Welcome to Gaia! ::

I'm not completely sure this really fits into this forum, but seeing as how film is an art, I'd say it fits here perfectly.

So...movies. Brokeback Mountain caused a stir in the United States because it was the first mainstream film that openly showed homosexuality. However, before Brokeback there were plenty of indepentdant films or films from other countries that had already boldly addressed homosexual relationships. Not being American or Canadian, I've seen a lot of "forgeign" films and have quite an extensive list of ones that have same-sex pairings.

So. What LGBT films have you seen? What were they about (brief summary)? Why did you enjoy them so much?

I'll just list a few of my favourites. I have many.

Love in Thoughts: A German film that's set near Berlin right before the second World War breaks out. Two best friends decide that a person can only be happy once in their life, and after that, life is no longer worth living. They agree that once they've experienced that moment of happiness, they will murder everyone who has betrayed them and then commit suicide. The plot unfolds with such things as a four-sided love triangle, target practise, wild weekend parties, absinthe, and German boys kissing in wine cellers. Despite being completely tragic, somehow it avoids being depressing. It's a completely beautiful film. The music, the acting, the filming...everything is so perfectly done and absolutely gorgeous. Oh, and it's all based on a true story, written down by one of the friends. The book he wrote about it was banned and burned by the Nazis.

Wilde: A biographical film about Oscar Wilde, concentrating a lot on his exploration of his sexuality and his relationship with Lord Alfred Douglas, and the trial for "gross indecency" that ruined Wilde's health and career. Fantastic acting (Stephen Fry plays Oscar Wilde and Jude Law is Alfred Douglas), and pretty historically accurate. It's beautiful, and has made me cry more or less every time I've seen it. It incorporates some of Wilde's mroe famous and witty quotes wonderfully, and is sexually daring without being vulgar. And Jude Law gets naked a lot, which is always a plus.

Mysterious Skin: The movie basically follows two boys who were molested by their baseball coach when they were eight. One is a prostitute, and one is a complete social outcast who is convinced that aliens are going to take over the world. I know, it sounds weird, but it's amazing. It's extremely depressing and probably one of the more disturbing films I've seen, but it's also one of the best. Warning: This movie has one of the most graphic, brutal rape scenes that I know of. I actually had to leave the room at that point in the film. Just a heads-up.

Bad Education: A film by Pedro Almodovar, who's a very famous gay Spanish director. The film is about a movie director who was in love with another boy when he was in Catholic school. When they were found out, he was expelled, and the priest started sexually abusing his friend. It's part love story, part murder mystery, and part social commentary. Amazing movie.

Time to Leave: A film by Francois Ozon, who's sort of a young rising star among French directors. The movie's about a 30-year-old gay man who find out that he has terminal cancer. It's impossible to describe, and it's quite sad, and yet it's not a complete downer. Probably my favourite Ozon film. I'm not sure if it's out in North America yet though...it just came out in France a few months ago.

Better Than Chocolate: To put it short, it's about a lesbain girl who has to give her mother and brother a place to stay because her mother's husband was sleeping with a younger woman. Customs held up lesbian books from a bookstore that she works for and they start getting vadalizm and stuff.

I know, horrible description but it's a good movie! Go watch it! xd