Category: Adolescence

Two Italian teens begin an ill-fated romance during the summer of 1982 in ‘Fireworks’

Set in Sicily in 1982, Fireworks (also know as Stranizza d’amuri) chronicles the budding romance that grows between Gianni and Nino (Samuel Segreto and Gabriele Pizzurro), two teen boys who are stuck in an era and culture that is inhospitable to their love.

Working together setting off fireworks during the summer, the two young men forge a friendship that slowly grows deeper. But when their new romantic bond is uncovered by their families, the consequences prove just as violent and tragic as the times and mores are conservative.

Based on a real-life incident that actually jump-started the Italian Gay Rights movement, and featuring sensitive performances from Segreto and Pizzurro, its two up-and-coming lead actors, this debut feature from Italian writer-director Giuseppe Fiorello is a moving and deeply felt examination of the painful moments that produce lasting political change.

Watch the trailer for Fireworks below. The film is now streaming on Dekkoo.

Viggo Mortensen wrote, directed and stars in the emotional gay family drama ‘Falling’

The directorial debut of A-list star Viggo Mortensen, who also wrote and co-stars in the film, Falling is a deeply emotional family drama in which two worlds collide.

Mortensen stars as John, a gay man who lives with his partner and their daughter in California, far from the traditional rural life he left behind years ago. Legendary character actor Lance Henriksen plays his father, Willis, a man who raised his child in a storm of rage.

Early on, the film shifts between scenes of John as a boy, forced by Willis into regular tests of masculinity, and John as an adult living happily out of the closet.

But when Willis, now in the grip of dementia, descends back into John’s life, his usual vitriol and rancid homophobia continue to flow unchecked. As a son still bound by duty, John must care for the man who hurt him the most.

Co-starring Laura Linney, Hannah Gross and acclaimed director and regular Mortensen collaborator David Cronenberg, Falling offers up a tense examination of the wounds and responsibilities that come with family and the overwhelming need to live one’s life with honesty.

Watch the trailer for Falling below. The film is now streaming on Dekkoo.

Louis Hofmann stars in the swoon-worthy young adult romance ‘Center of My World’

After a three-week stint at a French-language camp, high-schooler Phil (Louis Hofmann) returns home to find that his mother (Sabine Timoteo) and twin sister (Ada Philine Stappenbeck) aren’t speaking to one another.

Not willing to confront his family during the last days of the summer holidays, Phil escapes to hang out with his best friend, Kat (Svenja Jung), eating ice cream and playing dress-up.

As the school year begins, a new student arrives – the handsome and mysterious Nicholas (Jannik Schumann). Smitten, Phil watches his crush as he runs around the track after school, and is thrilled when Nicholas returns his feelings. However, when first love’s volatility comes to light, Phil realizes he must deal with the problems of his past in order to deal with the issues of his present.

Based on author Andreas Steinhofel’s award-winning young adult novel and featuring a swoon-worthy lead performance from Louis Hofmann, a super-cute German actor who has made an international splash over the past few years in popular shows like Masters of the Air, Dark and All the Light We Cannot See, Center of My World is a gorgeously-crafted, sun-kissed ode to friendship, family bonds and first love.

Watch the trailer for Center of My World below. The film is now streaming on Dekkoo.

The charming comedy ‘Nate & Margaret’ examines a May-December friendship

Natalie West, an accomplished Chicago theatre actress best known for her recurring role as Crystal on the original incarnation of ‘Roseanne,’ delivers an incredible under-the-radar performance in Nate and Margaret, a charming indie comedy from writer-director Nathan Adloff.

West plays the titular Margaret, an aspiring comedian in her fifties who lives alone, works at a coffee shop by day, works on stage skills at open mics by night and shares an unusually deep friendship with her neighbor, a much younger gay film student named Nate, played by Tyler Ross.

When Darla, an audacious classmate played by Gaby Hoffman, sets Nate up on a date with an eager young suiter named James (played by Conor McCahill), everything starts to change.

Swept up in feelings of young love, Nate suddenly has less time for his middle-aged friend and a bittersweet tension grows between them.

With shades of the Hal Ashby classic Harold and Maude, Nate and Margaret is a heartfelt and smartly observed comedy-drama about two very particular people who are each coming-of-age… despite the considerable difference of those ages.

Watch the trailer for Nate and Margaret below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.

The provocative queer punk classic ‘Fögi is a Bastard’ gets a brand-new HD restoration

Set in Zurich during the early 1970s and boasting a killer soundtrack that includes the likes of punk legends The Stooges and The Velvet Underground, Fögi is a Bastard is an unflinchingly honest depiction of teenage infatuation and obsession from director Marcel Gisler.

Vincent Branchet stars as Beni, a sensitive 15-year-old romantic who has become completely besotted by Fögi (Frederic Andrau), the super-sexy front man to a local punk outfit called The Minks.

The wide-eyed, seemingly innocent Beni – who begins his courting of Fögi with lovingly penned letters – is welcomed into the gay punk musician’s world of partying and playing gigs. However, as Fögi slowly drifts from an ambitious music career to the addictive world of drugs, a wedge forms in their relationship.

Soon enough, Beni has become a submissive “dog” in their relationship and also begins supporting his lover through sex work.

With its raw depiction of urban life, ghettoized youth, working class angst and kinky gay male sex without compromise, Fögi is a Bastard is a must see for fans of coming-of-age cinema with alternative queer teen sensibilities and aesthetics.

Originally released in 1998, the film has been given a brand-new restoration by the cult distribution label Altered Innocence. It’s now available to stream on Dekkoo. Watch the trailer below.

Take a trip back to the ’80s with the hilarious high school drag comedy ‘First Period’

Featuring an impressive ensemble – which includes many sketch and improv ringers who got their start at The Groundlings in Los Angeles – First Period is a hilarious, candy-colored drag tribute to 1980s teen comedies… and the films of John Hughes in particular.

Cassie Glen (Brandon Alexander III), a new girl at school, arrives with the goal of finding a hunky boyfriend and finally becoming popular. Running afoul of the school’s top-tier mean girls, she decides to befriend Maggie (Dudley Beene), a social outcast and sometimes literal coat rack.

Together, these two new besties become convinced that the best way to reach their goal of becoming popular is to enter – and win – the annual talent show and steal the bitchy girls’ himbo boyfriends along the way.

Writer-director Charlie Vaughn did his ‘80s movie homework, tipping a hat to iconic flicks like Pretty in Pink and lesser-known cult favorites like Teen Witch while adding a dash of Romy and Michelle for good measure. The result is campy, funny and often surprisingly poignant as it delivers the tried and true message that being yourself is always the best course of action.

Watch the trailer for First Period below. The film is now streaming on Dekkoo.

A man attempts a turbulent journey out of the closet in the moving drama ‘El Houb (The Love)’

Having spent decades hiding his sexuality from his family, Moroccan-Dutch businessman Karim (Fahd Larhzaoui) decides to come clean after his father catches him in bed with a man.

Caught up in a panic over the thought of coming out to his traditional Muslim parents (Slimane Dazi and Lubna Azabal), he barricades himself in their closet… literally.

As he feverishly revisits his childhood memories, negotiates a budding romance with a new Ghanaian boyfriend (Emmanuel Boafo) and wages a long-delayed battle royale to uproot his family’s conservative attitudes, a series of darkly hilarious and unflinchingly frank conversations begin – and the family is finally forced to confront the truths that have so long been avoided.

Loosely based on the theater work and actual experiences of lead actor and co-screenwriter Fahd Larhzaoui, El Houb (The Love) cascades through time. Director Shariff Nasr manages to straddle a line between uproarious comedy and heartbreaking drama while examining family dynamics, cultural taboos and hard-won self-acceptance.

Watch the trailer for El Houb (The Love) below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.

‘Teenage Kicks’ navigates a sweat-soaked journey through the minefield of adolescence

In the final moments of his 17th year, Mik’s world will come crashing down.

His plans to run away and escape the hold of his migrant family have been brutally undone by the accidental death of his older brother. Only Mik knows the events that led to this tragedy – and as far as he can see there is only one person to blame: himself.

He’s suddenly torn between his desire to head north and start a new life with his best friend and secret crush Dan and the sense of obligation he has to his broken family. Can he fill the shoes of his adored sibling or is he somehow inherently toxic and destined to bring ruin upon everyone he loves?

Featuring exceptionally brave performances from lead actors Miles Szanto and Daniel Webber, Teenage Kicks is a bold and unflinching coming-of-age drama.

Directed by award-winning Australian filmmaker Craig Boreham, the film takes viewers on a sweat-soaked journey through the minefield of adolescence as Mik searches for a way through his guilt – and explosive sexual awakening – to find the man he’s meant to be.

Watch the trailer for Teenage Kicks below. The film is now streaming on Dekkoo.