The Queer Film Review // swenkemedia.com | Naturally Fabulous Insight

a queer//womens’ film history lesson.

a queer//womens’ film history lesson.

A queer//womens’ film history lesson.

Robert Mapplethorpe
Pop sex images are ubiquitous and easy to digest but they lack substance and identity. Robert Storr, Dean of the Yale University School of Art, in his lecture “What is Too Taboo in Contemporary Art” acts as the gatekeeper of knowledge, showing off work that is hard to understand but ultimately reveals […]

Basso Broadway, a series of art events to launch Basso Magazin, is bringing the flair of Berlin to New York. It couldn’t happen at a better time. Walking down Broadway, surrounded by corporate chain stores, it’s easy to forget what the streets use to signify for New York artists: pain, misery, and the hope of […]

The Legacy Project
Parting Glances
Nick is infected with AIDS. Michael loves Nick, but he’s married to Robert. Nick is dying. Robert takes an assignment in Africa to let Michael and Nick work it out. Parting Glances, a film by director Bill Sherwood, is a tribute to how three gay men care for each other during the […]

G.I. Jane
QueerFilmReview.com
Ridley Scott
As Lieutenant O’Neil, glistening with sweat, curls her lower body towards her feet locked above her, she reveals bulging muscles and a relentless attitude. Her freshly shaved head reinforces her fierce attitude, making this body building scene from Ridley Scott’s film, GI Jane, indulgently butch. It elucidates the film’s core tension: one woman’s […]

Dir. Jarrah Gurrie

Two minutes and thirty-six seconds is all director Jarrah Gurrie needs to communicate the battle between love and loss. Simple and direct, Gurrie does not waste time with gratuitous shots or unnecessary coverage. Pedro Andrade, the heart broken lover and the film’s only actor, takes paint intended for the walls and outlines […]

I don’t think it’s possible to say enough good things about Hairspray. The latest incarnation is the 2007 remake of John Water’s 1988 film. Waters deserves credit for how fabulous this film is, but Leslie Dixon (writer) and Adam Shankman (director) helped continue the story’s popularity with glowing success. Original, hilarious, and honest […]

Bruce LaBruce, director of OTTO; OR, UP WITH DEAD PEOPLE took a moment to speak with QFR about Maya Deren, nonconformity, Queer culture, and the craft of filmmaking. Bruce has a unique vision and fearlessly fused beauty and horror to create a truly captivating, honest story. Beneath the gruesome appearance of Otto, the potential zombie, […]

“Why must people focus on the darkness in the world when all most people want to do is achieve some kind peace.” This line from director Jennifer Phang’s and producer Reuben Lim’s film elucidates one of the primary tensions of the film: an impeding sense of doom about human relantionships, our treatement of our homes, […]

Creating independent film is like sewing a patchwork quilt. As filmmakers stitch together their stories using light and lenses as needle and thread, the product is as memorable as it is personal. Kelly Sebastian’s film, “a gIRL aND a gOLDFISH”, is a bright patch; it is a story of love and loss, forcing viewers to […]

New media has the potential to invigorate communities who are desperate to see accurate portrayals of themselves in media. New media could be the voice of the people – like television it can instantly convey information, but the cost and complexities of developing it are manageable by the average American person. The internet could invent […]