movies about more than being gay
Gay cinema has grown exponentially over the last couple of decades. Early on we got coming out movies and movies about the anguish of a closeted life. We're still getting movies with those themes, few of which cover any new territory.
We also got good quality movies early on. Not a lot, but enough to keep us slogging through all the mediocre stuff. The truth is most of us gay guys will watch almost anything with gay content just because it's there. Especially those of us who grew up when there was virtually nothing available showing same sex love.
If you're gay and interested in good film, there may be some titles on my list you haven't heard of. Or that you might not have thought of as gay because gay is just a part of the movie, and the movie wasn't marketed to gay audiences exclusively.
If you're straight and interested in film, consider watching some of these movies. They're good movies. Some are very gay (about gay culture) and some just happen to have gay content.
We also got good quality movies early on. Not a lot, but enough to keep us slogging through all the mediocre stuff. The truth is most of us gay guys will watch almost anything with gay content just because it's there. Especially those of us who grew up when there was virtually nothing available showing same sex love.
If you're gay and interested in good film, there may be some titles on my list you haven't heard of. Or that you might not have thought of as gay because gay is just a part of the movie, and the movie wasn't marketed to gay audiences exclusively.
If you're straight and interested in film, consider watching some of these movies. They're good movies. Some are very gay (about gay culture) and some just happen to have gay content.
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- 40 titles
- DirectorNagisa ÔshimaStarsTakeshi KitanoRyûhei MatsudaShinji TakedaThe new member of a samurai militia unit causes disruption as several of his colleagues fall in love with him, threatening to disturb the rigid code of their squad.Beautiful, complex, compelling, and a little disturbing.
- DirectorBarbet SchroederStarsGermán JaramilloAnderson BallesterosJuan David RestrepoThe writer F. Vallejo returns to Medellin after an absence of over 30 years. He meets 16-year-old Alexis. Alexis is the kind of killer who knocks people off on command. The two are immediately attracted to each other.This is a movie that people either love or hate. The violence is shocking, but the story is original and profound.
- DirectorJohn WatersStarsDivineDavid LocharyMary Vivian PearceA spoiled schoolgirl runs away from home, gets pregnant while hitch-hiking, and ends up as a fashion model for a pair of beauticians who like to photograph women committing crimes.Probably the best of John Waters' movies. And also the funniest and the most outrageous.
- DirectorHarold PrinceStarsAngela LansburyMichael YorkAnthony HigginsIn post-war Austria, young, handsome country lad Konrad Ludwig (Michael York) charms his way into a butler position at the castle of the widowed (and destitute) Countess von Ornstein (Angela Lansbury). He is soon running the entire household--and all the bedrooms, as he starts affairs with the countess' son Helmuth (Anthony Higgins) and Anneliese Pleschke (Heidelinde Weis), the daughter of wealthy businessman Herr Pleschke (John Gill). From this, Konrad decides to get his two lovers to marry each other and restore the countess' finances.A hard-to-find comic masterpiece directed by Harold Prince.
- DirectorJames IvoryStarsJames WilbyRupert GravesHugh GrantTwo English school chums find themselves falling in love at Cambridge. To regain his place in society, Clive gives up Maurice and marries. While staying with Clive and his wife, Maurice discovers romance in the arms of the gamekeeper Alec.A Merchant & Ivory production of an E. M. Forster novel. Extremely well done and gorgeous to look at. Hugh Grant does creamy English beauty and Rupert Graves does sex-on-wheels.
- DirectorChris NewbyStarsBernard HillJohn HannahMark AnthonyThis is the story of Harry and Flint, an unlikely couple. Harry is a shy young gay man who can't seem to fit into his local bar scene. Flint is a crusty, older, and seemingly straight man with a questionable background. They meet on a gorgeous coastline, and evolve from distrust to deep love.Feels very much like an art film, a good one. John Hannah plays a young gay social misfit who takes up with an eccentric older "straight" man.
- DirectorKar-Wai WongStarsLeslie CheungTony Leung Chiu-waiChang ChenA couple take a trip to Argentina but both men find their lives drifting apart in opposite directions.This is a strong and unsentimental film about contemporary life.
- DirectorDavid CronenbergStarsJames SpaderHolly HunterElias KoteasA car crash victim suddenly finds himself turned on by car accidents and becomes involved with an underground sub-culture of like-minded souls.Not the trite 2004 film that stole the Oscar from Brokeback Mountain. This is a David Cronenberg weird-fest. Again, not for everyone. It's sick and depraved and done with a completely straight face to ensure a worldview that's laughably absurd.
- DirectorAndrew FlemingStarsLara Flynn BoyleJosh CharlesStephen BaldwinA girl named Alex is by mistake housed with 2 guys, Stuart and Eddy, in a college dorm suite. After initial problems they become friends. Stuart has the hots for Alex, Alex for Eddy and Eddy for Stuart. Can it work?A seriously underrated film about a college menage a trois. Funny and sexy and great performances from Lara Flynn Boyle, Josh Charles (Good Wife's Will), and Stephen Baldwin (!).
- DirectorKarim AïnouzStarsWagner MouraClemens SchickFred LimaShortly after failing to rescue a drowning man, Donato meets Konrad, a friend of the victim. They soon begin a relationship which seems doomed from the start, while Donato's past catches up with him.The plot description will sound trite. But just wait. This doesn't go where you expect it to go. It's a completely unsentimental and a good take on the reality of "grown up" gay relationships.
- DirectorRené ClémentStarsAlain DelonMaurice RonetMarie LaforêtTom Ripley is a talented mimic, moocher, forger and all-around criminal improviser; but there's more to Tom Ripley than even he can guess.Based on The Talented Mr Ripley novel. More freeform than the 1994 film with Matt Damon. But Alain Delon's beauty is an incredible foil for the amoral character he portrays.
- DirectorMichael MayerStarsColin FarrellDallas RobertsRobin WrightA boy who has experienced many losses in his life grows to manhood and enters into a love triangle with a woman and his boyhood friend.Colin Farrell, Dallas Roberts, and Robin Wright. A good yarn, a good cast, and easy on the eyes.
- DirectorNeil JordanStarsStephen ReaJaye DavidsonForest WhitakerA British soldier kidnapped by the IRA soon befriends one of his captors, who then becomes drawn into the soldier's world.A fantastic film, way more than the "gimmick." A must see.
- DirectorAndrew HaighStarsTom CullenChris NewJonathan RaceAfter a drunken house party with his straight mates, Russell heads out to a gay club. Just before closing time he picks up Glen but what's expected to be just a one-night stand becomes something else, something special.Probably the best English-language gay film of the last decade. A true-to-life depiction of life for young gay men. Intense, dialog-driven, explicit. Ultimately, a love story.
- DirectorBill SherwoodStarsJohn BolgerRichard GanoungSteve BuscemiAs Michael and Robert, a gay couple in New York, prepare for Robert's departure for a two-year work assignment in Africa, Michael must face Robert's true motives for leaving while dealing with their circle of eccentric friends, including Nick, who is living with AIDS.A very good and realistic look at life in NY in the 1980s.
- DirectorPedro AlmodóvarStarsCecilia RothMarisa ParedesCandela PeñaA comedy-drama about a bereaved mother, an overwrought actress, her jealous lover, and a pregnant nun.A masterpiece by Pedro Almodovar. Won the oscar for best foreign language film. Required viewing IMO.
- DirectorAndré TéchinéStarsÉlodie BouchezGaël MorelStéphane RideauThe fates of two partners are divided.A coming of age film--a good one--set in France in 1962. Politics complicates things that are already complicated. Beautiful kids, beautiful scenery, powerful, well-told story.
- DirectorFerzan ÖzpetekStarsAlessandro GassmannFrancesca d'AlojaCarlo CecchiFrancesco inherits an old palace from a Turkish aunt and moves to Istanbul to renovate it.An Italian architect inherits a hamam (steam bath) in Istanbul. When he sets out to restore it, the rhythm and substance of his life changes. You might not like the ending, but everything leading up to it is fascinating. And Alessandro Gassman is exceedingly easy on the eyes.
- DirectorDoug LimanStarsSarah PolleyJay MohrScott WolfThe aftermath of a drug deal as told from three different points of view.A drug deal from different points of view, each revealing a previously unknown part of the story. The gay section is heavy on tension and all the funnier for it. Highly original and entertaining. Underrated IMO.
- DirectorRichard GlatzerStarsCraig ChesterIlleana DouglasJackie BeatWe spend a week in the L.A. offices where the daytime TV show "The Love Judge" is written and produced. Jo, the show's large and loud producer, announces she is leaving the show in two weeks. Paula (driven and on Prozac) and Mark (gay and moody) compete for Jo's job. Mark, coming onto the first anniversary of the death from AIDS of the love of his life, is attracted to Bill, who claims to be straight. Meanwhile, Jeremy, a close friend of Mark's, is putting the moves on Bill. Leslie, Jo's overworked assistant, tells Mark she wants to be a writer (she even has a script written). How these relationships that combine work and friendship play out is the movie's subject.Fun and much better than average for a gay comedy.
- DirectorTodd StephensStarsSara RueBirkett TurtonKaren BlackTwo young misfits head for New York City to celebrate their idol and muse, Stevie Nicks, at The Night of 1,000 Stevies. Along the road, in order for them to escape their painful pasts, they must discover their strengths and learn self-acceptance.By the director of the much better known Edge of Seventeen (1998). A cute anime-style boy and his best (girl) friend take a road trip. A flawed movie, but one with attitude. Very watchable.
- DirectorC. Jay CoxStarsWes RamseySteve SandvossMary Kay PlaceA promiscuous gay party animal falls for a young Mormon missionary, leading to crisis, cliché, and catastrophe.A nearly perfect gay rom-com. Essentially it's a makeover movie. But we're not seeing updated wardrobes and new haircuts, we're seeing attitude makeovers. Very satisfying.
- DirectorAleksandr SokurovStarsAndrei ShchetininAleksei NeymyshevAleksandr RazbashA father and his son live together in a roof-top apartment. They have lived alone for years in their own private world, full of memories and daily rites. Sometimes they seem like brothers. Sometimes even like lovers. Following in his father's path, Aleksei attends military school. He likes sports, tends to be irresponsible and has problems with his girlfriend. She is jealous of Aleksei's close relationship with his father. Despite knowing that all sons must one day live their own lives, Aleksei is conflicted; his father knows he should accept a better job in another city, perhaps search for a new wife, but who will ease the pain of Aleksei's nightmares?It's not a gay-theme movie, but when you see the superb physical specimens who play the touchy-feelie father and son, you'll kind of wish it were. But it is about male/male relationships. It's a very dreamlike story about two men who love each other in a nonsexual way. One of my favorite movies.
- DirectorRon OliverStarsChad AllenSebastian SpenceMichael WoodsA gay detective tries to solve the murder of a college student.A good gay genre film, a detective story that handily incorporates gay culture. Entertaining, and I'm not much on detective stories.
- DirectorOlga StolpovskajaDmitriy TroitskiyStarsDamir BadmaevLyubov TolkalinaEvgeniy KoryakovskiyOn their first anniversary, Vera comes home to discover her boyfriend Tim in bed with another man.Unconventional fare and fun. There's a bit of unnecessary melodrama toward the end, but this is still worth a watch.
