New Release – Page 90 – Discover great gay stories.

Make Room for Daddy

Colin McCormack (BearCity star Gerald McCullouch) thinks he has it all – a great job, a steady stream of hot younger guys, and a best friend (Dan Via) whose devotion he takes for granted. But when a charming and mercurial intern (Jaime Cepero) sweeps him off his feet, Colin sees a chance for something more: A family of his own. What he discovers instead is a shattering secret that may cost Colin everything – and everyone – he holds dear.

By turns funny, heartbreaking and hopeful, Daddy explores the universal need for love and connection, and the evolving understanding of “family” in today’s rapidly changing world.

Following a buzz-heavy world premiere in New York and an extended run in Los Angeles, the critical smash play by actor Dan Via became this big screen adaptation, directed by star Gerald McCullouch and co-starring the original creator himself.

Daddy is now available on Dekkoo.

Short Film Spotlight: Trophy Boy

The 13-minute short Trophy Boy, now available on Dekkoo, is your classic “riches-to-rags” story. It depicts the downward spiral of James (wrtier/director/star Emrhys Cooper), a spoiled, “influencer” and narcissist, who, based on his social media accounts, appears to have it all.

Unfortunately for James, just before his 30th birthday, his much older boyfriend (on whom he was financially dependent) breaks up with him. James now must face reality with no work experience and no idea where to start.

With his sex-addicted best buddy by his side, James takes a crash course in living and sets out to prove that he doesn’t need anyone to take care of him. He ultimately ends up alienating himself further from reality and comes face-to-face with the bitter fact that if he doesn’t learn to live as an adult in the real world, he’ll never be more than a washed-up, unwanted accessory.

Cooper displays his chops both in front of and behind the camera with this hard-hitting showcase. Talking about the film, he said his aim was to “highlight that achieving one’s dreams, being responsible for your own actions, and being honest with yourself and others are ultimately what will make you happy.”

Watch the trailer for Trophy Boy below and check out the full short film on Dekkoo.

Now Available: Happy Endings

In Happy Endings, a riveting ensemble comedy originally released in 2005, writer-director Don Roos (The Opposite of Sex, “Web Therapy”) opens and heals romantic and familial wounds with grace, intelligence and wit.

Abortion clinic counselor Mamie (Lisa Kudrow) is having an affair with a studly masseur Javier (Bobby Cannavale). As a youth she had sex with her stepbrother, Charley (Steve Coogan), became pregnant, and secretly put the baby up for adoption. Years later, an obnoxious aspiring filmmaker, Nicky (Jesse Bradford), shows up claiming to know her son’s whereabouts. This information doesn’t come without a catch: Mamie has to let Nicky make a documentary about their reunion.

Charley, now openly gay, and his boyfriend, Gil (David Sutcliffe), have another baby-related mystery to solve: did their lesbian best friends (Laura Dern and Sarah Clarke) secretly use Gil’s sperm to conceive an infant? Meanwhile, a young singer, Jude (Maggie Gylenhaal), takes up with a rich closeted teenager, Otis (Jason Ritter), and his father (Tom Arnold). Otis, by the way, secretly has the hots for his employer: Charley!

These havoc-filled plot-lines and characters ingeniously weave together in this outrageous star-studded comedy, which returns to the scathing and smart territory Roos mined in The Opposite of Sex, his breakthrough feature from 1998. A movie that rewards multiple viewings, Happy Endings leaves you with a smile. The film is now available on Dekkoo.

Don’t miss the acclaimed doc Red Without Blue

An award-winning documentary originally released in 2007, Red Without Blue is a groundbreaking artistic examination of gender, identity, and the unswerving bond of twinship, despite transformation.

An honest portrayal of a family in turmoil, the film follows a pair of identical twins as one transitions from male to female. Captured over a period of three years, directors Brooke Sebold, Benita Sills and Todd Sills document the twins and their parents, examining the Farley family’s struggle to redefine themselves as a unit.

The twins’ early lives were quintessentially all-American: picture-perfect holidays, supportive parents who cheered them on every step of the way. By the time they were 14, their parents had divorced, they had both come out as gay, and a joint suicide attempt precipitated a forced separation of Mark and Alex for two and half years.

Through extensive, deeply candid interviews with the twins and their family, Red Without Blue recounts these troubled times, interweaving the twins’ difficult past with their efforts to find themselves in the present.

The film follows the painful steps of Clair’s transition, including electrolysis and the difficult decision to proceed with bottom surgery. Through its portrayal of these articulate and independent twins, each haunted by the painful experiences of their adolescence, the film questions normative standards of gender and identity – as Mark and Clair reassert their indescribable bond as identical twins. Through the power of the their voices, we hear the story of a family’s redemption from a dark past, and ultimately, its revival to the present.

Check out the trailer for Red Without Blue below and watch the full film on Dekkoo.

Real Boy tells the story of a son’s transition and a mom’s transformation

Real Boy is an intimate story of a family in transition. As 19-year-old Bennett Wallace navigates early sobriety, late adolescence, and the evolution of his gender identity, his mother makes her own transformation from resistance to acceptance of her trans son. Along the way, both mother and son find support in their communities, reminding us that families are not only given, but chosen.

Director/producer Shaleece Haas balances the poignancy and humor in this terrific new documentary, using intimate character-driven storytelling that invites the audience deep into the interior world of the protagonists.

Screened more than 180 times in 23 different countries, earning a total of 20 awards, Real Boy was broadcast in the United States on PBS’ Independent Lens and now it’s available for all to enjoy on Dekkoo!

Now Available on Dekkoo: eCupid

From writer/director J.C. Calciano, the same filmmaker behind Is it Just Me?, The 10-Year Plan and the series Steam Room Stories, eCupid boasts a sharp script, attractive cast, and an extended cameo from Hollywood legend Morgan Fairchild.

This hilarious romance takes online dating to the extreme! Marshall (Houston Rhines) is an over-worked ad exec who is suffering from a serious case of the seven-year itch with his loving boyfriend. As his 30th birthday nears, Marshall becomes hell-bent on changing his life when he comes across a mysterious dating app called eCupid. His world is quickly turned upside down by an onslaught of sexy guys. Marshall gets much more than he bargained for as he struggles to fight his way through the stream of horned-up suitors.

eCupid is available now on Dekkoo. You can watch the trailer below.

The star of M/M is making a splash

Instinct Magazine has gone all gooey over M/M star Nicolas Maxim Endlicher – and we can’t blame them. He’s ridiculously gorgeous. As Instinct contributor Samuel Murrian writes…

“European beauty Nicolas Maxim Endlicher has hypnotizing blue eyes, bone structure so chiseled you could probably chop through airplane metal with it, a lean-muscular frame and a fantastically round little donk.”

We couldn’t agree more – and we think you’ll come on board once you see M/M. The film follows Matthew (Antoine Lahaie), a young Canadian trying to make a fresh start in Berlin. When he meets the beautiful and charismatic Matthias (Endlicher), he is immediately entranced. Soon Matthew’s interest escalates, becoming an obsession. He begins to transform himself to embody the object of his desire, cutting his hair, and getting new clothes.

When Matthias gets into a motorcycle accident, the opportunity is too perfect. Matthew can now become Matthias. In a coma in the hospital, Matthias’ waking life, dreams and memories blur. Where the real ends, the artificial begins.

You can read the full Instinct article here and then skip on over to Dekkoo to watch the movie. M/M is available now!

Another Derek Jarman classic comes to Dekkoo

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1573-1610) was the last, perhaps the greatest, and certainly the most controversial painter of the Italian Renaissance. The late great Derek Jarman’s stylishly bold tribute to the violative artist features Nigel Terry as Caravaggio, a bad-boy of Italian aristocracy who scandalized the established order with his faintly erotic paintings of often naked saints modeled by prostitutes and street urchins.

Jarman portrays Caravaggio as a man of intense passions – artistically, emotionally and physically – who was also bisexual, with a taste for “rough trade.” Sean Bean, long before his turn as Ned Stark on “Game of Thrones,” co-stars as the bisexual Ranuccio, the artist’s rugged lover. Jarman’s regular muse, the incomparable Tilda Swinton, is also on hand as Lena, the beautiful mistress who comes between these two men.

A quirky yet elegant film, blending anachronistic playfulness (a technique Jarman would use again in Edward II, also available now on Dekkoo) with a touching homoerotic love story, spectacular camera work and a complex, impressionistic feel, Caravaggio is a unique cinematic pleasure. Jarman spent seven years preparing for the film. When the actual production began, he made it in only five weeks – all in one single warehouse at the East End of London.

You can watch Caravaggio now on Dekkoo – and make sure to check out Edward II as well.

It’s time for a Break Through

The new film Break Through from director Aaron Hose documents a group of passionate twenty-somethings within the Theatre for Social Change movement, as they unite in a stand against the stigmatization and marginalization of LGBTQ citizens in America.

Part human interest story, part dramatic interpretation, this uplifting film examines the importance of seeing your sexuality as only one thing that defines you as a person.

Having courage, self-acceptance and parental support is crucial for our LGBT youth, especially since we live in a society where many of them are still bullied for being “different”. Break Through aims to open the eyes of those who are quick to dismiss gay, lesbian and transgender issues as “no big deal”. Sure, things may be getting better, but being “out in the open” is by no means easy.

Check out the trailer for Break Through below. The full documentary is now available on Dekkoo.

A subversive gay classic comes to Dekkoo

Back in 1991, Christopher Marlowe’s notorious 16th century play was radically adapted into a gay cinema masterpiece by late, great queer auteur Derek Jarman.

Using anachronistic imagery, modern dress, gay activists battling riot police and Annie Lennox singing Cole Porter, Edward II tells the story of an openly gay British monarch and the persecution he suffered. It’s given a contemporary resonance by Jarman, paralleling the injustice of homophobia at the time.

King Edward II (Stephen Waddington) rejects his cold wife Queen Isabella (Tilda Swinton) and takes a male lover, the commoner Piers Gaveston (Andrew Tiernan) upon whom he bestows gifts and power. The King’s behavior enrages the sober, business-suited court officials and the spurned queen becomes a seething monster whose dresses and jewelry grow more outrageously lavish as her need to vengeance escalates and the plotting begins.

Edward II is a prime example of “New Queer Cinema” – the indie film movement of the early 1990s. Jarman reworked Marlowe’s play into a homoerotic, sexually charged, radically relevant work. Graphic, brutal, moving, surprisingly funny and always erotic, the film blends prose with contemporary jargon and costumes, replete with positive portrayals of queer sex, profanity and ACT- UP activists.

Brilliant, daring and innovative, Edward II showcases gay cinema at its finest. It’s not streaming on Dekkoo.