time, humanity, contemplation and risk. One philosopher comes to mind, and is quoted by Maurice : Nietzsche.

What is human life, if not the attempt to dance on the verge of erupting volcano?

Clara Sola is quite a tour de force.

It is the first feminist movie I have watched in which the men (Santiago and Fran) are actually not toxic and mean at all. The social and religious norms are mostly enforced by the main female characters.

The film combines a political and sociological perspective with the esoteric beauty of magical realism. The spectator oscillates between contemplation, empathy and anger throughout the plot.

Clara Sola reminded me a little bit of Ixcanul and El Abrazo de la Serpiente. The main actress gives an unforgettable performance.

I enjoyed very much the progression of the movie. The spectator, like the main character, Demir, is lost and confused in a senseless plot. But this labyrinth has a logic of its own, and it's worth drifting along the way. A psychoanalytic interpretation would pair well with a queer perspective.

I also enjoyed how Gem Deger was able to combine and resuscitate the flashy pop aesthetic of Gregg Araki's teenage trilogy with the morbid touch of a necro-romance à la Bruce LaBruce. It's like going back to the best of the queer underground cinema from the 90s.

It's a daring, refreshing and promising debut.

I enjoyed the poetry of this film, which is a combination of music, melancholia, landscape and boredom. Two friends need to make a decision, and this decision will change their life, and maybe their friendship along the way. A meditation on what it means to live on an island, to be a teenager, and to have high expectations.

This is a brave and poignant movie. It is very simple in its pace and setting and could easily be set for a play.

We know from Polish and Georgian movies that it's very complicated to be openly gay in Eastern European countries. Poppy Field is another illustration of this fact.

Cristi is no hero and no victim. As many closeted gay men, he is caught up in his contradictions and spends a lot of time and energy lying to himself and to the others around him. But you can only maintain the façade for so long, and then cracks start to show. The path to authenticity seems like a crucifixion, and the homophobia expressed in the movie is closely associated with Christianism.

My favorite scene is when Cristi is left alone in a red, empty movie theater. We can feel the tempest going on in his skull. His career, his privacy, his life are all at stakes in one day.

A great movie about resilience, bad faith, and sexual minorities.

Interesting movie with an original plot. It reminded me of the French movie Vivre me tue as it focuses on bodybuilding as a way of life. On another level, it can be compared with My little princess because it confronts a child with an artistic and abusive mother.

The pace of the movie is slow and maybe not explicit enough, but it is the subtle portrait of a teenager who is not sure about who he is and what he desires. Are you your body and do you have a body?

My favorite scene is the mirror scene. It's all about the fragmentation of the self.

Beautiful Something was a pleasant surprise.

The movie reminded me of the experience of going through La Recherche du temps perdu because, like in Proust, the topics of Love, Art, and Time are connected.

What is gay love? The films offers fragmented answers based on the wanderings of a few guys.

The result is an aesthetic and existential meditation on the tormented quest for Ideal and Beauty in the lives of gay men.

This movie is a scary, beautiful and hypnotic journey to the underground and the unconsciousness. Very well done right from the first scene (are you ready to jump?).

Kristjan is a brilliant incarnation of the dark romantic seductor (Christian in Fifty Shades of Grey, Lestat in Interview with the Vampire).

The topics and style of the movie reminded me of On Body and Soul, Suicide Room and of course Gaspar Noé.

Great cast, music and photography. You just need to be fine with getting lost along the way.

I watched The Perfect Candidate because I had previously enjoyed very much Wadja and I was not disappointed. The story is simple and touching, inviting the spectator to understand how gender dynamics work in Saudi Arabia. It is also a call for a more open society, embracing women's contribution to medicine, politics and music.

What a great movie. I was impressed by the screenplay and the cast of actors: the story is subtle and gripping. It reminded me of Festen because of the moving camera and the family tensions. I thought Heaven Without People was also a brilliant and poignant introduction to contemporary Lebanese society (corruption, paralysis, diaspora, racism, religious tensions, etc).

Congratulations to the actors for giving such a vivid performance and to the director for being so creative and insightful. The movie also put me in the mood to enjoy some Lebanese mezzes.