Danish lesbian romantic drama, The Venus Effect (Venuseffekten), closes out Queer Screen's 30th Mardi Gras Film Festival with subtle charm. This gentle story is a sexy and sweet treat to round off an excellent 2023 festival. Liv is a young woman on the cusp of change. Living in rural Denmark, she is surrounded by orchards... Continue Reading →
Mardi Gras Film Festival 2023 Review: Trans Glamoré ★★★
Two mid-length documentaries about Australian trans women will receive their world premieres at Queer Screen’s 30th Mardi Gras Film Festival under the banner of Trans Women Champions: Trans Glamoré and The Accidental Archivist. Filmmaker Lachlan Bradbury's Trans Glamoré (a recipient of the Queer Screen Completion Fund), is a look at Sydney's eponymous trans cabaret night.... Continue Reading →
Mardi Gras Film Festival 2023 Review: Elephant (Słoń) ★★★★
The autumnal landscape of southern Poland shines in writer-director Kamil Krawczycki’s new feature, Elephant (Słoń), adding fresh layers to the familiar tale of a rural young man discovering his sexuality in a homophobic town. Bartek (Jan Hrynkiewicz) works multiple jobs to support himself and his mother, looking after their farm animals by day and helping... Continue Reading →
Mardi Gras Film Festival 2023 Review: Golden Delicious ★★★
Basketball, teen angst, social media, and family drama combine in Golden Delicious, a tale of an Asian-Canadian high schooler dealing with the claustrophobic impact of everyone else's expectations. Jake (Cardi Wong) is a good kid with a sweet girlfriend in Vancouver whose parents run a local Chinese restaurant. But the pressure is mounting. Nearing graduation,... Continue Reading →
Theatre Review: The Italians (Belvoir St Theatre, Sydney) ★★★★
I’ve been laughing for 80 minutes straight. Laughing at the audacity, laughing at the stupidity, and most of all, laughing at the insanity that is The Italians by Danny Ball. If you’re looking for a sensitive exploration of sexuality and assimilation into a multicultural Western country then keep walking, but if you want a solid... Continue Reading →
Theatre Review: Mother May We (SBW Stables Theatre, Sydney) ★★★★
Sydney performance artist and poet Mel Ree’s semi-autobiographical one-woman show, Mother May We, takes a slice of underground culture and converts it into a compelling tale of a woman's search for her mother. Put on your dancing shoes because there’s a party to be had here! Mel Ree is at the crossroads of life in... Continue Reading →
Exclusive Interview: Olympic figure skater Johnny Weir hosts Peacock’s Eurovision coverage “it’s a big pride festival of uniqueness & bravery”
In recent years the USA has finally been waking up to the camp majesty of the Eurovision Song Contest, partly thanks to 2020's Netflix film, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, and the second season of Drag Race UK's tribute, The RuRuvision Song Contest, which spawned the hit track UK Hun? Which was... Continue Reading →
Exclusive Interview: Owen Lach on his queer sci-fi novel Founder’s Mercy “I imagine a future where you can be queer or trans & it won’t matter”
Owen Lach is a screenwriter and playwright whose debut novel Founder's Mercy (out now) is a queer sci-fi adventure set in a world where sexuality and gender are not questioned, instead the characters deal with other more world-changing issues. The Queer Review’s Chad Armstrong caught up with him to discuss Founder's Mercy and find out... Continue Reading →
Art, Fashion & Activism – Dr Emily Garside on Dan Levy’s Wojnarowicz-inspired 2021 Met Gala look
Schitt's Creek creator and star Dan Levy stood on the steps of The Metropolitan Museum of Art at his first Met Gala on Monday night wearing a rendering of the work of artist and AIDS activist David Wojnarowicz. A name many of Levy's younger fans had likely never heard before. In honoring the artist's work... Continue Reading →
Outfest LA 2021 Film Reviews: Being BeBe, We Need To Do Something, & Baloney
As another Outfest draws to a close, I can honestly say this has been a pretty incredible program of films. I’ve seen such growth in filmmaking styles, narrative experimentation, and a great amount of diverse stories and voices on display. So many films featured characters who just happened to be LGBTQ+ without it being the... Continue Reading →