2. Films

To Die Like a Man

25/11(Wed) 9:40pm/IFCBuyTrailer

27/11(Fri) 9:30pm/AMC FWBuy

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In Portuguese with English Subtitles
Portugal / 2009 / Colour / 133min
Director: João Pedro Rodrigues
Cast: Alexander David, Fernando Santos, Gonçalo Ferreira De Almeida, Fernando Gomes, Jenni La Rue

At what point can we move on from our gender, even if we are trapped in the wrong body? To Die Like a Man follows Tonia, a transsexual grand dame of the Lisbon drag scene, who is resisting pressure from her junkie boyfriend Rosário to undergo a full sex change operation that will remove the last vestiges of her manhood. As she struggles with her decision, Tonia faces challenges to her position from young upstarts and journeys to the remote home of fellow drag queen Maria. The flamboyance of the actors is matched by the stylistic approach of award winning director João Pedro Rodrigues. He frames the action with an expert eye, making To Die Like a Man an enthralling cinematic experience.

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Shank

22/11(Sun) 9:45pm/IFCBuyTrailer

24/11(Tue) 8:05pm/BCBuy

27/11(Fri) 9:50pm/BCBuy

SHANK GANG 2

In English
United Kingdom / 2009 / Colour / 88min
Director: Simon Pearce
Cast: Wayne Virgo, Tom Bott, Alice Payne, Marc Laurent

Cal is a scally kid from the wrong side of the tracks, who spends his days drinking and committing random acts of violence with his gang mates Nessa and Jonna. But Cal has a secret, he likes men. When his gang rob and beat Olivier, an effeminate French student, Cal intervenes to save him. The act is his first in a road to discovering a softer side and coming to terms with his sexuality, but how will his friends react when they find out he is gay? Director Simon Pearce walked away from the Miami Gay and Lesbian Film festival with the “Emerging Talent in Queer Cinema” award for this harsh but true-to-life portrayal of the UK’s underclass.

Eyes Wide Open

28/11(Sat) 7:45pm/BCBuyTrailer

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In Hebrew and Yiddish with English subtitles
Israel / 2009 / Colour / 92min
Director: Haim Tabakman
Cast: Zohar Shtrauss, Ran Danker, Tinkerbell, Tzahi Grad

Co-presented with HONG KONG JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL

Set in Jerusalem’s Orthodox community, Eyes Wide Open follows a passionate affair between butcher Aaron and his young apprentice Ezri. Following his father’s death, respectably married Aaron hires the nomadic and handsome Ezri as help for his butcher shop. But as their master and student relationship develops into something much stronger, they must cope with the suffocating and claustrophobic community in which they live. When the behaviour of an unmarried female neighbour causes controversy, Aaron is forced to assume a judging role in the community, one that conflicts directly with his own actions. First-time feature director Haim Tabakman explores the moral limits of religion and responsibility, and the struggle between desire, responsibility and the need to conform in this haunting and poignant feature.

Private Lessons

21/11(Sat) 2:00pm/AMC FWBuyTrailer

23/11(Mon) 7:50pm/IFCBuy

01/12(Tue) 9:50pm/BCBuy

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In French with Chinese and English subtitles
Belgium and France / 2008 / Color / 105min
Director: Joachim Lafosse
Cast: Jonas Bloquet, Jonathan Zaccaï, Claire Bodson

Not only does aspiring tennis player Jonas find out that he will never become a professional, but his lackluster academic performance means he is at risk of bring expelled from school. Ignored and abandoned by his divorced parents, Jonas begins to turn his back on his life, becoming estranged from his friends, school and family. But he finds solace in older friends Pierre, Didier and Nathalie. Their help enables Jonas to overcome the challenges of both romance and study as he learns how to cope with both his examinations and the trials of love.

Give Me Your Hand

21/11(Sat) 4:00pm/AMC FWBuyTrailer

27/11(Fri) 8:00pm/AMC FWBuy

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In French with English Subtitles
France / 2008 / Color / 86min
Director: Pascal-Alex Vincent
Cast: Alexandre Carril, Victor Carril, Anais Demoustier

Co-presented by Consulat General de France
Sultry, brooding and beautiful. Terms that refer to both the way this film is shot and the extraordinarily attractive lead actors in this sensual and sometimes savage road move. Identical 18-year twins Antoine and Quentin leave their home in France on a journey to attend their estranged mother’s funeral in Spain. Hitching, walking and jumping onto moving trains, the two encounter a variety of absorbing characters on their odyssey. From free and easy girls to a farm boy fling, these interactions provoke fraternal jealousy and rivalry, with often violent results. Showcasing the stunning French countryside, director Pascal Alex-Vincent’s eye for beauty also extends to his young and gorgeous cast. A film of few words, it is Give Me Your Hand’s imagery that speaks the loudest.

Prodigal Sons

26/11(Thu) 9:50pm/BCBuy

Prodigal Sons

In English
USA / 2008 / 彩色 Colour / 86min
Director: Kimberly Reed

Filmmaker Kimberly Reed returns home for her high school reunion, ready to reintroduce herself to the small town as a transgender woman and hoping for reconciliation with her long-estranged adopted brother Marc. Things are complicated by the shocking revelation that Marc may be the grandson of Orson Wells and Rita Hayworth, forcing Kim and her family to explore questions of sexual orientation, identity, severe trauma and love. Prodigal Sons offers a raw, provocative and moving examination of one family’s struggle to come to terms with its past and present.

Fig Trees

29/11(Sun) 4:15pm/BCBuyTrailer

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In English
Canada / 2009 / Colour / 104min
Director: John Greyson
Special Selection in World AIDS Movies Day (29/11)

At the center of this playfully perverse video opera are AIDS activists Tim McCaskell, the Canadian founder of AIDS Action Now!, and Zackie Achmat, whose drug strike in South Africa made international headlines. Documentary footage of their political battles is intercut with a fictional plot about Gertrude Stein and Virgil Thomson, who, having finished their play Four Saints in Three Acts, have created a sequel portraying the activists as modern-day saints. Dark humor abounds in this surreal production. Masterfully constructed and visually riveting, Fig Trees is an entertaining yet searing indictment of government negligence and the greed of pharmaceutical companies. It is also a poignant memorial for the untold lives of many AIDS activists and one of the most provocative films to emerge from queer cinema in recent years.

Sex Positive

29/11(Sun) 2:45pm/BCBuyTrailer

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In English
USA / 2009 / Color / 78min
Director: Daryl Wein
Special Selection in World AIDS Movies Day (29/11)

The outbreak of AIDS in the early and mid 1980’s devastated an entire generation of gay men in the major US cities, and changed the entire gay lifestyle across the globe. Sex Positive looks at the fascinating journey of an unsung hero, from his journalism-activism in the late 70s through to his struggle for recognition and survival today. While most of us have never heard of Richard Berkowitz, he played an instrumental part in persuading the gay community to use condoms to reduce the transmission of HIV. His personal journey, as a S&M sex-worker and outcast, is just intriguing. With unprotected sex and infection rates amongst young men on the rise, Sex Positive is chilling historical lesson for all and a documentary that every gay man should watch.

We Are The Mods

21/11(Sat) 8:05pm/IFCBuyTrailer

25/11(Wed) 8:10pm/BCBuy

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In English
USA / 2009 / Colour / 80min
Director: E.E. Cassidy
Cast: Melia Renee, Najarra Townsend, Mary Elise Hayden, Lance Drake

Sadie is a flannel shirt wearing photography nut in her last year of high school, the kind of nerdy arty kid who gets good grades and lives with her nice family in a nice house. Nico and Treg are a hot hipster couple infatuated with recreating the mod lifestyle of “Band of Outsiders”, wearing vintage clothing and riding around town on Lambretta scooters. Soon Sadie is drawn into their world, opening up and exploring a whole new side to life, from snorting coke at fancy clubs to menage a trois scenarios in hot tubs. Director E.E. Cassidy’s knowledge of the retro-hipster mod scene comes to the fore in this quirky, dramatic and off-beat film.

The Houseboy

22/11(Sun) 6:25pm/IFCBuyTrailer

24/11(Tue) 9:50pm/BCBuy

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In English
USA / 2007 / Colour / 81min
Director: Spencer Schilly
Cast: Nick May, Tom Merlino, Brian Patacca, Blake Young-Fountain

Opening with three men together in bed, the Houseboy is director and writer Spencer Schilly’s take on polyamorous relationships. The movie follows a week in the life of Ricky, a 21 year old guy who has become embroiled in a three-way relationship with an Simon and DJ, an older couple. However, while Simon has feelings for Ricky, to DJ he is nothing more than a toy. When his lovers leave him at home to visit their family at Christmas he embarks upon a series of casual hook-ups, each more empty and unfulfilling then the last. As he falls into inner turmoil, he begins tells his lovers that he will kill himself. But will he find redemption in the arms of somebody who treats him as an equal?