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There is so much more high-quality LGBTQ+ focused entertainment than there used to be. Nothing proves this more that streaming service Revry, the world’s first global queer TV streaming network. The network has even launched their own award show for LGBTQ+ content. This makes finding the best LGBTQ+ movies on Revry right now a bit of a challenge, since its all queer content all the time! Even narrowing it down to a short thematic list, like this list of the best love stories, can be a challenge!
While queer content is everywhere these days, the site explains that “unlike many mainstream networks that may feature queer characters but are otherwise made for mainstream audiences, Revry is–unapologetically–queer and made for the queer community.” But here are a few favorites that help demonstrate what a storehouse of queer goodness Revry really is.
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Parting Glances
Robert and Michael at the opening of Parting Glances.
From Parting Glances
Some of the best LGBTQ+ movies on Revry are classics that might be hard to find on other platforms. Parting Glances is a prime example of a true LGBTQ+ classics on the platform. The film is a 1986 American drama that offers a realistic look at gay life in New York during the height of the AIDS crisis by focusing on a 24-hour period in the life of a gay male couple, Robert and Michael. Robert is about to be sent to Africa for a two-year gig at work, leaving Michael in New York, where he cares for his ex, Nick (notably a breakout role for actor Steve Buscemi), who is dying of AIDS. The film has been critically acclaimed for providing sensitive insight into gay life in the midst of the AIDS crisis. The movie's director, Bill Sherwood, himself died of complications from AIDS in 1990, leaving Parting Glances as his only feature film.
Presque Rien (English release as Come Undone)
Mathieu and C\u00e9dric on the beach in\u00a0Presque Rien / Come Undone
From Presque Rien
International films comprise some of the absolute best LGBTQ+ movies on Revry. And if you enjoy a little bit of steamy romance and a lot of teen angst, Come Undone might be right up your alley! Come Undone is a 2000 French-Belgian romantic drama film (originally released as Presque Rien which literally means Almost Nothing). The film was directed by Sebastien Lifshitz.
Set in Brittany, Come Undone revolves around the developing romance between two 18-year-olds, Mathieu and Cédric. Mathieu is vacationing in Brittany before going off to college in the fall, under the shadow of the death of his brother. While there he meets the attractive and on-the-prowl Cédric. The relationship barrels toward a dramatic conclusion, though the film does end with a hint of optimism.
Howl
James Franco as Allen Ginsberg sitting back-to-back with Aaron Tveit as Peter Orlovsky
From Howl
Art films have long been the refuge of LGBTQ+ stories, but in the last couple of decades, more and more art films have featured professional budgets and big-name cast members attached to their projects. Some of the best LGBTQ+ movies on Revry, be they feature-length or shorts, fall into this category.
Howl, the 2010 American film written and directed by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman, stars James Franco as 20th-century American poet Allen Ginsberg. The film details Ginsberg's 1955 Six Gallery debut and the 1957 obscenity trial that followed. While Franco received critical notice for his acting—though others are critical of having a straight male actor playing an LGBT lead role—the film itself was neither a critical nor commercial hit. The cinematic techniques used in the film—which isn't chronological and also involve intermittent use of animation—may have contributed to the mixed critical reception.
Meth Head
Lukas Hass, Meth Head
A lot of cinema that tells LGBTQ+ stories can offer presentations that are shallow or paper over some of the uglier sides of life. They are full of pretty people and focus on the things done to us. But some of the best LGBTQ+ drama gets real and holds focus, presenting the dark sides of our own experience unflinchingly.
Jane Clark's film Meth Head focuses on the way methamphetamine can ravage a life by specifically focusing on how it effects on Kyle, a gay man played by Lukas Haas, and those nearest him. Lavender Magazine wrote of Haas' role in this film: "Haas is shattering in a portrayal of self-destruction that gets specific in its emotion so that there is no track of generalized emotion that becomes parody. Every single moment he is on screen is real. He bravely reveals the deterioration of an addict. He is Oscar Nomination-worthy and it’s among the best addiction performances ever put to film, whether mainstream or GLBT-indie." For this high praise along, Meth Head ranks as one of the best LGBTQ+ movies on Revry
Tooth 4 Tooth
Tooth 4 Tooth
There are a LOT of LGBTQ+ horror fans out there, and there's not a whole lot of LGBTQ+ representation in horror. Sure there are exceptions, like You're Killing Me (2015) and low budget specialties like Kissing Darkness. Then there are mainstream horror films that reference the LGBTQ+ community, like the heavy gay overtones or A Nightmare on Elm Street 2.
Revry is building a collection of LGBTQ+ horror, but it's small so far. One of the best LGBTQ+ movies on Revry though is a horror short called Tooth 4 Tooth! In this creative attempt to tell a new kind of vampire story with LGBTQ+ characters and themes, we find a drag performer and an activist investigating the murder of a friend who find themselves caught in an old battle between those who feed on the blood of the fearful and those who feed on the blood of the hateful.
These are just a small representation of the best LGBTQ+ movies on Revry—there are a ton of others, and you truly can't go wrong. In addition to these films and many more, there are documentaries and shorts, as well as Revry original programs, LGBTQ+ themed series and local programming from around the world.
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Yeah, we don’t pronounce the “H”; don’t look at the “H”. It’s going to be a controversial I believe, but it’s good, politically incorrect is good. I see Francisco, our director, who’s in his late 20s, I see a young Pedro Almodóvar, but maybe a little more class, I don’t know, I mean Pedro is amazing, as long as people know about the movie and go see it; it’s a going to be a huge success.
Tell me a bit about your character.
This movie is so fun, my character, she is a completely crazy woman, I never played a role like this one before, I loved it so much, if they said to me that they messed it up and have to shoot it again, I would have said, when? When do we start? That is how much I love it, I loved working on this film and that’s how much I want people to see it.
Aside from leading the cast, your song “Enough”, is featured in the soundtrack. The song is an anthem of women’s empowerment and liberation. Tell me about that.
It’s about enough. Time’s up, it’s like a song from the 60s. The music is very from that era, the movie has that vibe too. It brings you back to that wonderful era. I would say that this is my new single. I put my career on hold because I became a political activist, to save Venezuela, so I put my career aside. So this is now the first single that’s coming up now. I paid for the song and I did the video, it’s called, “Shake it out”. You can see the video on YouTube. It’s a very fun song. But if you don’t have a team, it doesn’t matter how good the song is.
You have had an extraordinary career in film, the theater stage and as a musician. How much improvements do you seen in entertainment in terms of opportunities for Latin talent?
It’s a big difference. When I came here, it was very hard. I was very lucky. Because there are also a lot of actors and actresses that are good and talented, but I was at the right place at the right time. I think nowadays, Latinos have more opportunities than when I got here; Roma has an amazing team behind it. If we have all the press that Roma had, we can also win forever, because it’s a very good movie.
Maria Conchita Alonso, photo by Billy Kass
You have been a staunch advocate for LGBT Rights throughout your career. Tell me about your LGBT fans.
I’ve had one of my songs which is called, which is called La Loca, the crazy one, in some countries the gays play it as their anthem. It’s important to say that in Mexico and some Latin American countries, gay are called Loca, so it’s a way to reclaim the word. So they laugh at it and the important thing is to laugh at you and with you.
You have been very vocal on political issues, about your birth country of Cuba as well as Venezuela, where you grew up. A rollercoaster of change has happened in Cuba and Venezuela in the last ten years, with the latter in turmoil. What are your thoughts on the current situation?
But nothing changed (in Cuba). Cuba has been under the regime for sixty years. Nothing has changed. The people there are still tortured. The people still don’t have food. The ones that live well are the ones that are under the regime. The tourists have everything but the Cubans don’t. So that hasn’t changed. And in Venezuela, it’s been now twenty years, because Cuba owns Venezuela, controls Venezuela. It started with Chavez. Chavez is the one that brought all this misery, Maduro who was put there by Fidel, Fidel told Chavez to put Maduro in power because they could control Maduro very easily, even so more than Chavez, because Chavez was very strong, egotistical and very intelligent, Maduro is nothing of that, he just does what he is told to do, and so Chavez did it. But also, the election in Venezuela, the regime has controlled the elections, it’s who counts the vote, you know, so the ones that count the vote is the regime.
Do you identify more as a Cuban or a Venezuelan?
Venezuelan. I feel Venezuelan. There is nothing that I can relate to Cuba. I was four years old when I left. I was born in Cuba, but thank God that I was not raised there under this Communist regime.
Maria Conchita Alonso, photo by Billy Kass
What is your favorite charity or cause?
I created an organization called Vee Fauna, it’s not a non-profit yet, that one I created to help animals, but I work together with another foundation, Luchemos por la Vida, a non-profit one for eleven years, Let’s fight for life, an organization that has an orphanage where three-hundred of the kids have HIV, and it also has another for elderly who have been abandoned because they have mental illness, I united with them, we each work separately but we also work together, like last March I did an event here, we were able to help seventeen foundations, a little girl had her surgery, she was born with elephantiasis, we helped this girl who is so beautiful, has normal feet now, I do help and speak up for breast cancer, for children and the ones that have no voice, the animals, the children, the elderly. When somebody calls me says can you do this commercial for us, and ask me to help, I’m there. Because I believe that everybody can unite to help. It’s the only way that we can make things happen when a lot of people together doing something good for others.
Aside from the film, do have any other project to mention?
I worked on a series on Netflix called THE I-Land, it’s a lot of fun and that’s coming out this year. I play Natalie Martinez’s mother.
Tell me a secret - a good one!
I have a fetish with plastic. It’s horrible, it’s horrible, because plastic is bad for nature. But I am addicted to plastic, not just plastic that you get at the supermarket, but the ones that have a zipper like cute bags, I would love to jump in a pool full of, no water, but plastic, I don’t know why. I mean, imagine jumping in a pool with just plastic. It’s so much fun.
For the film’s website and trailer, visit hematadoamimarido.com/en/. Stay connected with Maria Conchita Alonso on Twitter @MariaConchita_A & Instagram @mariaconchita_a.
Since 2011, Old Dogs & New Tricks has been one of the web’s more popular gay offerings. The “dramedy” follows the mad adventures of four gay men living in the enclave of West Hollywood California.
The series has amassed quite a following throughout its first two seasons, and for season 3, the guys all turned 50 in a town where 30 is considered over the hill. Undaunted, they continued to look for love in all the wrong places, just like their younger counterparts.
Celebrate their 10th anniversary with this behind-the-scenes look at the creation of Old Dogs & New Tricks' Pilot, with series creator/star Leon Acord and exec-producer/director Arvin Bautista! Buy or rent Old Dogs & New Tricks on digital from Amazon Prime Video:
Old Dogs & New Trick 10th Anniversary Special! youtu.be
As a result, Old Dogs earned overwhelmingly positive, especially among many older gay men who say the show speaks to them. And, as the acclaim spread to mainstream Hollywood circles, the series attracted a star-studded list of celebrity guest cameos, including Kathryn Leigh Scott who is best known for her role as Maggie Evans on the classic TV series Dark Shadows.
“Kathryn Leigh Scott appears in our season 3 finale,” Acord said. “She was such a pleasure to work with. She is so down to earth and a total pro. Her performance is amazing, so true and moving. I can’t wait for folks to see it.”
Scott plays Lily Anne, mom to Al “Muscles” Carter (Jeffrey Patrick Olson), who needs some motherly advice while going through a personal crisis. As a Dark Shadows fan, Olson said working with Scott was a delight.
“The scenes with her were so real and tangible and show how we all turn back into little boys and girls, falling into family patterns once that threshold is crossed,” Olson said. “I can’t wait to see them.”
This wasn’t the first time the two actors met. “We actually have a mutual friend and after the casting announcement we all went out on a double date in Beverly Hills for happy hour,” Olson said. “She is elegant, poised and considerate. We formed a fast comfortability with each other which of course helped our onscreen relationship with each other as mother [and] son.”
Other season 3 guest stars included Rutanya Alda, beloved by gay audiences for her role as Carol Ann in Mommie Dearest.
“I loved working on the set because everyone was so friendly and supportive,” Alda said. “They were well organized and the crew had all worked together before so they were all in sync. Leon wears many hats, as writer, actor and producer. He is supportive and happy to have people there — he was lovely to work with.”
I
t’s a mutual admiration society.
“Rutanya is amazing,” Acord said. “Not only did she fly herself out and put herself up to do our show, but apparently she put a lot of work into her character before she even arrived. I think her fans will love seeing her in such a change-of-pace role.”
Acord promised the third season, which also features comedy icon Mo Gaffney, will delight viewers. “If season two was a soufflé, season 3 is a rich, sweet pound cake,” he said. “Episodes run a little longer. The season is very story driven, and delves into the guy’s professional lives as well as their love lives.”
Plot twists, including a sex tape scandal, a gay divorce, a surprisingly new partnership, a professional comeback and a financial crisis, will keep viewers coming back for more.
“I hate to use the word blessed, because it’s used way too much,” Acord said. “But that’s exactly how I feel.”Get the winning gay sitcom here.
Old Dogs & New Tricks Reunion! youtu.be
The rationale of the SVFF, as explained by Froehle and Cohen, is to open access to capital and resources for underrepresented voices in media, stating: “While the national rhetoric around race experienced a major shift in 2020, BIPOC filmmakers still face major structural barriers to getting their stories told within the independent media space.”
The Shifting Voices Film Fund is open to a variety of stories and media developed by BIPOC creators. Overseeing film selection will be longtime industry vet Hussain Currimbhoy, taking on the role of CMP’s Director, Global Project Development/Investment. "To help guide the Shifting Voices Film Fund is a thrill,” said Currimbhoy.
“Together, we will add momentum to this special time of bringing marginalized voices to center stage. Expanding our support for the best in documentary filmmaking and welcoming new creative voices are such necessary and exciting missions."
The fund will primarily support feature-length films-in-progress, and is looking to uplift stories that spotlight historically excluded cultures, histories, and experiences in America. Applications for the Shifting Voices Film Fund are now open, and will close at 11:59pm CT on November 22.
"Our stories have long existed. As have the burgeoning community of BIPOC non-fiction storytellers,” said Mezcla founders Colette Ghunim and Elena Valentine. “The issue has long been about access and ensuring that we can provide sustainable support to drive impactful change through documentary film. We are thrilled to partner with an organization like CMP who understands this. And more importantly, together we are rethinking existing processes to make this film fund more equitable, inclusive, and positive for all stakeholders involved."
The Shifting Voices Film Fund is made possible through seed funding from the Chicago Community Trust and the generous support of CMP members.
More information, including the application and FAQ, can be found at wearecmp.org/shifting-voices-fund.