Friday, June 27, 2008

Worldly Affairs (2008)

"Worldly Affairs" (2008) shorts program of international films

Tá: Two young men gather in a toilet stall to snort some cocaine and talk about sex. One asks the other to help him get aroused, but it takes a bit of work. Very cute boys, and a nice surprise ending; highly recommended
, dir. Felipe Sholl, 2007 Brazil 5 min., in Portuguese with English subtitles

HerzHaft: The 33yo soccer coach and a 15yo member of the team are having an affair, but things get dicey when the boy's (lesbian) mother finds out. Treads deftly between the extremes of NAM­BLA's view that children's sexuality is the same as adults' and the religious right's view that children have no sexu­al­ity at all; the reality is far more complicated. Excellent, MUST SEE
HerzHaft, dir. Martin Busker, 2007 Germany 15 min., in German with English subtitles

Bramadero: Two men find a con­struc­tion site where they can explore their passion for each other. No dialogue at all, and no shortage of skin. However, the film seems to mistake slow motion for emotional intensity, and the lack of dialogue ultimately results in a lack of storyline. Eye candy aside, is this porn trying to pretend to be art or art trying to be porn? My recommendation: choose one or the other, because Bramadero fails at trying to be both. Not recommended
Bramadero, dir. Julián Hernández, 2007 Mexico 22 min., no dialogue

Bonne Mère: The Frameline program says only this: "Alfred leaves northern France for Marseille to look for his mother." She works as a prostitute, and he changes his name and becomes a hooker, too, to be just like dear old Mom. I just didn't see any point to it; my reaction is summed up in a single word: "Huh??" Not recommended
Bonne Mère, dir. Maxime Desmons, 2008 Canada 3 min., in French with English subtitles

The Postcard (그림엽서): Last year, filmmaker Josh Kim presented his first short, The Police Box; he's back with another fun short this year. A young man comes into the post office day after day to send a series of postcards with highly personal messages but only an address with no name. The gossipy female clerks try to figure out which of them he's flirting with, never guessing the truth, until things come to a head. Highly recommended
The Postcard, dir. Josh Kim, 2008 South Korea 15 min., in Korean with English subtitles

Lot's Wife: A young man's family comes to his tenement to "rescue" him from his life of "shame," living with another young man. His mother isn't sure how to act, so she just watches. Even at 9 minutes, this short felt more like a prelude than an actual story. Recommended
Lot's Wife, dirs. Koray Durak & Harjant Gill, 2008 Turkey 9 min., in Turkish with English subtitles

Country Life (Landleben) (Vie champetre): Julian, a shy country boy, just came out to his best friend Simone. She introduces him to another gay friend, but Julian meets his mismatch in the very urban party boy Adi. The two young men are worlds apart, one seeking quiet solitude in the mountains while the other looks for the gay clubs in the big city. Cute, fun, and funny, with very cute boys. MUST SEE
Country Life (Landleben) (Vie champetre), dir. Lukas Egger, 2007 Switzerland 16 min., in (Swiss) German with English subtitles

You, Me and Him (Café com Leite): A young man and his boyfriend are planning to move into an apartment together, finally getting out from under their respective parents' roofs. Their plans change suddenly, and the two lovers must learn to live with the kid brother, and decide what to do about their plans for a honeymoon trip. Very well done, although I thought the ending left a few too many loose ends. Highly recommended
You, Me and Him (Café com Leite), dir. Daniel Ribeiro, 2007 Brazil 18 min., in Portuguese with English subtitles

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3 comments:

  1. Festival Cinema Gay (downloads)
    www.glsportugal.com

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  2. Any idea where to get English subtitles for Bramadero 2007

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sorry, no idea. Frameline keeps an archive of the websites for previous year's festivals, so the 2008 site might have contact info for the filmmaker or distributor.

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