Reflecting a social networking-saturated youth culture where YouTube speaks directly to millions of kids, OMG/Hahaha offers a deeper, digitally filtered view into a seemingly superficial psyches of the MySpace generation. Edgy and intimate in the tradition of cutting edge film making inspired by Gus van Sant and Greg Araki, Morgan Jon Fox’s (Blue Citrus Hearts) film weaves a simple narrative together via part video blog, part improvisational narrative, and part pseudo documentary.  Omg/Hahaha is a pastiche of the lives of a diverse set of gay, straight and trans teens living in Memphis, TN.  One teen’s video blog frames the various stories and troubles from breakups, dying parents, unexpected pregnancy to homophobia.

A unique idea for a movie sucks you in (so to speak) from the very beginning and makes you feel like you’re watching, not a movie but a documentary or a MySpace vlog.  In fact, that was the very idea of director Morgan Jon Fox.  Some was scripted, most was improv, and together it makes for a pretty good film.  I think the younger generation would prefer this more than the ‘older’ folks, and I say ‘older’ with the utmost respect.  OMG/HaHaHa has a lot of internet lingo (like the title) written on screen as a running narrative throughout the picture (there is no narrator, per se, but rather a series of text message-like notes in place of where a narrator should be).  So if you’re not up to snuff with your internet dictionary, you may miss the point of a lot of scenes. What I found most fascinating was how comfortable these gay and transgendered teens were with themselves, and others, and their being out of the closet -- especially in a Southern US city.  As it’s quite apparent that the "actors" are really gay, if they aren’t out yet -- they will be outed by this film, that’s for sure (your gaydar will be going off). Check out the deleted scenes, as well.  Those are pretty good. [Review from azovfilms]

I know it  doesn’t really fit in here age-wise but it was way too cute to skip it. And it has an important message about gender clichés of course. Try to ignore the horrible subtitles, rather be thankful there are some; Spanish speaking people tend to believe everyone speaks their language conspicuously often ;)

Just like the flower in the opening scenes, 12-year-old Maxi is a beautiful accent in the gritty underworld on the outskirts of Manila, where he lives. Living with his outlaw father and two older brothers, Maxi dutifully infuses everything he does for them with love. From cooking and sewing to braiding his brother’s hair, Maxi fulfils the role of dalaga for his family, living as a young lady in the absence of femininity and their deceased mother. We follow Maxi through his glowing and textured world of shopping, reenacting beauty pageants, and hanging out at a local DVD stand that screens movies for abundant audiences of transient children. But Maxi’s emotions blossom late one night when he is rescued from neighbourhood thugs by Victor, a kind rookie cop. Smitten with the handsome policeman, Maxi begins to feel pulled between the petty-thief family that he loves and the law and romance Victor embodies.

Veering from adorable and light to bleak and tragic, Maximo Oliveros is all over the emotional map, but in a realistic way, sort of like life itself. The most interesting part of the movie is Lopez’s Maxi, a kid who should be screwed up but instead is totally comfortable in his own skin. Even when the movie is at its most melodramatic, Lopez keeps his performance in check, making this most unreal kid seem very real indeed.

The Philippines’ submission for the 2006 foreign-language film Oscar, "The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros" is a unique coming-of-age film, for Maxi is such an intriguing mix of the streetwise and the innocent, self-aware yet emotionally vulnerable. Solito’s ability to inspire such a daring, unself-conscious portrayal from Lopez is no less than astonishing.

Preteen sexuality is a sensitive subject, but director Auraeus Solito handles it with dignity, never becoming exploitative. Whatever you do, stick around for the final scene, a heartfelt tribute to Carol Reed’s 1949 masterwork "The Third Man." – New York Post

Wikipedia | IMDb |  Review (English) | Review (Deutsch)

Jannis, a cute gay post-adolescent, and his adorable mute boyfriend, Patrick, infiltrate a circus to shoot an undercover documentary exposing an underground political conspiracy responsible for a recent spate of assassination attempts.  But when Patrick meets Mo, a young woman whose sensitivity to sunlight forces her to live by night, Jannis’ jealousy threatens the entire project.  Only Patrick’s unwavering devotion to the boy he loves will help save the day and reveal the truth of who is behind the conspiracy.

Set in the not so distant future, Whispering Moon is visually stunning like nothing seen before it.  Blending media, narratives and skin to tell an enticing story about storytelling the film uses cutting edge techniques to move the plot along.  As we see the story unfold, Jannis, the storyteller, interacts with the characters and their environments, creating an eye-catching visual landscape that challenges the audience even as it entertains.

Whispering Moon is a quirky film with quirky characters that bring you on a quirky journey. The story is full of weird twists and just when you think the script is going one way, the plot thickens and sends you in another direction.  The whole story surrounds Jannis and his quest to uncover the truth about some mysterious deaths, crooked politicians, and poisonous frogs.  Jannis’ mute friend Patrick (unable to speak since early childhood), is helping out by using his connections within the local television media; Patrick’s mother is an investigative journalist.  Complicating things slightly for young Jannis is his inability to get inside Patrick’s pants.

Official Site | IMDb |  Reviews

Update: "Outrage" premieres on HBO this week.

From Academy Award-nominated documentary filmmaker Kirby Dick  comes OUTRAGE, a searing indictment of the hypocrisy of closeted politicians with appalling gay rights voting records who actively campaign against the LGBT community they covertly belong to. Boldly revealing the hidden lives of some of the United States’ most powerful policymakers, OUTRAGE takes a comprehensive look at the harm they’ve inflicted on millions of Americans, and examines the media’s complicity in keeping their secrets.

With analysis from prominent members of the gay community such as Congressman Barney Frank, former NJ Governor Jim McGreevey, activist Larry Kramer, radio personality Michelangelo Signorile, and openly gay congresswoman Tammy Baldwin (Representative, Wisconsin 2nd district), OUTRAGE probes deeply into the psychology of this double lifestyle, the ethics of outing closeted politicians, the double standards that the media upholds in its coverage of the sex lives of gay public figures, and much more.

These polemics have a kind of natural charge to them, but there are glimpses in the movie of something more complex and in a way more interesting -- the way closet psychology mixes with political ambition to create a fascinating hybrid of warring desires. -- Philadelphia Daily News

Official Site | Wikipedia | IMDb |  Review

Six Short Films about Guys who hustle

The hustler is a common figure in gay arts and culture. While sex workers of all sorts appear in straight cultural productions, the queer hustler is different from his female other. Rarely, to the best of my knowledge, are female sex workers in heterosexual arts subject to the kind of sympathetic characterization and subcultural adulation as the queer hustler, gigolo, rent-boy, or street-corner cocksucker.

The hustler is simultaneously tragic, romantic, and heroic. Often his tragedies appear the result of dysfunctional if not outright abusive families, and are further tied to a general and pervasive societal homophobia. So, in Boys Briefs 4‘s Into the Night, Marcus’ (Bryan Marshall) father has rejected him, presumably because of his son’s homosexuality, and in Boy, Sam’s (Jesse Lee) life is characterized not only by poverty, but also by seemingly casual homophobia and violence. The hustlers’ stories represent all too common experience of anti-queer violence and self-determination in the face of intolerance.

The hustler is romantic as far as the audience’s fantasy extends to “rescuing” him. This is a role commonly fulfilled by a caring john. In Rock Bottom, Billy (John Militello), a sweet, overweight, 30-something, picks up twinkie street hustler Jason (Timothy Lee DePriest) and takes him home. Typical hustler-john shenanigans take place; Billy makes awkward small talk, Jason cases the apartment, insists he doesn’t kiss. Yet a real rapport develops between the two, and the film ends with Jason crossing his own hustler boundaries to kiss Billy, suggesting things might get better for both. In Gold, the aging, nearly blind artist Cal (Aron Tager) employs hustler Jay (P.J. Lazic) not for his body, but to assist him in painting new canvases; in teaching Jay about passion and beauty, he leads the young man to a kind of salvation.

Read On...

XXY is a tastefully discreet, deeply moving drama that addresses the awkward dilemma of an "intersex" teenager with remarkable sensitivity. ("Intersex" being the preferred term for those born with shared sex chromosomes and what doctors call "genital ambiguity.") For 15-year-old Alex having an intersex body is a constant source of anguished confusion. Alex has been raised as a girl by loving parents, who moved from Argentina to an island off the coast of Uruguay to spare Alex from adolescent torment by insensitive schoolmates. But now Alex has stopped taking the hormone pills that suppress male characteristics, suggesting a pivotal life choice has been made. When Alex’s mother invites a plastic surgeon and his family to the island, she quietly hopes Alex will consider "reassignment" surgery, while her husband allows Alex more freedom of choice. When Alex and the surgeon’s teenage son Alvaro act upon a tentative, mutual attraction, XXY deepens into a poignant study of sexual identity and self-acceptance.

Making her remarkably assured directorial debut, Argentine writer-director Lucía Puenzo has fully accounted for the turbulent emotions that swirl around Alex and her family. "XXY" is the first film to address intersex identity with graceful compassion, and Puenzo tells Alex’s story with simple, honest and forthright integrity.

What ensues between them, both psychologically and sexually, is one of the strangest, most fascinating dysfunctional relationships I’ve seen in a movie. The acting is outstanding. – Boston Globe

Official Site | Wikipedia | IMDb |  Review (English) | Review (Deutsch)