18. The Living End (1992)

What? — Originally titled F--- the World , the tagline for The Living End warns delicate gay and straight audiences that what they are about to see is “an irresponsible movie by Gregg Araki.” After a doctor pronounces the dreaded words “HIV-positive” to Jon (Craig Gilmore), the understandably numb young man picks up a disaffected and rambunctious drifter, Luke (Mike Dytri), on the road.

Jon quickly discovers that Luke is a gay hustler who, a few hours earlier, was held at gunpoint by a psychotic lesbian couple. As if that wasn't enough, Luke then killed the gay bashers who were out to get him. Beyond their evident sexual chemistry, Jon and Luke share the same HIV status, which leads them to embark on a whirlwind road trip to oblivion not unlike a gay Thelma and Louise. After Luke “accidentally” kills a cop, the two fugitives run off into an uninspired wasteland with a fatalistic attitude and utter disregard for others. In the face of certain death, they can't resist the urge to hump like bunnies to make the most of their impending doom.

Why? — This is one of a handful of films considered a landmark of New Queer Cinema. This nihilistic gay road movie about queer outlaws broke new ground by speaking out against issues still deemed too controversial for Hollywood filmmakers. Set to a soundtrack of post-punk industrial tracks, The Living End was a tool to vent collective anger over public discrimination and government inaction in the face of a devastating illness. The film's final caption reads as such: “to craig lee (1954–1991) and the hundreds of thousands who have died and the hundreds of thousands more who will die because of a big white house full of republican f---heads.”

A born provocateur who has raised eyebrows on numerous occasions, Araki's disillusioned, rebellious, multicultural characters are foul-mouthed, violent, queer punks who blurt out pop culture references, cynical remarks about the meaninglessness of life and vitriolic condemnations of the status quo. This trend can be followed in Araki's three subsequent films about angst-ridden and alienated teens, billed as the “Teen Apocalypse Trilogy” (Totally F---ed Up, The Doom Generation and Nowhere.) The Living End placed fifth on Joseph J. Cook's list and third on Alonso Duralde's, who argues that “Bruce LaBruce and Gregg Araki, respectively, kept the New Queer Cinema from being too bourgeois with their sexy and punk-flavored rhapsodies on gay life.”

Almost Made the Cut: Happy Together (Wong Kar Wai, 1997)

Hong Kong 's most romantic filmmaker, Wong Kar Wai presents a visually unique, Cannes-honored, moody film about a gay couple traveling from Hong Kong to Argentina with the intent of rekindling the dwindling passion in their relationship. Isolation and anguish, two of Wong's thematic staples, abound in this contemplative drama about human relationships. Upon the film's release, Wong expressed his disappointment at people's need to label Happy Together a “gay film,” for he feared that definition would narrow the public's interest in and interpretation of the film.

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