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Reviews
Gewoon vrienden (2018)
Just.... Wow.
Firstly... So impressed by the acting of all the main characters, but especially Majd Mardo and Josha Stradowski as the two young men who met, and, well, sparks do fly.
Don't be fooled by their physical beauty - these guys are both excellent actors.
The chemistry between Joris and Yad was so palpable, it literally danced off my screen.
Special mention must be made of Jenny Arean and her gorgeous portrayal of Ans - Joris' grandmother. Delightful.
But the underlying current of this film for me was the importance of family.
I cannot fault anything here - the writing, the directing, the cinematography, the editing; all superb. This heartfelt film deserves a much wider audience.
Primos (2019)
Sweet and Warmhearted
9.5 Stars....Initially, at the beginning, I thought this was going to be a dim-witted comedy.
By the end I loved it. In fact, I started watching again after the credits had rolled!
As others have mentioned, the chemistry between Mario and Lucas was some of the most beautiful and realistic chemistry I have seen in any gay film anywhere.
It reminded me of the French film Just A Question Of Love (2001) given the naturalness of the actors in Cousins.
Both the main actors, Thiago Cazado; who also did a great job directing, and Paulo Sousa were both outstanding, and the actress who played Aunt Lourdes did a really fine job also.
The writing was also excellent, as was the cinematography.
Any hope of a sequel guys?
Die Stropers (2018)
Powerful Yet Bleak Storytelling.
Just finished watching this very powerful portrayal of a deeply religious and conservative Afrikaans farming family in the Free State region of South Africa who take in a drug using street kid played immensely well by Alex Van Dyk.
In fact, he, and the young lead Brent Vermeulen (who plays the family's only son Janno) were both outstanding in this film. And I believe this was their first film roles?
The acting from all the main characters was superb, as was the script and direction from Etienne Kallos. A special mention must be made of the sublime scenery in that part of South Africa.
I gave this 8 stars (instead of 10) for two reasons. At times I did find it quite slow moving, especially given the length of the film, and secondly, despite the overall high quality as I outlined, I found it a quite depressing and bleak story that left me reaching for a block of chocolate at the end.
Un rubio (2019)
Wonderful Art!
I have a couple of other films by Marco Berger at home (Plan B and Hawaii) and bought The Blonde One with fairly high expectations given the quality of Berger's previous films.
Well - my expectations were surpassed...
The acting from everyone was superb, however the portrayal of Gabriel by the very talented Garston Re was a knockout. He expressed Gabriel's fragility and complexity to a tee.
The directing and editing were both flawless, and the script was very realistic and grounded. I thought the portrayal of Juan was also highly realistic, given the cultural context of being gay in Argentina as well as his own family background.
Another wonderful and realistic peice of art by Marco Berger. I have a quite large collection of gay films, and The Blonde One would most definately be in my top 4.
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Les engagés (2017)
Beautifully Real
9.5 Stars. Just finished watching Les Engages (Woke). Loved it. The acting from all the main characters was sublime, the direction was very good, the various settings in Lyon lovely, the short, sharp 9-10 minute episodes just flew by. Felt completely drawn in by the day to day lives of these diverse characters, all with their own stories to tell, however, must say, the portrayal of Hicham by Mehdi Meskar just melted my heart. The only reason it dosn't get a perfect 10 is a couple of times it delved into melodrama which grated somewhat. I really look forward to seeing the second series of this realistic slice of life at a gay support centre. Well done to everyone involved in this project.
Jonas (2018)
Beautiful And Sad
I saw the wonderful Felix Maritaud in BPM, and hope to get a copy of Sauvage, but in this, Jonas, again, a sublime performance from him, as was the case with all the actors here. And yes, I shed a few tears at the end. Beautiful and sad and as the two stories come together, you understand why Jonas is such a flawed adult, haunted by what happened in his youth. The writing and directing excellent also. This is Art, simple as that. Give me films like Jonas any day over the many embarrassingly cringeworthy gay films out there (usually from the U.S). Bravo to all involved in the creation of Jonas.
Mario (2018)
From Teammates To Lovers
WOW.... Watched Mario last night, and it was utterly bang on. 9 stars, and one of the best gay films I have ever seen. The acting was sublime, especially by the two leads, and much of the supporting cast were excellent also, and the direction was almost flawless. Others may disagree, but I thought the ending was realistic and very well handled given the context of the story. Similarities with the very excellent Free Fall. As a gay football fan, also enjoyed the setting and onfield action. However, totally baffled how Mario attracted an '18' rating. Bollocks to that. In my Top 5 all-time gay films.