Vote for AfterElton.com's 50 Greatest Gay Movies

The thing is, Taking Woodstock won`t be on until 28th in most US cities. I`m afraid a lot of AE readers won`t be able to judge it without actually seeing the whole film. I think it opens here in australia on 27th so I`ll go on the opening day and then decide if it`s a) good enough b) gay enough to get my vote.

And I`m pretty sure Milk will take the top spot this time. We`ll see.

Making Love

Maurice 

Torch Song Trilogy

Beautiful Thing

Brokeback Mountain 

 

I voted and this is who I picked. This does not jive 100% with what I said in the Monkey Uncaged column, but I went with movies with gay content over gay-quotables like The Wizard of Oz, Valley of The Dolls, and Steel Magnolias.  

In no particular order:

1. Beautiful Thing - The best gay love story out there.

2. Longtime Companion - I selected this over Parting Glances because this shows the comaraderie gay men have with each other the best, in good and bad times.

3. Shelter - A new movie worthy of the list.

4. Big Eden - A movie kids can watch and learn that being gay is about falling in love... and wacky neighbors.

5. Victim - This film in 1961 broke with taboo and had a big star take on the issue of the homosexuality being a legally punishable offense.

My honorable mention goes to Maurice. I wanted to put this on the list but I felt the ones above needed some votes and expect Maurice to rank high as it should. It is the second best romance film for gay men in my opnion.

 

How singularly innocent I look this morning.

 

 Milk-- definitely worth the watch... and I'm talking the doco, not the Sean Penn movie (although that was great too)

It's My Party  an elegant and heartbreaking movie...

Brokeback Mountain  broke so many barriers...

Angels in America   what can I say? It is just one of the most powerful movies ever made

Parting Glances  The first gay movie I ever saw...

Gay and lesbian rights are not special rights in any way. It isn't "special" to be free from discrimination. It is an ordinary, universal entitlement of citizenship."

1. Beautiful Thing
2. Shelter
3. Get Real
4. Edge of Seventeen
5. Brokeback Mountain

That number 5 spot was difficult...I could have easily put - Bent, All Over the Guy, Ma Vie En Rose, Maurice, Another Country, Latter Days...

 

First off, let me just say....so MEAN only giving us 5 picks!!  :-)

With that being said:

1.  Torch Song Trilogy.  Still my favorite after all this time, and dozens of viewings.

2.  Longtime Companion.  I can't say anything better than what AddisonDewitt said above.

3.  Soldier's Girl.  Transgendered interest, so wasn't sure if it counted, but a very moving and tragic true life love story.  Seeing the real Calpernia just makes it so much more powerful.

4.  The Laramie Project.  One that just really hits me every time I watch it, affects me every time.

5.  Brokeback Mountain.  Great movie, great love story, great impact and exposure to the mainstream.

"Open up your mind and then open up your heart. And you will see that you and me aren't very far apart." - Blessid Union of Souls

Really wanted to put in a plug for "Were the World Mine," which I've just seen within the past couple of weeks, and which I absolutely LOVED.  Definitely worth a viewing, and it will be on my list of five.

(I've often griped that a lot of gay films really aren't very good, but when I check over the list of all the gay titles I've viewed over the past two years, I see that I rather enjoyed quite a few of them.  So, it's difficult to pare down the list to just five pictures.) 

 

I'm like a superhero, with no powers or motivation...

1. Beautiful Thing - Indeed, the best love story out there.

2. Angels in America - Wonderfully produced, beautifully acted, smart (yet, not pretentious), and very engaging.

3. Were the World Mine - Wonderful Soundtrack and interwoven quite well with Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream"

4. Mommie Dearest - just 'cause it's one of my faves.  No gay message except for "NO MORE WIRE HANGERS!!!!!"

5. Shelter - though, seeing Jamie's picks, I probably woulda put Soldier's Girl in this last spot instead.

I went with:

1. Beautiful Thing - Such a sweet and wonderful love story.

2. Maurice - A great film that wonderfully illustrates that to be truly happy, you have to be true to yourself.

3. My Beautiful Laundrette - A film about more than just being gay. It's very real but not depressing.

4. Trick - I'm a sucker for musicals and this one is perfectly cheesy.

5. Get Real - Lots to love about this movie, but my secret favorite part is that his dad is a die-hard Doctor Who fan.

 

"It's weird. It's just different. It's not men. It's just him. It's only him." - Ianto Jones

1. Beautiful thing - amazing, joyful, provocative, pure and beautiful

2. Just a question of Love - underrated French film that I just adore

3. Shelter...love, love, love the ending

4.La Cage aux Folles - the original french edition - my first gay movie - comedy, sometimes over the top, but at its heart a sweet love story

5 Big Eden - Nan Martin makes me laugh and the dance scene at the end is sweet joy.

 

Getting opinions and reviews, learning about things new to me.  I've never seen Beautiful Thing!  I see all these people ranking it #1, and I've actually never even heard of it.  I asked my partner and he tells me it's one of his favorites too!  So, will be watching it at some point very soon...thanks to the voters/posters of AE.

 

"Open up your mind and then open up your heart. And you will see that you and me aren't very far apart." - Blessid Union of Souls

I quickly posted my 5 but I would possibly swap one with In and Out, because it was also hilarious but dealt with coming out as an adult in a sweet and seexy way, and it as a mainstream hit.

As well, my all-time favorite is a TV movie so I didn't vote it, but John Hurt as Quentin Crisp in "The Naked Civil Servant" is a MUST-SEE for any gay man.  Brialliant, funny, and a deep look at the pre-gay-rights English "nellies" who were so brave. 

The Rocky Horror Picture Show - has any film better exposed masses of straight people to the idea of fluid sexuality?  One of the greatest lead performances in the history of film.  And super gay.

Pink Flamingos - Sets the template for John Waters' ultra-subversive queer worldview:  the suburban normal people are filthy.  The Queers are normal.  Plus, Divine.

Brokeback Mountain - Just brilliant, a classic love story (i.e. tragic), and a great look at the costs of internalized homophobia.  Plus one of the few films with "leading men" leads.

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert - apparently I like my drag queens!  ;)  Hilarious, dance-able, super colorful, but the underlying idea that the drag queen is a great, caring dad is radical.

Parting Glances - a funny and non bathetic film about AIDS?  With a deep core and fantastic, sexy, natural performances in the New York 80's?  I'm so there.

1. Brokeback Mountain- A beautiful love story about the price that must be paid for failing to live one’s life authentically.  It helped me to grieve parts of my past that I’d been unable to, which then allowed me to step forward into a new life. 

2. Big Eden- Another beautiful love story, but also a lesson for us all in accepting the love that people have to give us, even if it’s not necessarily the love that we want from them. 

3.Maurice- The first gay film I saw with a happy ending, at least for two of the characters. 

4. Beautiful Thing- Sweetness and light, with everyone’s dream mom. 

5. Angels in America- Every moment is profound, but my favorite is the “Rising Souls” speech at the very end. 

 

The Adventures of Felix - Because it's one of my favorite movies, and my favorite gay movie.

 

As Is - My favorite movie about the AIDS crisis in America, because unlike some movies, the straight people aren't the heroes.

 

Trick - Because it's one of my favorite love stories.

 

The Rocky Horror Picture Show - My parents got this movie for me for my 11th birthday because they remembered it was a cult classic, but didn't remember anything else.  I still remember watching it over and over again, and being shocked that nobody else got how amazing this movie was, what with the singing lips and the man running around in his underwear and Frank'n'Furter seducing Brad.

 

The Bubble - I like it and it's set in Israel.

1. Brokeback Mountain - Too awesome for words

2. Latter Days - watched it for the first time recently (twice!), it turned out to be one of my favourite movies of all time, and I mean of all movies I've seen, not just gay-themed ones

3. Beautiful Thing - indeed it is

4. Priscilla - Made me smile

5. Patrik 1.5 - Touching, fun, and beautifully shot

 

As for Patrik 1.5, it's a great family drama.  No angsty coming out stories or any of the clichés.  Just a good ol' fashioned family drama.

While I understand the appeal of Shelter, didn't anyone else find it a little bland?  It was well-intentioned and well-made, it was just, I don't know, bland.  It felt like a comfort food movie...only it was kinda like eating vanilla ice cream without the flavor.

And finally, it seems like, in the comments, Beautiful Thing is not being forgotton, which is good.  But I really hope that Latter Days, which was number 4 last year, makes it at least as high or higher.  It's a heartbreaking, tender, sad, funny, and has a natural awesome ending all wrapped up in one.  I really hope this isn't forgotton this year.

 

My list consisted of

MILK

MAURICE

MYSTERIOUS SKIN (which I liked a whole lot more than that other gay movie that opened that year...you know...the cowboy one)

BROKEN HEARTS CLUB (for sentimental reasons)

and LONGTIME COMPANION

1) Shortbus (John Cameron Mitchell)

2) Were the World Mine (Tom Gustafson)

3) The Bubble (Eytan Fox)

4) Les Chansons D'amour (Christophe Honoré)

5) Walk on Water (Eytan Fox)

I don't agree that it's seedy or sends a negative message.  The bar is a warm, funyy place full of gay folks who befriend the main character he has his heart-broken but that's part of being a teenager regardless of sexual orientation.

The owner of the bar is an amazing dyke who offers invaluable insights and support to the main character.

It ends with him finally coming to terms with the fact that he can be gay AND happy and have a full life surounded by other gay adults who can guide him AND his mother accepting him for who he is.

Plus a cute guy likes him.

What's seedy about that?  It's a movie about a working class kid coming out in a small town and it resonates for lots of us who lived our teen years through the 1980s.

I totally related to it and I think it sends a great message about self discovery, establishing boundaries, standing up for yourself and learning to love and appreciate different kinds of people and ask for help when you need it.

It's all about the power of community and finding family outside of or in addition to your biological family (something almost every gay kid I know needs to see reflected on screen)

That's what I took from it.

Here is a pic of what Chris Stafford looks like now. He played Eric in Edge of Seventeen. This is from the 2006 Miami Gay Film Festival. <-----Click

I wish someone would do an interview with him...I'd love to know his opinion of the impact the movie had on gay culture.

Latter Days, Prayers for Bobby, Yossi and Jagger, Walk On Water, The Bubble.

 

Seriously, did anyone besides me see Prayers for Bobby?  That movie had me in tears.  Quite close to home in some respects.

1. Paris is Burning

2. The Times of Harvey Milk

3. The Celluliod  Closet

4. Gay Sex in the 70s

5. Liza with a Z

Which is sad, because they've mostly been around for a while.  Where are all the new gay movies?

1.  Maurice - a classic, say no more.

2.  Just a Question of Love - loved this for the garden centre, as much as for the man love.  :D

3.  Latter Days - Steve Sandvoss and Wes Ramsey  *sigh*

4.  Get Real - just beats "Beautiful Thing" by a whisker

5.  Shelter - sand, surf, sexy Trevor Wright.  Mm mm.

Apolgies to "My Beautiful Laundrette" and "In and Out" for not quite making it. 

My top choice is Lilies, a Canadian film.  Without giving too much away, it's about two boys who are in love and the steps one jealous boy takes to ruin it for them under the guise of religion.  That's not a great explanation of what it's about but I don't want to say too much and ruin the story since I think figuring some of it out while watching is what makes it a good movie.   What makes it unique is how the story is told: A Bishop is visiting a prison, is taken hostage and is forced to watch the prisoners and inmates put on a play telling this story.  It's well acted and well written, in my opinion.  I like movies that are a bit different and this one fits the bill. If the plot doesn't interest you, maybe the memorable scene of the two teens in a bathtub will!

 My top five are:

 1. Maurice

 2. Torch Song Trilogy

 3. Big Eden

 4. Latter Days

 5. The Wedding Banquet

I have to echo earlier posters, I love when you do these lists, they are fun.

Thanks, Niall.

 

Next month, or the month after, we can have the poll for Top 50 "Unintentionally" Gay Movies to cover the Wizard of Oz, Mommie Dearest, Valley of the Dolls, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, Muriel's Wedding... and oh look how many I've already come up with.  I'm sure my compatriotes would be able to come up with tons more.

Here's hoping for that poll :D

Since I fully expect films like Brokeback Mountain, Maurice and Milk to do well, I decided to vote an all-French slate:

A Love to Hide -- Jérémie Renier and Bruno Todeschini in love in Paris during World War II.

Time to Leave -- François Ozon's heartbreaking tale of a self-centered gay man who discovers he has only months to live.

Adventures of Felix -- Sami Bouajila gives a marvelous performance as a gay man with HIV walking across France.

Love Songs (Les Chansons d'Amour) -- Glorious musical has Louis Garrel finding new love to heal his broken heart in the arms of Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet.

The Man of My Life -- Charles Berling gives a staggeringly brilliant performance as a gay man with steely exterior but pain and longing inside.

I pushed last year for a few films that didn't make the list, but quite a few of them didn't make the list. So, this year I decided to make a push for one favorite...

 

The Talented Mr. Ripley 

 

I know some may not understand the reasoning behind it, so I'll repost what I said last year...

 

Quote:

5: The Talented Mr. Ripley - Again, I would imagine this is a controversial pick. And again, I think the underlying issue might be social and generational. In my adult life, I've never met anyone who genuinely "feared" homosexuals or homosexuality. As a student of historic gay culture, I recognise that in the past, gay men and lesbian women, have been presented as crazed and dangerous ala "Cruising" or "Rope". But that perception, somewhat diminshed by the APA's 1973 exclusion of homosexuality as a mental disease in the DSM III, seems to have completely disappeared in the last 30 years. These days, the depiction of gay men as helpless victims is much more predominate and cliche, than the depiction of a gay villan or sociopath. Highsmith's novel, and even to a greater degree, Minghella's film paints Tom Ripley as a complicated protagonist. Motivated by dreams of a different life, and crippled by self-loathing, Ripley is willing to do whatever it takes to become someone he isn't. This film poignantly explores the relationship dynamic between Dickie and Tom, making it even more painful to watch Tom murder Dickie over his ill-placed love and admiration. An incredibly complicated picture of a painfully broken gay man. I think the LGBT community, and the audience as a whole, is mature enough to appreciate this films complex character, without reading into it as a negative message about all gay men.

Hopefully we can get it on the Top 50 this year!

 

1 : Beautiful Thing (all in the title)

2 : Shelter (I love it that's all)

3 : Yossi and Jagger (and all Eytan Fox movies excepted "walk on water")

4 : Hush (very sensitive and clever movie)

5 : The king and the clown (It's a beautiful movie, largest audience of all the times in Korea)

 

I forgot this two movies which also my favorites:

1)Shelter(love the storyline.)

2)Yossi & Jagger(make me cry a lot)

(i think 50 still not enough,how about 100 ?) 

This might be a stupid question, but are women allowed to vote? Yes, I know this is a site for gay and bisexual men, but many women read and enjoy this site too.. I thought it would be a good idea to ask before doing something stupid, like voting if we're not allowed to do it.

 

Harvey Milk: You gotta give 'em hope.

People, please don't forget "Wilde"!  Stephen Fry so perfectly embodied the brilliant writer, from glorious crest to tragic low.  And, although he's kind of skeazy now, Jude Law was also perfect as the horrible, manipulating, spoiled brat Lord Alfred Douglas.

"Go, or go ahead and surprise me."  -- Rufus Wainwright

PRAYERS FOR BOBBY.

God one of the best movies ever, gay or straight. 

Watch it. I'm not embarrassed to admit I cried for almost the entire second half of that movie.

Vote. LOL. Prayers for Bobby needs to make that list I tell you.

Doe made-for tv movies count, or only theatrical films?

What about miniseries? Or would that fall in the same category with recurring television shows?