Back in 1981 when the first Chicago Lesbian & Gay International Film Festival took place , all the films were shown in a 90-seat folding-chair screening room on West Hubbard Street, and was completely sold out.  Fast forward to 2026, and the Reeling: The Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival is the second longest-running film festival of its kind, and prides itself on showcasing the best LGBTQ+ films and videos each year.

Its fabulous, eclectic, and diverse queer programming includes award-winning international feature films to social documentaries to experimental shorts.  Not only has Reeling become one of the most important cultural events for Chicagoans, it also attracts LGBTQ+ people from throughout the Midwest who consider the festival to be the highlight of their cinematic year 

As usual, QUEERGURU’S team of reviewers went through the entire program in detail to bring you  OUR TOP LIST OF MUST-SEE FILMS: here they are in alphabetical order.

A MAN WALKS DOWN THE STREET: it has taken Israeli filmmaker Yuval Hadadi 15 years to direct his 2nd feature film (actually, his debut was called 15 Years). It’s the tale of Raanan, a middle-aged man, who returns home after 30 years abroad. A chance encounter with an elderly man unlocks troubled memories, and a brief affair with a much younger man sends him spiraling through generational rifts. This tender, poignant movie has really resonated with Film Festivals this, and we are sure it will continue to do so here in Chicago

Not every indie queer movie is destined for an Academy Award or even a prestigious Queer Palm, but if anybody had a category for Campiest Film of the year, Queerguru knows several we could very happily nominate, especially BODY BLOW. We were drawn in by the one-line synopsis of ‘DUTY, DESIRE AND A TWINK THAT WON’T QUIT’, the latest movie from Australian filmmaker Dean Francis (whose last film was DROWN …. with an unforgettable cast of hunky lifeguards … check out QG review HERE).

“Jaripeo” is a clear-eyed survey of the queer culture that exists within Michoacán’s hypermasculine rodeos.The opening scene features a white Toyota truck winding through the hills surrounding Michoacán, reaching a crest where a vast expanse of cornfields comes into view. Mojica (Efraín Mojica) is the driver, while Zweig (Rebecca Zweig) occupies the back seat. From this spot, Mojica recalls their experiences visiting the rodeos where drunkenness, partying, flirtation, and queer desires take hold. Mojica and Zweig also speak to the many gay men who parse their lustful fixation on masculinity, either in themselves or in their flings and partners.  It’s so refreshing to see that even in a small rural city in Mexico, there is acceptance and community to be found, which can/must lead to better things 

La Bola Negra (The Black Ball) is a narrative triptych about the lives of three different Spanish men at various times: a meditation derived from Lorca about the secret history of gay men’s sexuality, which has been erased, excluded or denied – sexuality transfigured into a mysterious, restorative poetry of the soul. In Lorca’s words, “only mystery keeps us alive” and in fact the small regret I have about this superlatively acted and beautifully shot film is that once the connection between the three narrative strands is explained, some of the mystery and poetry is lost.  Winner of the Palme d’Or at Cannes 

‘Madfabulous’ from director Celyn Jones (who incidentally played the truculent brother in the newly released ‘On the Sea’) and writer Lisa Baker (in her screenwriting debut) is based on the life of Henry Paget, the 5th Marquess of Anglesey.  Essentially, this is the story of a sweet and generous (to a fault) man who sometimes gets too lost inside his own head to appreciate the needs of those closest to him. This may well be a career-defining moment for Callum Scott Howells as Henry Paget. He imbues the role with the vulnerability and a ferocious flamboyance that the buttoned-down Colin, whom we all wanted to save, in ‘It’s a Sin’ couldn’t afford him.

To be perfectly honest, Mineshaft: The Cruising Murders, the latest documentary from one of Queerguru’s favorite filmmakers, Emmy Award Winner Jeffrey Schwarz, is one of  most anticipated film in the Fest for our whole team.  It’s the story behind what is still one of the most controversial queer films ever made. During the summer of 1979, the hottest club in New York City was on the streets of the West Village, where the gay community came together to protest the filming of a new Al Pacino movie called Cruising.  Spurred on by a series of articles by Village Voice writer Arthur Bell, these activists took offense to the idea of a film where homosexuality was explicitly linked to murderous depravity. In some quarters, Cruising has been reclaimed as a gay cinema classic, but we are leaving our options open right now. Like all of Schwarz’s films, this one is UNMISSABLE

Some movies get on our must-see list purely because of the cast. In the case of Montreal My Beautiful, it’s because of Joan Chen, who gives yet another of her impeccable heat-stirring performances. In this romantic drama about a woman exploring her queer desire later in life, Chen plays a dedicated mother, wife, and anchor in her community of Chinese ex-pats, who seems to have built the perfect life.  That all changes when she meets Camille, a free-spirited, younger Québécoise woman played by a charming Charlotte Aubin.  Chen is totally unmissable, as is the rest of the film.

“Few movies set the scene with such succinct clarity as ‘Test’ from writer (and lead) Brock Yurich and director Sam McConnell. Here, we watch as a handsome and very muscled man, wearing nothing but a cock sock, is rollered in fake tan by an older woman while singing a hymn and giggling” 

This is how Queerguru’s David Allen’s 5-star review started on TEST and went on to literally rave about this new movie: so much so that we jumped at the chance to sit down with the two creatives when they screened their film at the Provincetown International Film Festival.   PS The movie was just named the Emerging Narrative Feature Competition Winner: at Sydney’s 13th Queer Screen Film Fest last week.

VERY DEEP INSIDE  is a contemporary gay love story. Horacio (Omar Lozano) and Franco (Dave Torres) arrive in Mexico City to celebrate Horacio´s birthday. The meticulous plot unfolds chronologically, with on-screen indications of time, place, and room temperature in Celsius. The city and its emblematic places, day and night, are also protagonists. The film provides an accurate portrait of a gay couple safeguarding their love in the age of selfies and apps. It speaks volumes about open relationships. The poetic photo sequence with the closing credits and the final shot are not to be missed.

for full reviews on over 2000 queer films, check out www.queerguru.com and whilst you are there be sure to subscribe to get all the latest raves and rants on queer cinema .                                best of all its FREE