Posts Tagged: Queer
Wave of Pink
On June 14, the Burnaby school board voted on an anti-homophobia and anti-heterosexism policy, and a rally in support was planned. Now, there had already been pro-homophobia rallies, so would we have to face a counter-rally? In a way I kind of wanted one: let’s be honest, part of me likes a clear-cut, good-vs-evil confrontation every now and then.
Lock Up Your Sons and Daughters
Bill Taylor put together a collection of old anti-gay propaganda to educate and entertain. easy to laugh, and in fact that’s part of the point. Laughter is the best medicine, and celebrating how far we’ve come is part of Gay Pride. But it’s also important to learn how our enemies think, and what they tell people about us.
High School Confidential
The Out on Screen Society does a lot more than put out quality queer cinema. They also run Out in Schools, a program to put queer films in schools all across the province, to facilitate discussion and fight homophobia and bullying. The news have been full of stories of gay teens committing suicide due to bullying—and don’t think it doesn’t happen in Canada. That’s why Out in Schools is such a vital program, because it may be the difference between life and death for some students.
Vancouver International Fringe Festival
I don’t think I’d ever gone to a Fringe show before, and this year I went to two! It should have been three, but I’d double-booked myself on Friday and missed Morgan Brayton’s Raccoonery. I thought about rescheduling (which would have meant buying another ticket, since Fringe policy clearly states there are no refunds or exchanges), but I’d just come down with a cold, so that plan was kaput. Still, I got to enjoy two really excellent shows:
Vancouver Queer Film Festival: Final Thoughts
Wow, what a trip it’s been. Going to so many screenings and then blogging about them will really take it out of you, but it was so worth it! I’ve seen some truly excellent movies this year, along with some… not so excellent ones. Well, they can’t all be winners, right?
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: The Fish Child / El Niño Pez
This is the story of Lala, the teenaged daughter of a rich Buenos Aires judge, and her lover Ailin, a maid in her family’s house. The pair plans to to run away together to Ailin’s family home in Paraguay near Lago Ypoa, but when Lala’s father is murdered under mysterious circumstances, Ailin takes the blame to protect her lover. What will happen to them now? Can they escape the law and live out their dreams?
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: From Coast To Coast Is Queer
It’s good to be queer and Canadian! This brand-new installment complements The Coast Is Queer to show queer shorts from all over this fair land of ours. The program included a dozen titles, but I’ll only list the ones that made a strong impression on me.
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: Plan B
Well, that was pretty good: an odd little love triangle out of Argentina, with some very cute moments, excellent acting, and nice cinematography.
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: Watercolors
Wow, that was… really not good at all. A deadly earnest, by-the-numbers coming out story that felt ripped straight out of an after-school special.
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: The Taqwacores
This movie kicked ass! Bursting with energy, funny, some great cinematography, good character development and of course some great music (I’m not into punk, but damn, you couldn’t not like it). Educational, too: The Taqwacores served as a crash course on Islam, and a look into a culture I’m really not familiar with.
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: All Boys
This film by Markku Keikkinen is an expose of the Eastern European gay porn industry, focusing on a minor porn studio based in Prague, one of many that sprang up in Eastern Europe in the mid-90′s. It’s a brutally fair and unforgiving look past the fantasies, at the actual business of selling sex and the people who make it work.
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: Violet Tendencies
Meet Violet, the last single fag hag in her circle. She has an active social life with a large number of lovely, exciting, eccentric friends, friends who love everything about her… except her pussy. Will Violet ever find a man to fulfill all her needs? Will she ever meet her elusive “fag stag,” or is she looking for love in all the wrong places?
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: The Coast Is Queer
Wow, that was an awesome crop of movies this year! Fifteen short films were showcased, ranging in quality from “pretty good” to “excellent”. I’ll just mention the ones that made a strong impression on me.
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: Riffs On The Theme Of Activism
For various reasons I missed The Love That Won’t Shut Up, Rex vs Singh, and The Portside. I’d be damned if I was going to miss the last of the screenings commissioned by the Queer History Project.
Riffs consists of five very short films (about 5 minutes long on average), with the focus being on a panel discussion with the directors. Moving and informative, Riffs is an excellent conclusion to an already fantastic series.
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: The Butch Factor
Hm. Okay. This documentary is going to be a tough one to review. From what I’m hearing it was extremely polarising, with people saying they hated it, it made them angry, they almost walked out. I didn’t almost walk out, and it didn’t make me angry; I agreed with the basic thesis, but had definite problems with some of the actual interviews and scenes.
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: Mr. Right
I expected a light, fluffy comedy like The People I’ve Slept With, but this movie turned out to have quite a bit of drama and character development.
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: The People I’ve Slept With
Oh my fucking gawd, that was amazing. I was a little hesitant to like it, since just before the screening I learned that director Quentin Lee also directed the short Little Love, which I wasn’t that crazy about. But good news, it looks like his forte is light comedy!
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: Pornography: A Thriller
Well, that was a mindfuck and a half! Hot porn stars, a mythical snuff tape and urban legends collide in this creepy nightmarish thriller. From the synopsis I expected weird horror, and at first that’s what it looked like I was getting. The first act, dealing with the life and disappearance of porn star Mark Anton, was really disturbing but had no overtly supernatural elements.
Vancouver Queer Film Festival Review: Strong and Silent Types
My first show of the festival was a collection of five short films about—as the name implies—men and masculinity. A little uneven, it was still a very good kickoff to my VQFF experience.
Vancouver Pride 2010: Liberate!
But no, there was no rain, and though the sun did come out in the afternoon, it never got terribly hot. Which was a good thing, because I had to move my ass for over two hours, either walking, dancing or volleying.
