If you are a regular reader of QUEERGURU, you will know that Ireland is never far from our thoughts or from our pages.  Last week we shared the news about Cork getting the country’s first permanent LGBTQIA+ Exhibition.  Today we revisit the GAZE International LGBT Film Festival, which takes place in Dublin, Ireland, annually since 1992, and it has become Ireland’s largest LGBTQ film event and the country’s biggest LGBT gathering aside from Dublin Pride

It also screens some great queer movies: this year 25 international features and 10 eclectic shorts programmes over five days, including Irish, European and World Premieres.  It kicked off last night (wiuth Perdo Almodovar’s new masterpiece, Bitter Christmas) and when we asked what we can expect to see and hear over the next few days we were told: We present forgotten gay artists, lesbians from Lesbos, trans women on the catwalk and trans guys in the sauna.  We celebrate Black queer artistry, Bollywood musicals, and old lesbians. We bring you a bisexual music icon, a nude beach, a drag dramedy and queer cheerleaders. We interrogate taboos and we celebrate resistance. We also offer a workshop for film critics, a get-together for festival-goers and filmmakers, four parties (at the last count), a brand new ticketing system for festival bundles and offers, and of course world-class cinema from end to end. 

As usual, we  had Queegurus’ Team of Reviewers study the whole program in detail to come up with our TOP PICKS OF MUST-SEE MOVIES :

A beautiful, naked, athletic, fifty-something woman strikes various bodybuilder poses with a cheeky glint in her eyes. Barbara Hammer is in control, and she knows how to get your attention. So begins Barbara Forever, a fascinating, intimate portrayal of the pioneering lesbian filmmaker, 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.”

“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 

Queerguru are passionate about queer history, and this fab new documentary by Cara Holmes is extremely rare as it’s a story of Irish Lesbians. In the bad old days when LGBTQA communities around the globe were facing intense social and legal hostility, a group if Irish women created a lifeline for those experiencing isolation, abuse and profound loneliness.  Lesbian Lines brings together an ensemble cast of original helpline volunteers and actors to breathe life into this rich, undocumented history, weaving collective memories into a moving and joyful new archive. Blending dramatised sequences with archival material, it is a story of community, connection and the transformative power of listening. ITS AN UNMISSABLE WORLD PREMIERE

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.  This 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

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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