Queer Film Blog

The Kids Are Alright is a 2010 film that follows a lesbian couple, Nic and Jules, and their two teenagers, Joni and Laser (really? Laser ?), as the family navigates the introduction of the kid's bio-dad, Paul. Nic and Jules chose to use the same sperm donor for both their children, and when Joni turns 18, she contacts her bio-dad so her brother can meet him. The two kids chose to keep this a secret from Nic and Jules, thinking their moms wouldn't approve. However, eventually, the two find out and decide to meet Paul themselves. Paul causes tension within the family when he begins to try and take on a "father" role to Joni and Laser, upsetting Nic's usual control of the family. What adds to that tension is the eventual affair that begins between Jules and Paul. After Paul hires Jules for a landscaping job, the two become close and Paul's appreciation towards Jules kicks off the affair. Nic eventually finds out about the affair, causing a rift within the family....

  Moonlight is a 2016 film directed by Barry Jenkins. The film follows Chiron through his adolescence, teen, and adult life through three acts; Act One: Little , Act Two: Chiron , and Act Three: Black . During the first act, we see Chiron deal with emotional abuse at home while dealing with bullying at school. Also during this time we meet Juan, a man who meets Chiron after he is chased by his schoolmates. Juan acts as a teacher for Chiron, as well as a masculine figure in his life. However, by the time we get to Act Two, we learn that Juan has passed away. During Act Two, Chiron continues to navigate his sexuality while being bullied by his classmates. During both Act One and Act Two, Chiron is told he is “too soft.” However, after being punched by Kevin (a boy he had a sexual encounter with) and then attacked by another group of classmates, Chiron becomes “hard,” as we can see when he smashes a chair over his bully. This shift can be interpreted as Chiron falling into toxic masc...

Pariah is a 2011 indie film directed by Dees Rees. The film follows Alike, a Black lesbian, who is struggling to navigate her sexuality and her religious family. Over the course of the film, Alike explores her sexuality and expression while keeping her identity a secret from her parents. However, eventually, her parents find out, and she is kicked out of her house after her mother physically attacks her. Later, her father comes to see her and attempts to convince her to come home, but Alike chooses to stay away, instead leaving to begin college early.  In her family life, Alike is pressured by her mother to conform to heteronormativity and religious culture. In contrast, outside her family life, Alike tries to conform to the butch and club culture her friend Laura is part of. However, both scenes are not the right fit for her, and through a friendship/brief relationship with Bina, Alike is able to finally find her own sense of self. Someone mentioned in class that each character, A...

Weekend , directed by Andrew Haigh, is a 2011 UK film following a man named Russ and his short but impactful relationship with Glen, another man he meets at a gay bar. As the title of the film suggests, the relationship between Russ and Glen only lasts a weekend, with Glen leaving for Portland, Oregon, at the end of the weekend. Although the two do not "end up together" in the traditional heteronormative sense, it cannot be understated that the two had large impacts on each other's lives. I actually appreciated that the two didn't end up together; during the end train scene I was half expecting Russ to go with Glen or for Glen to stay, but I thought what happened was more realistic. Russ couldn't uproot his life for Glen, and Glen couldn't halt his trajectory for Russ, especially since the two only just met. There's something beautifully heartbreaking about the end and, as the film's ending song says, it's bittersweet.  Another thing I enjoyed abou...

Boys Don’t Cry is a 1999 biographical film directed by Kimberly Peirce based on the murder of Brandon Teena. Brandon Teena was a transgender man living in Nebraska who was raped and later murdered by two men, John Lotter and Tom Nissen. As a trans person living in Nebraska, the film and the real-life events that it’s based on hit close to home. This, along with the graphic depictions of rape and acts of violence that are shown in the movie, is why I’m personally not watching this film. So, instead of watching the film and providing a review, I thought I would go into detail about why I am not watching it, showing that sometimes reasons why one doesn’t watch a film can be just as insightful as a film review.       As I mentioned before, Boys Don’t Cry is based on the murder of a transgender man living in Nebraska. Halberstam described the film as having a “decidedly queer and unconventional narrative” that is ascribed to the film's success. However, I don’t see what ...

Milk is a biographical drama film about Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in California and one of the first in the United States. The film follows his move to San Francisco, his political career, and his ultimate assassination by fellow supervisor Dan White. While some have criticized the film for sanitizing Milk’s life and making him out to be a martyr, many view the film as a wide success. As someone who only knew the baseline information about Milk and his work, I thought the film was interesting and educational. It’s clear that a lot of thought and care was put into this film, from the time it took to actually begin production to the thought-out set design. It was intriguing reading about and then seeing how the producers of the film created a time machine back to when the events of the film occurred. I can’t imagine what it was like for those, like B. Ruby Rich, who were alive during Milk’s work to walk onto set and be transported back to that time. Even though I...