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10 Years of imagination >>Montreal's gay and lesbian film fest ushers in a second decade by MATTHEW HAYS
Enough bitching about the assholes. Among this year's highlights are: Licensed to Kill, in which filmmaker Arthur Dong tours numerous prisons to interview convicted gay bashers about their crimes. For anyone who thinks the work of gay liberation is over, this film is required viewing: the murderers make some truly depressing remarks about why they killed. Deepa Mehta's Fire, which has set off a storm of controversy in India, where the lesbian relations in the film have not pleased all viewers. Mehta's latest film is gorgeous, lyrical and innovative. Boyfriends follows the adventures of three gay couples as they convene for a weekend in the country, and he film is gaining comparisons to Love! Valour! Compassion! Ultra-low-budget production values (dialogue that's sometimes tricky to make out, shaky cinematography) don't get in the way of the fact that Boyfriends is a compelling look at contemporary gay relationships. Since this festival marks a tenth anniversary, organizers have chosen several of their favourites to screen once more. Not to be missed: Safe Soap, Anne Golden's spoofy ad; R.S.V.P., Laurie Lynd's striking film about loss and mourning; Trevor, the brilliant Oscar-winning short about a Diana Ross-obsessed adolescent's coming out and, of course, the extensive retrospective of the work of John Greyson. Last, but not least, is the special benefit screening of Fassbinder's Querelle, co-organized by Image & Nation and the Bad Boy Club Montreal. The drop-dead gorgeous Brad Davis (who died of AIDS-related causes in 1992) stars in Fassbinder's landmark adaptation of the Genet novel. After seeing Querelle, Andy Warhol remarked: "It made me hot for the whole day. I think the film will make lots of money. The kids will love it." How's that for a recommendation? The Querelle benefit is this Friday, Oct. 10 at the Parisien. The Image & Nation film festival runs this Oct. 15-27. Info 285-4467
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Difficult as it is to believe, it's been 10 years since Image & Nation, Montreal's fantastic gay and lesbian film festival, began reeling their stuff. A good deal has changed since then, and it seems every year there are more reasons to rejoice about the increasing exposure of queers in the mainstream. As for those het journalists who've been complaining about reverse discrimination from gays lately--they really are unconscionable and pathetic excuses for critics who wouldn't know what irony was if it hit them over the head with a two-by-four with nails sticking out of it. In their grubby little hearts, they're exactly what they are hypocritically pretending to decry: bigots. They should attend the fest only if they can pry their steel-trap minds open by the opening screening.