Category: Gay Film

DEKKOO DISPATCH 024 – ‘I’M FINE’ IS BACK!

Title – ‘I’m Fine‘

Director – Brandon Kirby

Starring – Perry Powell, Lee Doud, Shaughn Buchholz, Ulysses Morazan

Release Date – 2017

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The wait is finally over! Episodes 5-8 of Dekkoo’s Original Series ‘I’m Fine‘ are online for your immediate on-the-go entertainment. Nate, Jeff, Andy, Brian, and yes even the legendary love-of-Nate’s-life Joey are back in action!

After binging the last 4 episodes of Season 1 I had soooo many questions for director Brandon Kirby. Below are a few of them for your enjoyment:

FD: So at the end of episode 4 Jeff reveals his more-than-friends feelings for Nate which to me was what I was most excited about with the release of episodes 5-8. Has that situation ever happened to you?

BK: Since moving to LA, I’ve played the Jeff role in that scenario numerous times, admitting my feelings to friends of mine, and once I was in the Nate position. With that friend, we actually ended up trying to be romantic with each other, but ultimately decided we are DEFINITELY only meant to be very close friends.

FD: Was there any inspiration for that hilarious party scene in Episode 5?

BK: The whole situation with the grandma’s painting, that actually happened to me a couple years ago at a house party in Hollywood on New Year’s Eve. I was drunk, waiting in line for the bathroom and bumped into a painting on the wall. The host called me out for it. The version of that happening in Ep5 is obviously dramatized.

FD: Speaking of dramatized… from money-hungry party hosts, to shady pool boy escorts, to awkward brunch guests you’ve painted a slightly depressing view of LA. At the end of the day do you have a positive view of gay life in Los Angeles or are we all doomed?

BK: Ha! I mean, we might all be doomed for other reasons. But in terms of Los Angeles and West Hollywood specifically, I do love living here but it took me a while – years, actually – to fully come around to it. So, in that time in between, I found a lot of the flaws and a lot of the things in the gay community that, y’know, aren’t the best. But of course any skewering I’m doing here comes from a place of love.

FD: You’ve teased a lot of new characters in the second half of Season 1. Which of them are you most excited to explore?

BK: I’m excited to explore Jeff’s roommate Louis, who we haven’t met before, and their new mutual friend Zachary, who plays an especially important role in Season 2.

FD: Well then you should totally dish on what’s going to happen in Season 2!

BK: Let’s just say the storylines go beyond just exploring why Nate is clinging to being “fine” but to his circle of friends, as well. We dive a bit deeper into everyone’s individual existential crises. And yes, it’s still a comedy!

FD: Well I’m super psyched for it. I’ll leave you alone after you tell me your top 3 films on Dekkoo.

BK: ‘Edge of Seventeen‘, ‘Concrete Night‘, & ‘Parting Glances‘

WATCH IT NOWWWW!

DEKKOO DISPATCH 023 – ‘EDGE OF SEVENTEEN’ AND ‘GO-GO REJECT’

Title – ‘Edge of Seventeen‘

Director – David Moreton

Starring – Chris Stafford, Lea DeLaria, Tina Holmes, Andersen Gabrych

Release Date – 1998

Title – ‘Go-Go Reject‘

Director – Michael J. Saul

Starring – Heath Daniels, Josh Babich, Korken Alexander

Release Date – 2010

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Hi everyone! We’re halfway through Pride Month now and I’m definitely not ready for it to be over yet. Tomorrow kicks off Frameline’s LGBTQ Film Festival in San Francisco which is always a great time. Let us know if you see any awesome films there you think should be added to Dekkoo!

Last week was a little on the dark side, so this week I’m lightening it up with two super cute ones! Start your movie night with a bit of glitter with ‘Go-Go Reject‘. Daniel is a your average queen that hangs out at go-go bars with friends and dreams of leaving his day job at Yogurt World. One day Daniel realizes he needs to fulfill his dreams of becoming a dancer. More specifically Daniel wants to be exactly like Jennifer Beals in ‘Flashdance’ minus the steel mill of course. Sadly Daniel isn’t exactly the hottest guy ever and can’t quite convince club owners to hire him so he takes matters into his own hands. The best thing about this short film is the unbridled enthusiasm of the main character played by Heath Daniels (who also stars in several other films by Michael J. Saul such as ‘Adults Only‘ which he also wrote!) and the really hot skinny guy he dances with at the end (call me!).

We’re traveling to the 80s gentlemen! Hold on to your mascara! Boom! The year is 1984 and it’s summer vacation. Eric Hunter is about to start his first day of work at a theme park in Sandusky, Ohio with his best friend Maggie. They both share a love of Toni Basil (Hey Mickey!), Eurythmics and making fun of their lame high school classmates, but right when Maggie seems to be having feelings for Eric that go beyond friendship Eric meets co-worker Rod. He’s older, sexy as hell, and is out and proud about being gay. Thus begins a sexual awakening for Eric that takes place over a year of his life, but only 103 minutes for us.

‘Edge of Seventeen‘ was written by Todd Stephens (‘Another Gay Movie’, ‘Another Gay Sequel‘) and was actually based on his life as a teen in Sandusky. Originally slated to direct the pic, the duty fell to his friend David Moreton (‘Testosterone’) at the last minute who took the reigns on this touching and ground breaking feature. The movie was filmed in 1998, but you’ll swear it was filmed in the 80s due to the awesome music (supposedly 80s music was unpopular to license at that point in the 90s so the filmmakers were able to get it for cheap), rad costuming (polyester everywhere!), and muted color grainy cinematography (filmed in 16mm and then blown up to 35mm). On Dekkoo we’re presenting the brand-new HD Restoration which looks gorgeous!

‘Edge of Seventeen‘ is one of those films where I could go on a very long rant about interesting facts. I’ll just talk about the case for brevity’s sake!

  • Chris Stafford who plays the main character, Eric actually left the world of acting shortly after starring in ‘Edge’ and became a lawyer. I was browsing the deep reaches of the internet one day and actually saw his speech from the University of Miami at his graduation where he was the class valedictorian!
  • You might find the girl who plays Maggie familiar. She plays the older sister character in the popular gay film ‘Shelter’.
  • Lea DeLaria who plays the lovable boss Angie is now super famous for her role in ‘Orange is the New Black’.
  • Andersen Gabrych (Rod) has a cameo role in every single Todd Stephens film. My favorite one is in ‘Another Gay Movie‘ where he gets puked on!

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Watch ’em with:  A large group of fun queens!

Mix it with: One of those blue drinks.

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DEKKOO DISPATCH 022 – ‘EASTERN BOYS’ AND ‘JOHNNY’

Title – ‘Eastern Boys‘

Director – Robin Campillo

Starring – Oliver Rabourdin, Kirill Emelyanov, Danil Vorobyev, Edea Darcque

Release Date – February 27, 2015

Title – ‘Johnny‘

Director – Micah Stuart

Starring – Tony Abatemarco, Luca Alexander, Brandon Crowder, Nikita Kochnev

Release Date – July 10, 2016

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Welcome to the new Dekkoo Blog everyone! It’s your new one stop shop for everything in the world of gay cinema. I encourage you to add Dekkoo.blog to your blog feed (or click the follow button below) and let us know if you have any suggestions to make it better.

This week we’ve got two dark and sexy films (both with hustlers) that we think you should watch ASAP!

First up is ‘Johnny‘. While there have been a glut of films that have dealt with an older man finding himself through a younger prostitute, I found that ‘Johnny‘ did it with an amount of grace and sexiness that few have come close to.

One night a random John (Sam) picks up the sexy Johnny for a hot time at a sleezy motel. What neither of them expects is the human connection that forms and the secrets that both reveal over the course of their encounter. Personally my favorite part of this short is the intense sex that occurs between the two characters. It’s rare to see such a hot inter-generational encounter in a short film like this. Even rarer to see poppers being brought into the fray. Woo!

After ‘Johnny’ you’re ready to go deeper into the world of hustlers with ‘Eastern Boys‘. This film is directed by Robin Campillo who was the writer of the Palme D’or winner, ‘The Class’. His new film ‘120 Beats Per Minute’ was just in the official selection at Cannes and is hyped as one of the best French films dealing with the ACT UP movement. The film follows a lonely gay man named Daniel. He seems well-off, but is lacking love and friendship in his life. The beginning of the film starts off showing the train urchins at the Gare du Nord station in Paris. It’s hard to tell where they’re from, but you can assume it’s somewhere in Eastern Europe. They had to leave to escape the poverty and now they’re looking for a way to make money. In walks Daniel looking for some company and he finds Marek. A rendez-vous is scheduled and when someone knocks on Daniel’s doors it’s not Marek, but a child claiming to be Marek.

I really don’t want to give too much more away. One of the best things about this movie is its wonderful balance of tension, romance, and action. I’ll tell you that I’ve never had a film make me sweat as much as this film does in the first 30 minutes. It’s nerve wracking!! ‘Eastern Boys‘ brilliantly tackles the fears and desires of both older gay men and young homeless immigrants all in just over two hours.

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Watch ’em with: You and maybe one other person whose hand you can grab onto during parts of ‘Eastern Boys‘.

Mix it with: Red Wine.

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Johnny

DEKKOO DISPATCH 021 – ‘OUT IN THE DARK’ AND ‘VICTORY DAY’

Title – ‘Out In The Dark‘

Director – Michael Mayer

Starring – Nicholas Jacob, Michael Aloni, Jameel Khouri, Alon Pdut

Release Date – September 27, 2013

Title – ‘Victory Day‘

Director – Alina Rudnitskaya

Release Date – 2014

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Happy #Covfefe day everyone! Today I want to feature two films that highlight the struggle of Non-U.S. attitudes towards LGBTQ rights and the people that have the bravery to stand up for love.

The short documentary ‘Victory Day‘ is a really touching look inside the lives of 6 LGBTQ couples living in Russia – a country that has time and time again refused to accept LGBTQ people as normal citizens. While homosexual sex was decriminalized in 1993, there are still no laws on the books that prohibit discrimination against LGBTQ citizens, meaning you can still be fired from a job or kicked out of your apartment. It’s also illegal to expose children to anything other than heterosexual relationships in books, movies, textbooks, etc. Since that law passed in 2013 (here we call it the ‘gay propaganda law’) there have been numerous arrests and censoring of Hollywood movies like the new ‘Beauty and the Beast’.

The short film goes into depth with the 6 couples about how they got together, their struggles with family, friends, and co-workers, and their views on the current political climate. The beginning of the short is definitely a bit chilling with the juxtaposition of Russia’s Victory Day celebrations consisting of tanks and soldiers with discussions of how long the couples have been dating, but overall it’s an uplifting journey because of the bravery of all 6 couples. If you’re curious about how normal LGBTQ people live their lives in Russia this is the doc for you.

Now we shift from Russia to Israel, a country that is unique in the Middle East for being very accepting of LGBTQ people. While you can’t marry inside the country you can be married somewhere else and then Israel will recognize that marriage. You can also adopt and anti-discrimination policies have been passed. However ‘Out in the Dark‘ decides to focus on the interplay of sexuality and politics between Israel and Palestine. The movie has a great combination of sexiness, political intrigue, and thrilling action.

The movie focuses on a cute, young Palestinian named Nimer. He studies Psychology and travels to Tel Aviv for his studies. His friend Mustafa introduces him one night to a ridiculously sexy Israeli lawyer named Roy. The differences between them are numerous – wealth, privilege, and citizenship to name just a few. But as in all the great romance movies they fall in love despite everything. Unfortunately things get complicated once
Mustafa gets caught by his Palestinian friends for being queer which then suggests Nimer might be queer as well. One of the most intriguing/disturbing facts about this film is it’s portrayal of how crossing over a simple border can completely change how society views you. You can be celebrated in Israel, but killed in Palestine.

However all seriousness aside, ‘Out in the Dark‘ is a stunner of a film. It played at almost every single LGBTQ film festival and has gotten rave reviews. It’s packed full of romance and action and it’s just an awesome film. Watch it tonight!

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Watch ’em with: Your friends who have no clue what’s happening outside of Rupaul’s Drag Race.

Mix it with: Russian Vodka.

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DEKKOO DISPATCH 017 – ‘SPRING’ AND ‘IN THE NAME OF’

Title – ‘Spring‘

Director – Hong Khaou

Starring – Jonathan Keane, Chris O’Donnell

Release Date – January 22, 2011

Title – ‘In The Name Of‘

Director – Malgoska Szumowska

Starring – Andrzej Chyra, Mateusz Kosciukiewicz, Maja Ostaszewska, Lukasz Simlat

Release Date – September 20, 2013

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Hey Dekkoo-ers! Hope your week is going swell. I’ve got two great flicks to talk about today, both with an inter-generational theme.

‘Will it hurt?’ asks the youth nervously to the camera. ‘Yeah it can’ replies the older and much more confident man sitting across the table at the cafe. Thus begins the movie ‘Spring‘, a short film about sadomasochism and Sub/Dom role-play. It’s a fantastically shot short film by Hong Khaou, the director of ‘Lilting’ and an intriguing investigation into a young man’s mind as he explore fetishes he’s only dreamt of. Definitely a short film you won’t want to miss!

A funny side-note about this film is that most of it was shot in a room that caused a bit of a scandal way back because ‘The King’s Speech’ was shot in it along with a gay porn film!

Alright after you’ve taken a bit of a break :ahem: post-‘Spring‘ it’s time to sit down with ‘In The Name Of‘. It’s a beautiful, poetic film centering on a country priest in Poland dealing with his repressed sexuality. The film deals with heavy issues, but spreads it out to great effect with sensitivity and beauty.

After having just been transferred from another parish, Adam sets up shop in the sleepy little town by opening up a halfway house for wayward youth. The rules are simple: work hard and don’t get into trouble. Adam is able to start a family in a way with these young men and seems to be really happy early on in the film. But just when everything seems to be going well a new boy joins the ranks who senses Adam’s growing relationship with Lukasz (whose looks draw an obvious correlation with Jesus Christ) and decides to shake things up amongst the guys.

The film really comes together in the final act so I definitely recommend staying with it through the admittedly slow first half. If you need motivation there’s plentyyyy of half-naked guys throughout the film. Right when the song ‘The Funeral’ by Band of Horses started playing over a religious procession through the country-side was when the movie really coalesced for me and became magical from that point on.

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Watch ’em with: Your local gay-friendly (or just plain gay) priest

Mix ’em with: Wine blessed by said priest

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New this week on Dekkoo – 4/28/17

Hosting a group of male friends at his family’s house for summer break, Fernando invites German, a team-mate from his taekwondo class. While the rest of the gang – usually clad in nothing at all – engage in random conversation, German wonders if Fernando is going to make a move. ‘Taekwondo‘ has been called the sexiest film of the year. Find out why!

From writer and director Adam Goldman (‘The Outs’) comes ‘Whatever This Is‘, a series about a diverse group of friends striving to achieve their dreams while struggling to make it as production assistants.

Alex is a paramedic who saves lives on London’s gay chemsex scene, but can he save himself from it? Watch the harrowing ‘G O’clock‘ on Dekkoo now!

London’s gay scene and one man’s search for love are the subjects of this groundbreaking 1978 drama – considered the first commercial gay feature ever made and released in the United Kingdom. Also featuring full-frontal male nudity, quite taboo for the time, and an early acting role for queer iconoclast filmmaker Derek Jarman, ‘Nighthawks‘ was ahead of its time in more ways than one.

‘Boy‘ tells the story of an undocumented Filipino janitor in Holland. He has no name and is constantly moving, but everything changes when his boyfriend auditions for a dance company and one of his employers commits suicide.

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Coming next week: Two Mormon missionaries succumb to their desire in a touching romance – the first film in a beloved trilogy.

DEKKOO DISPATCH 012 – ‘EVERLASTING LOVE’

Title – ‘Everlasting Love‘

Director – Marcal Fores

Starring – Joan Bentalle, Aimar Vega, Hugo Alejo, Adrian de Alfonso

Release Date – April 25, 2015

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Is anyone else feeling a little dark these days? Is it just me? I’ve been thinking a lot about Marcal Fores’ film ‘Everlasting Love‘ lately and if you haven’t seen it and you’re in the mood for a sexy film involving intergenerational relationships and weird Spanish kids that take heartbreak a little too seriously keep reading!

I’ll set the scene for you: Dusk is still an hour or so away. You’re in a forest in the Northeastern area of Spain where various men and women are cruising for love and sex, but mostly sex. An older stud, Carlos, prowls the forest looking for his next trick, but instead happens upon one of his students, Toni. He doesn’t want to lose his job, but he also appears to have a voracious appetite for sexual pleasures and decides to have sex with Toni in his car (an incredible 4-minute sex scene taken in one continuous zoom
shot). I don’t really want to say what happens next, but I will say that I won’t mess with a group of Spanish youth ever!

Marcal Fores is a truly fantastic director and his first feature film ‘Animals’ (which you’ll be seeing soon on Dekkoo) also has a very similar surreal feeling. Marcal, like many young directors, puts a lot of emphasis on music in his films and in ‘Everlasting Love‘ he finds some very creepy tracks to put you on edge while at the same time keeping an humorous sensibility (especially in the end credits). I also really appreciate the honest nature of cruising in the film combining the reality of the endless hunt for sex (you can’t get lucky every time) with the fantastical element of women also being in the woods (a joke made early on in the film ‘Stranger by the Lake’ which many people compare to ‘Everlasting Love‘).

Combining sexiness, art-house techniques, horror elements, and honest-to-god romance, ‘Everlasting Love‘ is a 69-minute trip that you won’t soon forget!

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Watch it with: Someone you can cling on to if you get scared…or horny.

Mix it with: Spanish wine and tapas! Maybe some poppers too.

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