Let's go to the Movies > Likes and Comments
Could we also share web-series in here? I am always in the hunt for gay themed web-series.
Mercedes wrote: "Could we also share web-series in here? I am always in the hunt for gay themed web-series."Tell you what... to make the discussion easier to navigate, why don't we keep web-series comments separate from those about film/DVD. Feel free to create your own topic about it.
To do so---just click on the "Everything Else" Folder. Go to the right and click on "new topic," and then post your topic.
I've never really quite explored any web series as of yet, though I've heard of several, so I'd be curious to know what people here have to say about them, and if there are any particular recommendations...
I'm a huge enthusiast of gay-theme movies as well as books! I have a decent library of movies with over 100 still on my 'to watch' shelf.I use IMDb to catalogue my movie collection, but I'd love to find a different website for movies that was more like Goodreads is for books.
If you're interested, I keep various lists of movies I've watched and rated, including Feature Films - Primary gay theme
I'm surprised at how many of the films on your list I've seen---or at least heard of---because I didn't think I had a very good grounding in gay cinema. I haven't been watching many such films lately---since I let my Netflix subscription expire I don't have access to this sort of material---but I do have a few reviews I can post in this thread once I get around to it....
A great list of films reviewed Rick. A nice selection of foreign language films there as well.Have you seen Plan B, Baby Boom/Comme Les Autres, Man Is A Woman, From Beginning To End, Queens/Reinas or Proteus?
That's a great list, Rick. I've read quite a few of them, and pretty much agree with your ratings. I noticed one of my all time favourites, "Patrik 1.5", is there. I give that 10 out of 10. I re-watch it regularly, even without sub-titles.
Aussie54 wrote: "I noticed one of my all time favourites, "Patrik 1.5", is there. I give that 10 out of 10. I..."You too Aussie54?? I'm such a sucker for Goran. And his scene packing away the baby stuff kills me each time ... and I like you re-watch this movie several times per year.
Paper Moon, I love everything about this movie! "Here We Go Again" gives me goosebumps!http://youtu.be/MDxNdALZfy4
(with bonus "From Beginning to End" featuring a lovely version of "Over the Rainbow" by Rufus Wainwright.)
Aussie54 wrote: "Paper Moon, I love everything about this movie! "Here We Go Again" gives me goosebumps!http://youtu.be/MDxNdALZfy4
(with bonus "From Beginning to End" featuring a lovely version of "Over the Ra..."
Absolutely ... I'm not a country music lover at all, but that Swedish singer's rendition sticks in the mind - coming in after 'the pizza' and triumphantly at the credit rolls, perfectly nailing a pick-me-up, "leave-the-theatre-grinning-madly" finale.
PaperMoon wrote: Absolutely ... I'm not a country music lover at all, but that Swedish singer's rendition sticks in the mind - coming in after 'the pizza' and triumphantly at the credit rolls, perfectly nailing a pick-me-up, "leave-the-theatre-grinning-madly" finale. And don't you love the end credits! Perhaps we should move this to a topic of its own!
It's fantastic to chat with others who love gay-themed movies, but I worry that this thread will spiral out of control quickly and resemble the old book forums on AfterElton. eeek!I'd love to find a website that is to movie lovers what Goodreads is to bookworms. I'm really going to TRY and stay focused on books here, but that's not going to be easy with all you movie lovers around!
That said, there is an obvious crossover between gay themed books and movies. The huge number of written works providing source material for movies, and how effective or horrible those book-to-screen adaptations can be!
From books like Brokeback Mountain and A Home at the End of the World, to independent movies made from books like Jim Grimsley's Dream Boy ... the complete list would be huge!
There's even books like Patricia Nell Warren's 1974 The Front Runner, that has promised to receive a movie adaptation since it was released, with people like Paul Newman sniffing around over the years, but nothing ever materializing!
So much material for people interested in discussing gay-theme book to movie adaptations that a separate Goodreads group could be (and possibly should be) sustained! :)
PaperMoon wrote: "Have you seen Plan B, Baby Boom/Comme Les Autres, Man Is A Woman, From Beginning To End, Queens/Reinas or Proteus?"From Beginning to End is in my IMDb list. I gave it 7/10 which is an excellent rating from a self-professed "tough marker". I'd say that anything 5/10 or above is worthwhile, 7/10 is pretty special and 8/10 or more, MUST SEE!
Plan B and Reinas I have watched, but along with about 30 other titles, I haven't yet rated and finalised my list comment. Sometimes I labour over those comments, other times they come easy. I'll often watch a movie more than once before I can make a final decision.
The rest of the movies you mention I'm waiting to get hold of. I have an ever increasing list of about 240 titles I'm waiting to buy. There's another 120 already bought and waiting to watch and review. This particular hobby is an expensive business, given that Netflix is but a pipe-dream in Australia. Both Amazon in America and the UK love me to death! :)
Rick wrote: "It's fantastic to chat with others who love gay-themed movies, but I worry that this thread will spiral out of control quickly and resemble the old book forums on AfterElton. eeek!I'd love to fin..."
Octobercountry started this thread with me in mind originally since I had been sending him mini-reviews of gay-themed movies over the course of a few years (not lately though heh). I think the intention for this thread is for members to post individual movie titles that people want to discuss ... or love to death and are also interested to see other member's reactions to that same movie.
AE never really provided a decent forum for this purpose. Official AE reviews were as rare as hen's teeth and generated little responses. AE member Rayban had a successful long-running forum thread on "mad-obsessive love" in gay movies which over two years accummulated discussions over 150 movies. All that information and discussion is now 'lost' with the sinking of the AE ship - sigh. I started a much less active thread on "gay men and their womenfolk" around about the same time ... I have saved those reviews for my own records.
Given my semester workload I wasn't planning on activating movie discussion on this thread of our forum ... but as there seems to be a couple of others who are as mad-keen on movies now .. I don't see why this can't get going really. You never know - others might join in or be inspired to go borrow/buy the flick from the discussions generated.
We could trial start with Patrik 1.5 or Shelter and see where things go? Or discussions and follow the AE (or some other list) "top 50" list so members can anticipate what movie could be coming up for discussion. All ideas welcome.
Rick wrote: "I have an ever increasing list of about 240 titles I'm waiting to buy. There's another 120 already bought and waiting to watch and review. This particular hobby is an expensive business, given that Netflix is but a pipe-dream in Australia. Both Amazon in America and the UK love me to death! :) "Wow ... we could be long lost siblings! Since 2006 - I've amassed over 600 DVDs (some TV series seasons included) which could be sold for a tidy sum on eBAY should I want to fund a cruise around the world LOL. No - seriously - I love my DVDs too much to do that and like you - Amazon and Amazon UK should send me annual Christmas cards. LOL.
Glad to have you and Aussie54 on board - it will make for lively discussions I'm sure. :)
Seems like the Aussies here are the ones with the most to say about gay-themed films! Hmmmm... Now, we could set up a brand new "Let's Go to the Movies" folder (just like the folders for separate book genres) if you wanted the ability to post messages about specific movie titles, and keep all discussions about each film grouped together. (You could also start messages with more general topics as well, and not entirely limit the discussion to very specific films.)
I didn't set it up this way at first because I simply didn't think much discussion would be generated about films, but if people want to give it a try, it's no problem to create a new folder. Thoughts?
I'd be happy to hold fire for a while so that everyone can look around at other websites that are movie focused but similar in style to Goodreads. I'm not convinced that Goodreads is the right home for a dedicated and enthusiastic community of movie lovers.This Backlot group has the potential to blossom into hundreds or even thousands of threads solely focused on books. Quite enough of an administration and organizational nightmare without adding hundreds or thousands of movie threads that could distract from the original plan.
I guess I'm asking if the focus should be on doing one thing really well, or trying to be all things to all people?
I remember quite a good website out of New Zealand for movie communities that I need to go back and look over. I've also considered setting up an independent online movie community site similar to Goodreads. I'm quite well versed with the Drupal CMS (content management system) software that Goodreads is built upon. Time would be my only real obstacle there.
Ultimately, finding something that already exists, that is specific for movie discussion and reviews and is just as quick and easy to use as Goodreads would be the ultimate solution :)
Now that's a good question---is there a site similar to Goodreads (where people can set up their own discussion groups) that is dedicated to film? I'm not aware of any off the top of my head, and the forums over on IMDB can't really compare.This forum could be considered a semi-official arm/division/offshoot of The Backlot site. And as I noted to PaperMoon, since The Backlot does NOT feature any reviews of (nor foster any sort of discussion on) gay-themed independent or foreign-language films, I have no problem with setting aside a folder for that purpose on the book thread. It would be easy enough to set up, and I don't think it would dilute the overall purpose of the forum. Quite a few successful Goodreads groups have very large sections devoted to off-topic subjects, and I think that only enhances the community feeling of the group.
But---I'll leave it up to you folks, as to what you want to do. If anyone is interested in having a separate folder for gay-themed film discussion, just put in your two cents worth and let us know what you think.
I'd probably vote for staying here at Goodreads, rather than adding another site to visit (I'm becoming more familiar with how things work here), but I'm happy to go along with the majority. (JesseWave's Review site does occasional movie reviews. I'm sure she'd be happy to host more discussions there, if people were interested in moving.)
PaperMoon wrote: "Aussie54 wrote: "Paper Moon, I love everything about this movie! "Here We Go Again" gives me goosebumps!http://youtu.be/MDxNdALZfy4
(with bonus "From Beginning to End" featuring a lovely versio..."
Loved this video...goes with the movie so well...
I totally concur with your appraisal Ulysses ... THANKS for the video link Aussie54 (very remiss of me not to have said so much earlier).
After surviving a very long placement week at hospital with hours of commuting ... I desperately needed a feel-good HEA movie to soothe the fevered brow and ease the aching body. So what do I automatically reach for? Patrik 1.5 of course!And I did feel sooooo much better by the time the credits started to roll; small wonder that this film still stands at the top of my feel-good gay-themed movies - works for me every time.
The others on my list are (in order of preference):
Beautiful Thing
Shelter
Trick
Big Eden
Broadway Damage
Breakfast With Scot
What Happens Next
Queens/Reinas
A Touch Of Pink
Chef's Special
Love And Other Disasters
Wedding Wars
Just watched La Mission (2009) starring Benjamin Bratt and I highly recommend it:Growing up in the Mission district of San Francisco, Che Rivera (Benjamin Bratt) has always had to be tough to survive. He's a powerful man respected throughout the Mission barrio for his masculinity and his strength, as well as for his hobby building beautiful lowrider cars. A reformed inmate and recovering alcoholic, Che has worked hard to redeem his life and do right by his pride and joy: his only son, Jes, whom he has raised on his own after the death of his wife. Che's path to redemption is tested, however, when he discovers Jes is gay. To survive his neighborhood, Che has always lived with his fists. To survive as a complete man, he'll have to embrace a side of himself he's never shown.
This is not a romance/relationship film, it's a coming out & dad doesn't take it well film. We do see the son with his boyfriend a few times but this is really about the dad (Bratt) and how he & the son deal with this new element in their up 'til now very good relationship (mom is dead). Along the way we get a look at the Latino culture, good & bad, and there's also a bit of a romance subplot for dad with a neighbor woman who is an abuse survivor.
A very well done independent film! There was no point at which I was tempted to fast-forward and I never checked the counter on my VCR which is very unusual for me with independent films that are often done on the cheap and can be annoyingly self-indulgent. This one was a real winner. Great soundtrack too!
And just a heads up that although this plot is not all sunshine & rainbows all the time, this is not a dark movie, not a downer by any means.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1200272/?...
I wouldn't call "Jitters" a happy film, but it does have a (sort of) happy ending. It's from Iceland and a little quirky as a result. The cast is very young, as are the conflicts, but overall I enjoyed this movie, especially the very end. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1634524/?...
Jax wrote: "Just watched La Mission (2009) starring Benjamin Bratt and I highly recommend it:Growing up in the Mission district of San Francisco, Che Rivera (Benjamin Bratt) has always had to be tough to sur..."
I enjoyed La Mission too Jax. I liked how they set up the gay guys introduction in the film ... I thought something violent was about to be unleashed! The progressive acceptance of the son was well done - not too sweet nor rushed. And the acting level across the board was definitely not sub-par. I also found the car paint detailing very interesting too.
Liz wrote: "I wouldn't call "Jitters" a happy film, but it does have a (sort of) happy ending. It's from Iceland and a little quirky as a result. The cast is very young, as are the conflicts, but overall I en..."I agree that the ending was hopeful ... reminds me of the ending of another film "Wilby Wonderful" where we don't get to see the aftermath of what happens to the gay characters but the impression given is that all will be well.
Anyhow - I liked "Jitters" significantly more than "The Man Who Loved Yngve" ... which deals with similiar themes.
Papermoon thanks for mentioning Plan B. I finally paid some attention to the list of lgbt titles available on Amazon Instant videos last night. First I watched the movie Romeos. It's a story about a pre-op transgendered man. This German story covers only a few weeks but I liked a lot.Then it was after midnight and I noticed Plan B and decided to give it a try. That was good too, really liked it. Loved the Argentinean slang. The end kinda makes me want to kick puppies thought because I wanted more! lol!
I am going to be checking out the rest of the titles available. I actually like that most of them are foreign titles.
Mercedes wrote: "Papermoon thanks for mentioning Plan B. I finally paid some attention to the list of lgbt titles available on Amazon Instant videos last night. First I watched the movie Romeos. It's a story ab..."Gosh Mercedes - I'd completely forgotten we'd had this movie thread set up!
Glad you liked Plan B - the writer/director Marco Berger (who's very enthusiastic and easy on the eyes) has done quite a couple of films since but this is easily his best and my favorite - largely because of that ending. And who can forget that 'what toy are you' plot thread spread over a couple of scenes - so sweet. It's the best example of GFY in movies I can think of presently.
I've seen a few more foreign language films over the past year and the best of the 'feel good' ones that comes to mind are:
Let My People Go
Yossi
Men To Kiss
My current favorite English language films are:
Gayby - hysterically laugh out loud funny with cute actors and a fab ending
and ....
The Perfect Wedding where all the guys are cute and the gay seamlessly woven into the rest of the storylines with no gay-angst. The cute young thing playing one of the romantic MCs Jason Gaffney is the gay son of Suzanne Brockmann and she and her husband wrote the screenplay. A definite feel-good movie for Valentine's Day as well as Christmas.
Happy viewings!
yes! the bit with what toy would you be was so good! And yeah, you know I am not a big fan of GFY but here, it was done so well. I agree with you.I never do things in a measured way so I basically spent all weekend watching lgbt movies. I was discouraged after a bit. So many have sad endings! not like my romance books you know? at least in most of them I am assured a HEA or HFN. But darn some of the movies I watched I tell you.
I finally found a couple of gay romantic comedies and those were OK. BUT I *loved* Bearcity where not one but three couple get a HEA. Plus it was so funny!
Mercedes wrote: "So many have sad endings! not like my romance books you know? at least in most of them I am assured a HEA or HFN. But darn some of the movies I watched I tell you."I agree with you Mercedes that a lot of gay themed movies have less than HEA endings. And some of the gay rom-coms are SOOOO awful that I wouldn't recommend them at all.
Regarding Plan B's GFY ... I feel awful for that girl who was sleeping with/dating both the straight/possibly bi guys - what bad luck that Mr Scruffy would develop the hots for Mr Artsy-Fartsy!
And "Bear City" was very funny ... who would have thought that one would have to "be in the closet" if one was a bear-chaser LOL!
I am very pleased to advise however that ALL the titles I'd mentioned earlier in my Feb 16th comment are HEA movies so you can be assured that you won't reach the credits feeling down.
Thanks for the recs! I'm with you guys on being over all the tragedy and sad endings in LGBT movies. So often in the blurbs the words used to describe gay movies are "tragic," "heartbreaking" and "bittersweet." Enough of that -- I want my happy endings! I haven't seen Yossi yet, so thanks for reminding me about it. I did love Yossi and Jagger (I figured going in it wouldn't end well!), and I'm eager to see that character get a HEA. :)
I watched Yossi which had an interesting ending. But couldn't bring myself to bring Yossi and Jagger.Also watched Beyond the Wall which is french so it has subtitles. I actually liked it a LOT.
Another one I watched is Guys and Balls which is german and also subtitled. This one was actually pretty hilarious and also very cute.
Both of these are on Netflix if you have that service.
Yesterday I watched Christopher and His Kind. This one is british so no subtitles, yay! And almost quit watching it at the beginning until I realize the guy who used to play the Dr. was the star (Matt Smith). He actually has some interesting facial expressions. It was good.
Have to toss in Notre Paradis with Stephane Rideau. It is definitely not a feel good movie, but Mr. Rideau is a wonderful (and very hot) actor and it's a great film. Just a warning, though, Mr. Rideau is not beautiful in this particular movie. If you want to see what a beauty he is, just google him.
Mercedes wrote: "I watched Yossi which had an interesting ending. But couldn't bring myself to bring Yossi and Jagger.Also watched Beyond the Wall which is french so it has subtitles. I actually liked it a LOT.
Another one I watched is Guys and Balls which is german and also subtitled. This one was actually pretty hilarious and also very cute."
I think after having watched Yossi that I would have to make myself go back to re-watch the beautifully filmed but tragic Yossi and Jagger. I think the only thing that could tempt me would Jagger's blue eyes:
What did you like about Beyond The Wall? I didn't end up buying the DVD as it seemed too disturbingly dark to me.
Ah - gay men and soccer/football. I do agree that the German effort Guys and Balls is about the best of the lot. The Nordic equivalent was a little too dour for me - Eleven Men Out. Plus having to navigate the subtitle texts to boot.
The British offering Kickoff was silly and I did not like any of the characters at all. Bend It Like Beckham was an infinitely better film.
I've ordered through the mail a copy of Soccer Nanny and am hoping that this will prove a better and more engaging human interest tale.
Nick wrote: "Have to toss in Notre Paradis with Stephane Rideau. It is definitely not a feel good movie, but Mr. Rideau is a wonderful (and very hot) actor and it's a great film. Just a warning, though, Mr. Rid..."I haven't seen Notre Paradis but it does sound rather gritty and grim and you say with a possibly with a not-happy ending?? Stephane Rideau was at his most beautiful in Presque Rien/Come Undone in my opinion. I appreciated his straight brother role in Le Clan/Three Dancing Slaves (another Gael Morel film) but was totally distracted in that by the gorgeous Salim Kechiouche and his 'dance moves':
Lou wrote: "It's pretty good. Cristopher Isherwood was an interesting person. After this movie you might want to watch Cabaret--it was based on his writings from this period of his life. Cabaret has a slight gay theme itself, and it's a great movie, directed and choreographed by the awesome Bob Fosse."Hooray for Cabaret! Love the songs and music. I think my childhood obsession with Michael York stemmed from this film (and also Logan's Run). I should dig out my DVD of this to revisit this face:
I think after having watched Yossi that I would have to make myself go back to re-watch the beautifully filmed but tragic Yossi and Jagger. I think the only thing that could tempt me would Jagger's blue eyesPaperMoon, thank you for the reminder of why I really need to go back to that movie before I watch the sequel! Yum.
I recently rewatched Mambo Italiano and really enjoyed it. It's a tad bittersweet, but still very positive, and left me smiling.
Oh, another one: The Eagle. It's not a gay film, per se, but it's totally slashy. I'm not really a Channing Tatum fan but I liked him in this movie.
I adore that movie! Sooooooo very, very gay. There's some awesome Marcus/Esca fanfic out there. :D
I also enjoyed Christopher and His Kind. I was watching it and thinking...wait, is this Cabaret without music? Heh.
Total slash. The ending of that movie made me so happy. :D
Inspired by a film called "The Women On The Sixth Floor" - I re-watched one of my Spanish gay-themed films tonight. This is a feel-good flick for a Friday night in with pop-corn and friends. It always brings a smile to my face by the fab wedding scene ending. It's subject matter i.e. same sex marriage is still a current topic across the globe. I wrote a brief review of this back in 2010 on AfterElton, and I still agree with every word I wrote:___________________________________
The setting of this rom-com is Spain, where we find an amazing barrowful of gorgeous hunks preparing to get married in Spain’s first same-sex wedding ceremony. And getting in on the act are their mothers (the referred to Queens in the movie title).
What we get here in all the mother-son dynamics are those who are championing their sons getting hitched, to those who feel very ambiguous about such a union. All the various characters and storylines intersect at some point and culminate in the wedding ceremony at the end …. the question is when mothers get involved – will the boy-boy relationship survive enough to make it down the aisle?
I loved this film – the women are realistically flawed (needy, unintentionally meddling, over-bearing, manipulative) but yet strong, loving and loyal. It helps that the filmmakers managed to nab a bunch of fantastic actresses to play the five mother roles. And whilst the male eye-candy may be the selling point in this film for gay men – the heart of the story is really about these five mothers and their relationships with their sons.
Reviewers across the board have lauded the Director for avoiding clichés and stereotypes with this film and the result is one polished, snappy, funny, well-produced film that guarantees to leave you smiling broadly at the end. I’d gladly adopt a couple of these mothers myself!
Queens / Reinas is a must see film – especially when you get six sexy men, five sexy mothers and one damn adorable English sheepdog!
I just watched a really good movie, Out In The Dark. 
Since this is about a Palestinian and an Israeli, you know this is going to deal with some heavy issues. It is not a light, feel-good movie by any means, but it was very well done with excellent writing & acting; a real step above most of the gay movies I've seen. I wasn't tempted to fast forward once, which is unusual for me. This quickly becomes an on-the-edge-of-your-seat movie as you anxiously wait to see if these two guys will find a way out of their impossible situation. Really makes you sympathize with couples being separated for political reasons, especially those where it is a life and death issue.
On top of the great story, the two young men are very attractive. I know that's kind of a shallow observation given the serious subject matter, but it didn't hurt to have a pretty face (or two) to look at.
So, when you're in the mood for something a little heavier, a little tense, and where a happy ending is not a sure thing, give this a try.
Jax wrote: "I just watched a really good movie, Out In The Dark.Since this is about a Palestinian and an Israeli, you know this is going to deal with some heavy issues. It is not a light, feel-good movie ..."
oh, oh, oh ... I have just bought this as a DVD Jax. Your review has just made me place Out In The Dark on top of the list (of 6) to watch - ta.
I think you'll enjoy it PaperMoon. I was very impressed.
Jax wrote: "I think you'll enjoy it PaperMoon. I was very impressed."Excellent - I'll post some feedback thoughts soon.
Jax, without being too spoilery can you tell me if it's a happy (or happyish) ending? Or is it as tragic as I think it's going to be? I still want to watch it either way. Actually had tickets to see it at the Toronto film fest a couple of years ago but had to miss it due to an emergency, so thanks for reminding me about it. :)
Keira: A lot of the appeal is the suspense so I don't want to say too much. I'll put this behind a spoiler tag even though I'm not giving away anything specific. (view spoiler) I hope that helps.
So, my husband forced me to finally watch Magic Mike last night, because of Matthew McConnaughey (we're big "True Detective" fans and Gary loved his performance in Dallas Buyers' Club). And the surprise is that I liked it. A lot more than I expected. Channing Tatum was particularly endearing as the 30 year old with a plan that's gone awry; and Alex Pettyfer as the feckless teenager with no plan at all. I guess I originally resented (and still do) all the hullaballoo on AfterElton, because it's all about a gay news source pimping a straight movie about straight boys (regardless of Matt Bomer's minor role). But, actually watching the film, it all made sense, and Tatum's performance was heartfelt and spot-on.
Ulysses wrote: "So, my husband forced me to finally watch Magic Mike last night, because of Matthew McConnaughey (we're big "True Detective" fans and Gary loved his performance in Dallas Buyers' Club). And the sur..."Hmmm ... should I watch this for the quality of acting or for the beefcake? Decisions, decisions.
PaperMoon wrote: "Jax wrote: "I think you'll enjoy it PaperMoon. I was very impressed."Excellent - I'll post some feedback thoughts soon."
Well I have watched this romance/thriller and yes I was impressed with the results (despite it having been made and acted by first timers on a low budget). My heart was thumping by the last quarter hour and I was immersed in fear and despair. Gosh - what an ending. I'm so glad it didn't follow other films such as The Bubble or Eyes Wide Open. But the struggle for love to survive was very realistically done.
And yes the guys are very good looking indeed.
The beefcake was why I DID'NT want to watch it...and I was interested that all the nudity left me totally cold - straight guys showing off for girls, not something that turns me on at all. But the acting, Channing Tatum in particular, that touched me.
The primary focus of this Goodreads group is books, not film, but if you'd like to draw our attention to any such pictures that you think other members may enjoy, here's the place to do it.