Hikaru went up the mountain. Something else came down, wearing his skin. Hikaru’s best friend, Yoshiki, knows he’s talking to an imposter. But he prefers illusions to harsh truths. The Summer Hikaru Died is an ambitious mix of horror, coming … Continue reading LGBT Media: The Summer Hikaru Died (2025)
Kevin Glover’s Love Bites is a gay vampire softcore romcom. An amateur vampire hunter falls for his handsome target. Can love conquer all? Glover wrote the script for the stage. But filming on location, and releasing to VHS, proved more … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Love Bites (1988)
Colin Firth plays the neurotic owner of a cinema in Buenos Aires. He takes in a handsome American flat mate (Hart Bochner) and quickly becomes obsessed. The men begin a dangerous game. Martin Donovan co-wrote and directed Apartment Zero. The … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Apartment Zero (1988)
An activist (Diego Luna) and a window dresser (Tonatiuh) share a prison cell during Argentina’s military dictatorship. The dresser, Molina, copes by recounting the plot of her favorite film: Kiss of the Spider Woman. A musical fantasy starring a glamorous … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Kiss of the Spider Woman (2025)
I visited London this month and saw some plays in, and off, the West End. The first three had much in common. Small cast, 90 minute works featuring tortured gay artists. Born With Teeth by Liz Duffy Adams. Wyndham’s Theatre. … Continue reading London Theatre 2025
I’ve been attending Chicago’s International LGBTQ+ Film Festival for many years now. Last season I burnt myself out watching 18 features. This year I settled for a modest 7. Dreams in Nightmares (2025, US). Queer black friends go on a … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Reeling Festival 2025
Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor sing and smooch. What more could I want? Well… Some dialogue might help. The History of Sound belongs to a subgenre I call the brooding male romance. Two quiet men begin a near-wordless relationship. The … Continue reading LGBT Movies: The History of Sound (2025)
A gay activist has been outing closeted public figures. Now he’s getting death threats. He hires Donald Strachey for protection. Strachey is an openly gay detective in Albany, NY. He takes clients that the straight world ignores. But can he … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Third Man Out (2005)
Margaret Qualley plays Detective Honey O’Donahue. Her style and charm bring a touch of glamour to the bleak town of Bakersfield. Honey’s client has died in a car wreck. She suspects it was no accident. Honey Don’t! is the second … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Honey Don’t! (2025)
In 2019 the Hallmark channel aired a commercial for Zola Wedding Planners. A lesbian couple praise the site during their wedding vows. The ad was pulled from the network after a complaint. Then restored after even more complaints. Hallmark has … Continue reading LGBT Media: Lesbian Commercials
What goes through the minds of bullies? How many homophobes are closet cases? Why does queerness frighten the patriarchy? Claude Miller made his filmmaking debut in 1976 with The Best Way to Walk (La meilleure façon de marcher). The screenplay, … Continue reading LGBT Movies: The Best Way to Walk (1976)
Of the many Transformers clones, most impractical were the Changeables. Robots who could disguise themselves as McDonald’s “food” orders and Styrofoam packaging. They appeared in Happy Meals in 1987 and were rebooted several times by the “restaurant” franchise. They even … Continue reading Changeables Night Thread (7/31/2025)
What is Stranger Things about? The horror, sci-fi, coming-of-age series features kids in peril, adults who fail them and nostalgia for a culture that never existed. What do we want from the final season? Answers? Closure? A spin-off? I want … Continue reading Theater Review: Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Celine Song’s film, Materialists, contrasts a formula romcom with a bleak satire. Dakota Johnson plays a cynical New York matchmaker. She’s boiled her job down to a math equation. She rattles off peoples’ weights, heights, ages and incomes with the … Continue reading Movie Review: Materialists (2025)
Dinosaurs + Mercs + Nuclear Family = Fun?! We need a proper choreographer to stage the set piece moments. These lack tension and spatial awareness. Also, there are too many characters. Please eat four more. And give someone a proper … Continue reading Jurassic World Rebirth: Spoiler Space
On June 28, 1969 members of the NYPD attacked the LGBTQ patrons at the Stonewall Inn. Raids were common but that night the patrons fought back. The battle led to a riot that galvanized the struggling queer rights movement. 1995’s … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Stonewall (1995)
Arnold, a New York drag queen, experiences love and loss. He gains self-respect and the courage to stand up for himself. Harvey Fierstein wrote and starred in three separate plays about the character. Then combined them into one epic story. … Continue reading LGBT Movies: Torch Song Trilogy (1988)
Three drag queens take a cross-country road trip. When their car breaks down in a small town, they befriend the local women. I disliked To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar when it premiered. I didn’t understand why the … Continue reading LGBT Movies: To Wong Foo (1995)
Megan follows the rules. She goes to church. She gets good grades. She’s a cheerleader. But her peers realize something she doesn’t. Megan is a lesbian. Her parents quickly ship her off to a conversion camp. There she’ll meet her … Continue reading LGBT Movies: But I’m a Cheerleader (1999)
The 1999 movie Trick paired a timid musician with a confident hunk. They spent the night searching for a place to hook-up. Roommates, obnoxious friends and jealous rivals stood in their way. Queer romcoms were still rare and Trick found an eager … Continue reading Theater Review: Trick the Musical
Joseph Stalin died in 1953. First Secretary Khrushchev ousted the Stalinists and released restrictions on the arts. The period was known as the Thaw. The optimism of the time was captured by the 1964 film Walking the Streets of Moscow … Continue reading Movie Review: Walking the Streets of Moscow (1964)
