Blue Is The Warmest Color and Interior. Leather Bar, the two most talked about queer-themed movies of the year were, in my estimation, prime examples of the emperor wearing no clothes.
By that I mean that all the hype and folderol about these being cinematic breakthroughs was nothing more than yet two more examples of straight white guys giving us their limited view of Our People through their stereotypical lens. ( I know that the "experimental" Interior was co-directed by the openly gay Travis Mathews, which, for me, made it that even more disconcerting. ) Blue had a strong first hour and some tremendous acting from its two leads but I think has been overhyped. ( See my past discussion with Windy City Times editor Tracy Baim for further thoughts about the film. )
There were other high-profile and must-see LGBT-themed movies this year that I quite likedDallas Buyers Club, Kill Your Darlings, Behind the Candelabra, Laurence Anyways, Concussionbut when discussing the year in queer cinema in Chicago the first distinction that needs to be made is always the small number of LGBT-themed movies that actually get theatrical runs here, as opposed to the coasts.
That number has been diminishing for several yearsthe causes of which are varied ( changing tastes being one ). But the primary reason is always less-than-spectacular box-office returns. Until movie patrons in Chicago make big fat financial hits of some of these queer-themed pictures, I wouldn't expect to see more of them get theatrical bookings here.
All of which speaks to the importance of audiences supporting any venueespecially the independently owned theatersthat are helping to keep the torch lit for queer cinema in Chicago. So, too, is the urgency of patronizing the various film festivals, as these are often the only chance to see these movies in the theatrical setting for which they were made. As both the programming director for this year's Reeling Film Festival and a jury member for the Queer Hugo section of the Chicago International Film Festival, I have seen firsthand the profound impact seeing these movies in a theater can have on audiences. There still is nothing like the anticipation that comes when the lights are about to go down and you're sitting with an audience of your peers.
This, I realize, is a typical exhortation from a film critic. But even without more LGBT movies playing in Chicago proper, the increased advent of Video on Demand and other online services as well as Netflix has made it a lot easier to find access to queer-themed moviesand more are being made directly for television as well. ( Behind the Candelabra for HBO being 2013's most prominent example. )
I have been putting together a list of Top Ten LGBT films since 2004 in preferential order but this year have decided to group my favorites ( most with a runner-up ) in categories. I love all these movies, some more than others and don't want to lessen my desire for you to see them by numbering them.
Queer icons: I Am DivineOut director Jeffrey Schwarz's illuminating portrait of the 300-pound drag queen Divine who, with his creative partner in crime, John Waters, changed the face of cinema, elevating trash to the mainstream. Runner-up: Six By SondheimDirector James Lapine's documentary about the openly gay dean of musical American theater is revelatory and creatively assembled ( now showing on HBO, where it debuted earlier this month ).
Queer Lives: The Happy SadOut director Rodney Evans followed up his acclaimed debut Brother to Brother at long last with this sexy romantic drama.
Runner-up: Two: The Story of Roman & NyroHeather Winters' moving and humorous portrait of an extended group of individuals all gathered together to help raise the adorable twin sons of two gay men truly captures the modern family at its best.
Art-house darlings: Dallas Buyers ClubMatthew McConaughey and Jared Leto give award-worthy performances in this based on a true story of two disparate men with AIDSone straight and homophobic, the other a gay, drug-addled, sweet-spirited drag queeneach battling for their lives in the 1980s.
Runner-up: Kill Your DarlingsOut writer director John Krokidas made an impressive debut with this look at poet Allen Ginsberg ( memorably portrayed by Daniel Radcliffe ) at the outset of his coming of age as a college student in the mid-1940s and his relationship with mentor Lucien Carr ( Dane DeHaan ), who murdered his lover in what was then an acceptable defense called an "honor killing."
Women in love: Reaching for the MoonThe torrid, true life affair between poet Elizabeth Bishop and her Brazilian architect lover is gorgeously retold in this sumptuous romantic drama set in the 1950s.
Runner-up: CloudburstOlympia Dukakis and Brenda Fricker play a long-term lesbian couple who head to Canada to legalize their union to prevent Fricker's daughter from taking their home away in this bittersweet road film.
Queer teenage angst: AnimalsA gay cross between Donnie Darko and Elephant, this Spanish film is a strangely fascinating coming of age story of a teen whose best friend is his English accented teddy bear.
Runner-up: Geography ClubBased on gay writer Brent Hartinger's bestselling novel, this is a familiar yet welcome story of a group of high school misfits who form a club for queer teens but have to keep its identity secret.
Queer ( fabulous ) history: Behind the CandelabraMichael Douglas and Matt Damon went all out in this over-the-top biopic of the ultimate Vegas entertainer, pianist Liberace, and his much younger lover Scott Thorson. It's kitsch heaven with surprising moments of depth.
Runner-up: Portrait of JasonDirector Shirley Clarke's 1967 classic of a real life gay raconteur, the African American queen of the title, who delivers a non-stop monologue that is insightful and sensationally entertaining from the get go.
Blurring the lines: Laurence AnywaysQueer French-Canadian auteur Xavier Dolan's three-hour magnum opus follows the male-to-female transition of the title character in the 1980s and his fractious relationship with his sympathetic but conflicted girlfriend ( a luminous Suzanne Clement ).
Heartbreaking: Valentine RoadMarta Cunningham's documentary about the murder of 15-year-old Lawrence King, a gay teen with trans tendencies, by his classmate is explored in this eye-opening film that played festivals and is currently showing on HBO. Unforgettable.
Runner-up: PhilomenaJudi Dench is sensational in this based on a true story of a simple Irish woman looking for the child she was forced to give up 50 years before. The film, which co-stars Steve Coogan ( who also co-wrote the script and produced ) features a moving gay twist that comes as the film heads into the final section. Get out your hankie.
Let's go sexin': ConcussionLesbian writer-director Stacie Passon's sexy update of Belle du Jour has an affluent, lesbian suburban housewife who becomes an escort by day. It features a tremendous leading performance by Robin Weigert.
Other notable queer-themed films of 2013: Beyond the Hills, In the Name Of, North Sea Texas, Free Fall, and The Last Match and, my personal fave, Hawaii