Chicago’s 42nd International LGBTQ+ Film Festival screened over 40 features this month. I focused on mlm narratives and noticed some recurring themes.
Struggling Artists
The privileged protagonists despair that modern life hasn’t handed them their dreams. Remember when people turned 30 and realized the characters in Rent were insufferable? That’s what I often felt here.
Duino (2024, Italy). Timid college student suffers the pangs of first love. Decades later he tries to make a film about the experience. The young lead lacks the range to make his quiet character compelling. Both timelines lack resolution, making the film feel incomplete. That seems to be the point. But it is not satisfying.
Extremely Unique Dynamic (2024, U.S.). Two friends film their last weekend together before one moves to Canada. Their Asian Bert and Ernie schtick isn’t as unique as they claim. But they’re pleasant company. The actors are more comfortable with the dramatic scenes than the meta-comedy stuff.
Perfect Endings (2024, Brazil). Aka 13 Sentimentos. Neurotic filmmaker writes about re-entering the dating world after a break up. The screenplay introduces a string of sitcom characters and storylines but doesn’t develop them. The obnoxious protagonist never grows or changes.
Sebastian (2024, U.K.). Struggling writer tries sex work. He finds his clients treat him better than editors and publishers do. The lead, Ruaridh Mollica, is gorgeous. But his jittery, manic performance starts at 11 with nowhere left to go. He seems more likely to frighten people off than inspire the ardor he does here. In a meta flourish, his writing critics point out the structural issues of the screenplay. It is repetitive and low stakes.
The Summer with Carmen (2023, Greece). Gay man adopts his ex-boyfriend’s dog. His best friend tries to adapt their lives into a screenplay. Meta touches and gratuitous nudity can’t disguise the fact that this is an uneventful story. The writers themselves discuss the lack of plot and character growth. For a more engaging version of this tale check out 1988’s We Think the World of You.
Love Triangles
F.L.Y. (2024, U.S.). Uptight gym rat is torn between his butch boyfriend and his drag queen ex during the 2020 pandemic. The first hour plays like a romcom. The second half is a weepy melodrama. The green actors can’t quite pull off the tonal shift. But the key emotional moments land. The protagonist wants to be a screenwriter, but it doesn’t play a role in the plot like other festival fare. Header image is of Rafael Albarran in F.L.Y.
Mascarpone: The Rainbow Cake (2024, Italy). Aka Maschile plurale. 2021’s Mascarpone was a slight film about a gay divorcee getting his groove back. In the sequel he tries to steal an ex from their new boyfriend. The screenplay recycles the plot of My Best Friend’s Wedding beat for beat. But Giancarlo Commare’s schemer is denied the slapstick and banter that made Julia Roberts bearable. He gives a sullen performance in a surprisingly dour film. His friends comment that sequels are always bad. Commare counters with The Empire Strikes Back. Does that mean we’ll get a trilogy?
Moving In: A Modern Musical (2024, U.S.). Sex worker tries to seduce his best friend’s boyfriend. His intentions are clear from the opening song. The only question is whether the guy will give in. The actors lean into a soap opera style. It’s campy fun until it grows repetitive. The songs leave little impression.
Friendships
Several of the films feature platonic friendships between men. The next two make them their primary focus.
A Cheap Film (2024, Spain). A depressed gay man and a chaotic straight man form a friendship. The messy story starts slow and ends abruptly. But the actors have chemistry and there are some nice surprises. Late in the story they discuss ways the movie could end. But neither character identifies as a writer or filmmaker.
Rent Free (2024, U.S.). A black comedy about economic anxiety. Two broke slackers lose their apartments and go couch surfing. Their reluctant hosts are a mix of strivers, survivors, and cautionary tales. The cast makes the insufferable characters just human enough to keep me from despising them. Your mileage may vary.
Mystery Thriller
Carnage for Christmas (2024, Australia). True crime podcaster visits her hometown after transitioning. The locals are soon menaced by a killer in a Santa suit. I’m not a fan of slashers. It hurts to watch a cast of queer people get butchered. But it is refreshing to have a trans detective. The low budget special effects get the job done.
Fanny Scat Investigates (2023, Australia). Brassy drag queen tracks a thief who’s been robbing patrons at her bar. Most of the jokes land but the mystery is weak. It could use a few more twists.
Summer Romance
The Astronaut Lovers (2024, Argentina). A gay man and a “straight” man spend their summer playing gay chicken. Will the “straight” guy come out? Or is he just toying with his friend? Filmmaker Marco Berger has told this story before. But his characters in Hawaii and Plan B discussed a variety of subjects. These two dullards talk about dicks and poop. It gets old fast.
High Tide (2024, U.S.). Gloomy drama about a Brazilian immigrant (Marco Pigossi) struggling to fit in with the affluent gays in Provincetown. He romances a friendly nurse who accepts him for himself. Themes of privilege and hierarchy are glanced upon. But the hapless protagonist is often the author of his own misery. When his travel visa expires, he fears he’ll have to return to his homophobic village. The film never acknowledges that there are queer friendly cities in Brazil. Bill Irwin has a rewarding supporting role as a would-be mentor. Marisa Tomei has a thankless cameo.
Teens
Screams from the Tower (2024, U.S.) Troubled teen hosts a wild radio show for his high school. The film begins as a raucous ensemble comedy. It transforms into a melancholy character study when his friends leave him to run things alone. Richie Fusco gives a charming performance as the defiant protagonist. It avoids most gay coming of age tropes (except an obligatory bike ride) to create something fresh.
Young Hearts (2024, Belgium). Middle school boy falls for a handsome transfer student. It’s bike rides and swims till internalized homophobia gets in the way. The film is cast much younger than others in this genre. The sensitive actors elevate the tropey screenplay. It’s being compared to 2022’s Close but it’s more similar to films like Jongens and The Way He Looks.
Family Feud
Hailey Rose (2023, Canada). Prodigal daughter is summoned home by her cruel mother and unstable sister. It tries to offset everyone’s’ hateful behavior with sitcom hijinks. It doesn’t work. I found the film’s glib “family is family” moral distasteful. We don’t need to forgive our abusers.
Documentary
Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story (2023, U.K.). A brisk hagiography of the British writer/composer/actor. Coward’s songs haven’t proved as evergreen as his contemporaries. Many were written for his eccentric performing style. The footage here gives me no idea how this gay character actor passed for a straight leading man. A photo of him meeting Liberace sums up the dance homophobia forced on queer artists.
Festival Bingo
I counted the following tropes.
- 8 Protagonists who end up with their love interests at the end.
- 8 Protagonists who do something stupid after abusing alcohol or drugs.
- 7 Wise black friends who give romantic advice.
- 7 Meta conversations about screenplays.
- 6 Protagonists who get dumped near the start of the film.
- 4 Bicycle rides.
- 3 Openly bisexual men.
Regarding Parents we get
- 6 supportive moms.
- 5 supportive dads.
- 4 mean moms.
- 2 bad dads.
- 2 supportive grandmas.
- 1 supportive grandpa.
- 2 sons who come out to their parents while crying in the back seat of a car.
A small selection of films will be streaming on the Reeling website through October 6, 2024. You can read more of my reviews on The Avocado, Letterboxd and Serializd. My podcast, Rainbow Colored Glasses, can be found here.