In Miami, Florida, when it comes to movies, when one door closes, another opens. As the Miami Film Festival finishes celebrating its 43rd Edition, a few days later, the city welcomes OUTshine LGBTQ+ Film Festival, South Florida’s premier LGBTQ+ cultural arts event, which has been going strong since 1998.  This year, they both had to deal with the fact that the Regal Cinema Chain shuttered its landmark theater, which was Miami Beach’s only major multiplex.  Big kudos to both festival organisers for ducking and diving to ensure the ‘show went on’. 

Our thoughts on Mayor Steven Meiner letting this happen are unprintable, ESPECIALLY after last Spring when he actively initiated an attempt to evict a local independent theater, O Cinema South Beach, and revoke its city funding after it scheduled screenings of the award-winning documentary No Other Land.

Following on the heels of his excellent debut movie 15 Years, queer Israeli filmmaker Yuval Hahadi’s new film  A MAN WALKS DOWN THE STREET is the compelling story of Raanan, a middle-aged man who, for the first time, faces his internalized homophobia and tries to make amends with his past.  It recently picked up the Best Film Award at the Austin Film Festival.

Barbara Forever, a fascinating, intimate portrayal of the pioneering lesbian film-maker, feminist activist, lover, and artist. With an archived collection of over eighty films, plus a treasure trove of memorabilia, director Brydie O’Connor struck gold when she began her research into the life and times of the inimitable lesbian movie queen.

Any new film from queer provocateur Greg Araki is always a much-welcomed event, and this, his 11th movie, is no exception. I Want Your Sex is an erotic thriller that invites viewers into the seductive world of contemporary art and desire. Cooper Hoffman stars as Elliot, a wide-eyed newcomer who secures a position working for the enigmatic artist Erika Tracy (Olivia Wilde).  To Elliot’s surprise, Erika recruits him as her sexual muse, drawing him deeper into a labyrinth of power games and obsession. Hoffman’s boy-next-door charm makes Elliot’s journey feel achingly human, while Wilde commands the screen with a performance that is deliciously magnetic and sexy.

Maspalomas is an interesting character study about what happens when an older man goes back into the closet. Older gay men are rarely given such visibility on our screens, and the directors dive in deep, with sex scenes, full frontal nudity, and main character profiles. The result is refreshing and thought-provoking. The tough relationship between parent and child is well portrayed and is very relatable. Soroiz is perfect at playing the contrasting sides of Vicente’s life, happily out of the closet and broken when concealing his sexuality. An important lesson in living your truest life.

Come out of the closet, they say. ¨Come out and find your tribe, your chosen family.¨ But finding your chosen family is sometimes easier said than done, especially if you are older, working in a small business, and an immigrant with a poor grasp of the local language. Montreal, My Beautiful (Montreal, Ma Belle) examines this and other issues in an award-winning, heartfelt lesbian drama by director Xiaodan He.

Life on the margins in Mexican society isn´t easy, and even more difficult if you’re transient and on the run. On The Road (En El Camino), an excellent, award-winning film noir by director David Pablos, takes us on a dark, tense, very gritty journey of raw masculinity, with violence and lust bedfellows, and a relevant nod to contemporary news events. On The Road (En El Camino) is that rare gem, a movie about life on the road that feels both thrilling and authentic. Mexico´s social problems are effectively incorporated into what is essentially a beautiful tale of human connection.

ON THE SEA . Helen Walsh has created something very special here with her thoughtful and realistic portrayal of two men connecting in a rural community.   Our middle-aged hero, Jack, has been married to his childhood sweetheart, Maggie, for decades. They have a teenage son, Tom, who is reluctant to join his father in the family business working the mussel beds, so Jack, currently in remission from cancer, finds himself waist-deep raking for mussels with his truculent brother and nephews.

One evening, at a birthday celebration in a pub, Jack goes to intervene upon witnessing a rugged stranger get into an altercation with some locals, but Maggie stops him, ‘it’s not your fight’. The following day, Jack sees that newcomer Daniel has found work on his friend Bernie’s boat, but then an incident on the dockside with Jack’s son Tom and some other lads sees them connect while going to Bernie’s aid.

The Opening Night film is THE DINNER. Set in the turbulent aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, a grand dinner is planned to celebrate the nationalist triumph of Franco in the iconic and luxurious Hotel Palace in Madrid. But what the victors don’t know is who’s in the kitchen… Set on April 15th, 1939, just two weeks after the war’s end, Franco invites his top generals for a night of triumph. But in the hotel’s kitchen, a group of defeated Republican chefs is secretly preparing the meal—while also cooking up their last chance to escape the country.

THE DIVINE TRAGEDY the latest film from award-winning Mexican filmmaker Sergio Tovar Velarde is an event you will not want to miss.  It’s the tale of two totally different gay half-brothers; Cristain is getting divorced after his 25-year reunion falls apart, and has to learn how to get out into the world again.  Meanwhile, the younger Ray is a sex addict who seems to live out his life in a non-stop series of orgies, and for the first time in their lives, the brothers end up as roommates.  Velarde has a perceptive way of showing how totally different contemporary queer ‘relationships’ work, and what’s even more refreshing, unlike  most American queer filmmakers, he has no hesitation in making the sex scenes full on 

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