Founded in 1988, NEWFEST, the New York LGBTQ+ Film Festival, is one of the world’s largest and most respected annual celebrations of the year’s best queer films from the U.S. and abroad–featuring nearly 150 films from more than 30 countries, as well as special events that bring together filmmakers, celebrities, movie lovers, and industry professionals, and is he largest convener of LGBTQ+ audiences in the city. As usual, we set the Queerguru Team of Reviewers loose on the entire program to come up with their TOP PICS OF MUST SEE MOVIES that are screening in Theaters or streaming online,
Jordan Firstman has added writer and director to his resume with his feature directorial debut, Club Kid, in which he also stars. This comedy-drama film also stars Cara Delevingne, Diego Calva, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, and Colleen Camp. In it, Firstman plays washed-up underground party promoter Peter whose life takes an unexpected turn when he is forced to care for Arlo, a 10-year old son he never knew he had. The film is already making waves, having premiered in the Un Certain Regard section of the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, where it was nominated for the prestigious Caméra d’Or and the Queer Palm.
Meanwhile, we are trying so hard not to be jealous of young actor Reggie Absolom, who plays Arlo, Peter’s son, and gets to call Firstman ‘daddy!’
Congratulations to queer Belgian filmmaker Lukas Dhont, whose two stars in his latest film COWARD (which is only his 4th!) Valentin Campagne and Emmanuel Macchia both won Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Festival. It’s part of a mutual love affair between Dhont and the Festival that began with his first film GIRL, which won him both the Caméra d’Or and the Queer Palm and a nomination for Prix Un Certain Regard
On the Western Front in the First World War, Belgian soldiers could form a theatrical troupe, often in drag, to entertain their comrades behind the lines and boost morale. Directed and co-written by this story of a gay affair in the army is heartfelt and well acted, if rather earnestly researched. Peter Bradshaw in The Guardian wrote Lukas Dhont’s war-set gay romance is a heartfelt examination of cowardice and lives lived in secret amid the brutality of battle
Elsinore, is a sensitive film starring actor Andrew Scott that tells a little-known story about the final years of Scottish actor Ian Charleson as he confronted his mortality during a production of Shakespeare’s Hamlet at the National Theatre. The film is an engaging triumph, with director Simon Stone and Andrew Scott in an Oscar-winning performance as Ian Charleson, supported by a strong ensemble cast. Elsinore is set in England during the late 1980s/early 90s when the HIV/AIDS virus brought major loss of life to the gay community. Ian Charleson was a trained actor who received worldwide fame in Hugh Hudson’s 1981 film Chariots of Fire. His career began on the fringe in Derek Jarman’s anti-establishment cinema and with an early performance as Hamlet. After mainstream success, Charleson’s career included Attenborough’s film Gandhi with Opera his final 1987 film made in Italy for the flamboyant Dario Argento.
Set in the aftermath of the 2016 Pulse shootings in Orlando, when 49 queer nightclubbers were slaughtered, Gays Against Guns has become a prominent organization in the struggle to introduce stricter gun control laws in the United States. Young LGBTQ+ people see gay clubs as sanctuaries and the bloody attack at Pulse was like the violation of a church, sending shockwaves through queer communities across America. The documentary filmmaker, Paul Rowley, has followed the group’s activities for nine years, personally recording protests and actions against all those who support and aid the sale of guns.
If QUEERGURU had its way, the indefatigable SISTER ROMA of the fabulous SISTERS OF PERPETUAL INDULGENCE would have been beatified by now. She has been at the forefront of the Sisters as they have devoted themselves to community service, ministry, and outreach to those on the edges, and to promoting human rights, respect for diversity, and spiritual enlightenment. AND they use humor and irreverent wit to expose the forces of bigotry, complacency, and guilt that chain the human spirit. And lest we should ever forget, all done whilst they are so stylishly robed
One of the most treasured events in their hometown of San Francisco is their ANNUAL HUNKY JESUS CONTEST every Easter, and this past year was their 45th Anniversary, which was a recognition of our trans brothers and sisters who are under siege. The theme was appropriately “No Easter Without The T.” Filmmaker Jennifer Kroot was there with 5 cameras + a couple of drones, and a full crew to capture this glorious party/celebration hosted by Sister Roma, and the unfettered excitement of the queer community. The end result is an exhilarating documentary that is had its World Premiere as the Opening Night Gala at the prestigious BFI Queer Film Festival.in London.and is now here in NY
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
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 as bedfellows, and a relevant nod to contemporary news events.
OUT OF THE WORDS: Love and commitment intertwine in this moving film, written and directed by Sal Bardo.
A cold, snowy winter landscape introduces a story of a close relationship interrupted. We watch time pass, letting things happen: differences settle, and revelations emerge in an intimate tale that may linger in our minds for a while. The protagonists are Max (Frances Fisher), married to Charlie (Bruce Davison); “whimsical” Diana Larosa (Mimi Kennedy), married to her dead husband, Wally; and Quinn (Stefanie Estes), Max and Charlie’s daughter. The well-chosen cast brings warmth and sensitivity to the characters’ cold, unsettling drama.
“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.
Uncle Roy, this intriguing doc makes a fascinating contribution to the queer history canon that may be lost forever except to the inquiring mind of award-winning documentary filmmaker Keri Pickett. It’s her Uncle in the title, whom she didn’t get to know until she followed him to NY to pursue her dream of becoming a professional photographer. He was a deeply private person, and she had absolutely no idea that he was considered a “forefather of gay photography”; she took it upon herself to reintroduce his portraits of a generation largely lost to AIDS. Over the next three decades, their relationship deepens, and Keri realizes that his photography and the world’s largest archive of theatrical figure skating need a home. As Roy slips into dementia, Keri struggles to care for him, and her efforts to preserve his legacy become more urgent. TOTALLY UNMISSABLE ESP FOR ALL QUEER HISTORY BUFFS
NewFest – LGBTQ+ Film and Media | New York NewFest38 Oct 15 – 25. |
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