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Reviews
Alex Strangelove (2018)
It's messy, just like life...
This film is a great film about coming to terms with who you are and coming out. Unlike some other High School gay films like Love, Simon where the character is already comfortable with who they are, these characters are real and messy and confused about who they are going to be in life and where there are going to go.
I have seen a lot of reviews that are unhappy about how things were resolved and some dangling threads, sure if you want everything broken down for you and tied into a neat bow then this might not be the movie for you.
One reviewer said this movie was made only for the director. I would say this movie does seem very personal, but also very common among gay men of a certain age who know what it's like not to know who you are down deep, hate who you are and try to hide it and/or just unable to come out because of your surrounds.
This film does show that coming out is a very personal thing, just because someone can feel comfortable coming out at 12, doesn't invalidate the other person who can't until they are 50. Coming out is a journey some take longer than others.
This film shows why Sex Education is so important in High School and why teens need to learn about what is feels to be gay, otherwise this movie will continue to be played out over and over again.
Trevor: The Musical (2022)
Most real coming out story ever
As someone who grew up in the eighties I have to say this story was pretty spot on with how it portrayed coming out in the eighties. It was also nice to see a story where unlike Love, Simon and Heartstoppers, the character is really conflict and confused about what his newfound feelings meant.
Take away the musical and a lot of the plot rings true about coming out in the '80's and you'll understand why the Trevor Project is named after this Trevor. This Trevor is based on a story that was written back then. While they did touch on AIDS, since these are middle school kids, that wasn't the focus of the story.
Good acting, great story, great songs.
A Very English Scandal (2018)
Blackmailed MP tries to end the Blackmailer
It seems really weird this production seems to favor the miscreant who couldn't get his life together and kept trying to extort money from his former lover.
One of the things glossed over was this young man was so vindictive he even sent a letter to the MP's mother detailing their sexual affair.
While the MP may have tried to have his extortionist killed most of us could understand and sympathize. Imagine if someone was trying to destroy you and your life, what would you be driven to do?
Let's not forget this happened in the 60's, only 10 years after WW2 hero Alan Turing was chemically castrated for being gay. So fear of being outed was a very real thing in the UK. I really wish the producers would have tried to understand Mr. Thorpe more and give more weight to what would have happened had the attempts to put him had succeeded sooner.