Antonio's Secret - aka: Lihim ni Antonio, Ang (2008)

Antonio's Secret - aka: Lihim ni Antonio, Ang (2008)

Ovo je četvrti filipinski film na ovom blogu. Svaki od njih je vrijedno imati u kolekciji! Izgleda da filipincima nije ništa strašno prikazati penis u erekciji, a u scenama seksa se baš i ne trude da sakriju previše. Da li je to kulturološki ili ja izvlačim preuranjene zaključke na osnovu malobrojnih filmova ne znam.
Ovaj film me je ostavio zatečenog! Kada je završio našao sam se u čudu, nekako zbunjen. Priča je počela sa odrastanjem jednog 15-togodišnjaka koji sa majkom živi u nekom gradu na Filipinama. Otac mu živi u Dubai i koliko se da zaključiti iz filma dugo godina ga nije vidio, povremeno se čuje sa jim preko telefona i to je sve. Tradicionalo odgojen, kao i svi iz njegove okoline radovao se božiću išao u crkvu, pjevao pjesme u crkvenom horu...
Antonio, kao i svaki tinejđer stalno preispituje sebe u svim aspektima, pa tako i u seksualnom. Shvata da ga privlače i muškarci i stalno istražuje sebe.
Kada se povjerio svom najboljem drugu, ovaj nesretnik mu je postavio toliko smješnih dječjih pitanja da sam se slatko nasmijao. Išao je toliko daleko da je po internetu tražio razloge zašto je neko gay ,a zašto ne.
Film je djeluje iskreno da sam na trenutak pomislio da se radi o nekom istinitom događaju. Pun emocionalnog naboja gledaoce sigurno neće ostaviti ravnodušnim!
Posebno me se dojmila Antonijeva majka. Njeni glumački izrazi, puni emocija od iskazivanja zadovoljstva, sreće, strepnje , brige, straha, razočaranosti, bijesa, su dostojni mnogih holivudskih glumaca.
Nakon što sazna da njen muž u Dubaiu ima drugu porodicu sa dvoje djece, vraća se kući i zatiće kako Antonijev Stric Joe siluje njenog sina.
Možete li zamisliti emocionalnu krah u kojem se našla jadna žena?
Mislim da će te uživati u ovom filmu, tim prije što obiluje lijepim scenama seksa, nagih muških tijela, masturbacije, oralnog seksa....
Sve to je začinjeno dobrom pričom, muzikom, glumom. Šta više očekivati od jednog filma?
Pogledajte ga, nećete se pokajati.

Director: Joselito Altarejos
Writers: Lex Bonife (story)
Lex Bonife (screenplay) ...
Release Date: 13 February 2008 (Philippines)
Genre: Crime | Drama
Plot Keywords: Clinic | Grandmother | Nurse | Grandparents | Identity
Cast: Kenjie Garcia ... Antonio
Jiro Manio ... Mike
Nino Fernandez ... Nathan
Honey Grace Capili ... Kathy
Josh Ivan Morales
Shamaine Buencamino ... Tere
Ricky Ibe ... Eli
Jay Perillo ... RT
Ajit Handasani ... Robin
A.A. Fernandez ... Female Choir Member
Aimee Fernandez ... Female Choir Member
Agatha Behar ... Female Choir Member
Lui Manansala ... Lola Ester
Ernie Zarate ... Lolo Pepe
Annelle Durano ... Nurse
Also Known As: Antonio's Secret (Philippines: English title)
Country: Philippines
Language: Filipino
Color: Color
Filming Locations: San Roque, Marikina City, Metro Manila, Luzon,
Philippines
Company: Beyond the Box
Soundtrack: Awit Para Kay Antonio


Good film but intense ending, 20 May 2008
Author: Aragorn-Elfstone76 from Singapore

In essence, this film was good. It tells the coming of age story of a 15 year old Antonio who's discovering his sexual identity. At first, I thought it was boring with lots and lots of conversations. But as the story progresses, we are not only delved into his relationship with his mother but also his friends and community, in which he was involved as part of a choir for the Christmas carol.

We also see how Antonio's relationship with his uncle, Jonbert, soon became an incestuous one. The climax of the film grew even more intense with two simultaneous occurrence going on at the same time...

One, Tere (Antonio's mother) discovered the secret marriage of her husband in Dubai. The other was the rape scene in which Jonbert (Antonio's uncle) forced anal sex on to the 15-year old. I believe this latter scene was the most intense throughout as we could see Antonio's torment during the rape.

As a result of the two occurrences collided, Anotnio's mother got home just in time to save her son by stabbing Jonbert thus killing him in the process.

At the end of the film, audiences would be left with a feeling of disturbed emotions as Antonio and his mother were escorted by the authorities.

Overall, I'd say this was a pretty good Filipino film so far that I've seen.




Pictures, trailer, description
Click HERE

Forgive and Forget (2000)

Forgive and Forget (2000)

Možete li zamisliti sebe u Sanja Talk Show na RTL HR kako svom najboljem drugu sa kojim ste odrasli kažete kako ga volite i da ste peder!?
I da prije toga svojim najbližima i prijateljima kažete da obavezno to gledaju.
Kakav coming out! Postali bi ste estradna zvjezda svih homofoba koji bi naravno otrčali kući da gledaju reprizu emisije.
Nije mi jasna poenta coming outa, a još manje ovako javnih. Ako baš nekome oćete reći zar to ipak nije bolje onako u četiri oka, a ne trubiti pred cjelim svjetom: JA SAM PEDER !

U ovom televizijskom filmu možete vidjeti upravo to. U jednom talk show na tv "Forgive and Forget " ( oprosti i zaboravi ) nakon 14 godina prijateljstva David kaže Theu ja sam peder i volim te!
Najgluplja stvar na svjetu. Promijeniti svoj život na tako teatralan način, nanoseći bol svima oko sebe pred kojima ste čuvali svoju najmračniju tajnu čitav život se može nazvati jedino Glupošću !
Sve u svemu jaka drama sa zaista dobrom glumom, svih aktera. Posebno mi se dopao ovaj što glumi pedera. A i muzika u filmu je odlična.


Director: Aisling Walsh
Writer: Mark Burt (writer)
Release Date: 3 January 2000 (UK)
Genre: Comedy | Drama

Plot Keywords: Best Friend | Betrayal | Closeted Homosexual | Coming Out | Love

Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)
Steve John Shepherd ... David O'Neil
John Simm ... Theo
Laura Fraser ... Hannah
Maurice Roëves ... Michael O'Neil
Ger Ryan ... Ruth O'Neil
Meera Syal ... Judith Adams
Nikki Amuka-Bird ... Emma
Annette Bentley ... Michelle
Isabella Marsh ... Gabby
Roger Griffiths ... Carlton
Stephen Graham ... John
Huggy Leaver ... Paul
Charles De'Ath ... Alex (as Charlie De'Ath)
June Page ... Carol
Paul Panting ... Gerry

Runtime: 100 min
Country: UK
Language: English

Company: Scottish Television Enterprises



Written by: Kage Alan

While there are still a large number of people who would prefer that gays and lesbians keep their orientation to themselves, there are times when doing so creates far more hurt, confusion and loss than is worth the silence.
Friendships end, families fall apart and lives change dramatically when someone comes out. Granted, it doesn't happen that way every single time, but it's the ones where it does that leave such a bitter aftertaste. Wouldn't things be simpler if there was a way to come out earlier in life without it being a spectacle or considered some devastating announcement? Might it make life a little bit easier down the road?

David O'Neil (Steve John Shepherd, "Star Wars: Episode II") and Theo (John Simm, "Human Traffic") have been best friends for 14 years. They work for David's father doing plastering and other various construction duties, hang out at the bars together, jog and check out the local available singles. This has been the way of things for a long time and it's a comfortable routine. Unfortunately (and there's always something unfortunate that crop up), Theo falls for a young woman named Hannah (Laura Fraser, "A Knight's Tale"), which means there's less time for David.

While close friends often go through a period when their routines are nterrupted because a romantic partner enters the picture, this one hits David hard because he's in love with Theo and has never felt comfortable saying anything about it. Nobody would ever suspect David of being gay either because there's nothing stereotypical about him, so his actions come much more as a shock to us than they should. When Theo declares his love for Hannah and moves in with her, David uses his knowledge of the couple to play on their fears and tear them apart. His actions aren't based on hate so much as he feels that Theo is a kindred spirit and that they, not Theo and Hannah, should be together. It's only at the end when David announces on a TV talk show called "Forgive and Forget" that everything comes out and he faces the consequences of his actions.

The characters in the film are extremely well written and are flawed in very real ways. David is too butch to be suspected as queer and too blinded to fully understand what he's doing to his friend, Theo makes the mistake of lying to Hannah and Hannah can't get past a previous relationship (where she was cheated on) long enough to see that Theo is everything he says he is.
The end of the film, though brutal, is something I could see actually occurring between these characters. The closing seconds are a bit confusing, however.





Pictures, trailer, description
Click HERE

Billy's Hollywood Screen Kiss (1998)

Billy's Hollywood Screen Kiss (1998)

Nema mi ništa slađe nego maznuti nekog str8 lika. Ustvari samo takve i volim. Ove obične pedere još ako su feminizirani i ne pogledam valjano, a kamoli da ih upoznam. Naprosto mi nisu interesantni. Al zato str8 lika , koji je ponosan na uspjehe kod žena....e to mi je poslastica kao kad mačoru daš slaninu. Nekako su mi se i veze zasnivale upravo na tome. Jer obično nakon noći provedene u mom krevetu polude, zaljube se.
A i meni prija njihova pažnja pa se upecam. Tako vam je to, kada vas lovina ulovi pa postanete plijen.
U ovom filmu jedan maldi zgodnjikavi fotograf se zaljubi u jednog konobara koji kasnije postane fotomodel.
Konobar naravno str8, ima curu, pa misli da je dobra pička sve u životu. A ovaj jadničak fotograf ga zamišlja u nekakvim filmovima, sanja o njemu. Svo vrijeme u zraku provejava nekakva napetost medju njima.
Al neću vam sve ispričati. Film nije neko vrhunsko remek dijelo, ali mi je prijao nakon napornog dana. Onako slatko sam se nasmijao i brzo mi je prošlo vrijeme. Prijalo mi je da gledam kako se nabacuju jedan drugom onako polunagi, lijepi i zgodni. Mada mi se kraj nije dopao nešto posebno. Drugačije bih ja to izrežirao, da bar malo liči na mene.



Director:Tommy O'Haver
Writer: Tommy O'Haver (writer)
Release Date:24 July 1998 (USA
Genre: Comedy | Romance
Plot Keywords: Drugs | Homosexual | Sex | Twenty Something | Gay Kiss more
Awards: 2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast
(Credited cast)

Sean Hayes ... Billy Collier (as Sean P. Hayes)
Brad Rowe ... Gabriel
Richard Ganoung ... Perry
Meredith Scott Lynn ... Georgiana
Matthew Ashford ... Whitey
Armando Valdes-Kennedy ... Fernando
Paul Bartel ... Rex Webster
Carmine Giovinazzo ... Gundy (as Carmine D. Giovinazzo)
Holly Woodlawn ... Holly
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mark Allen Anderson ... Peter
Bonnie Biehl ... Connie Rogers
Chad Boardman ... Drag Chorus
Les Borsay ... Les
Christopher Bradley ... Andrew
Robbie Cain ... Joshua
Kim Campoli ... Natalie
Rodney Chester ... DRag Chorus
Mark Conley ... Raymond
Eric Davenport ... Drag Chorus
Kimiko Gelman ... Donna
Annabelle Gurwitch ... Gallery Owner
Niles Jenson ... Diedre
Michelle Karen ... Billy's mom
Mr. Dan ... Drag Queen
Shawn Nicholson ... Young Billy
Shanti Reinhardt ... Ju-Ju, the performance artist
Kiff Scholl ... Rio, the performance artist
Jason-Shane Scott ... Brad
Jamie Spencer ... Kent Bartlett
Aaron Wilde ... Chris Jungblut


Runtime: 92 min | UK:89 min (video)
Country:USA
Language:English

10/10
Author: budmassey (cyberbarrister@gmail.com) from Indianapolis, IN

This is another one of those "discovered by accident while channel surfing" movies that I am always grateful to have found. Before the movie was over, I was online buying the DVD. O'Haver must have summoned all his Indy Film clout to muster the likes of Paul Ganoung, Meredith Scott Lynn and the fabulous Paul Bartel to lend their talents both on and off the camera, but the coup of coups was casting Sean Hayes.

Hayes is superb as Billy, a struggling gay photographer yearning for love. He falls for Gabriel (Brad Rowe) who may or may not be gay. The rest of the film dances around the inevitable question and let's just say that things have a way of working out for the best, albeit differently from what we often expect.

Actor, writer, director and absolute gay icon Paul Bartel, who unfortunately passed away a couple of years after Screen Kiss, is deliciously unctuous as a would be mentor. Brad Rowe is passable, if a little lightweight, and benefits immeasurably from his co-star. Sean Hayes, even before the runaway success of Will and Grace, demonstrates the comedic genius that steals almost every scene. Spliced throughout the movie are several numbers by Mr. Dan, a notable drag artist and promoter from L.A., and as Petula Clark he helps generate the sheer joy of watching this movie.

If you remember Lou Reed's classic "Take a Walk on the Wild Side" you may enjoy watching Holly Woodlawn ("Holly came from Miami F-L-A" - yes THAT Holly) as the party hostess.

The DVD commentary is worthwhile, and offers an inside view of the resourcefulness it takes to make a good indie film. It does not detract from the importance of BHSK that it is not an original film. O'Haver had been toying with the basic story idea since his earlier Catalina, but in BHSK the story is more fully developed and humorous. Touching, moving, gentle and risqué, an uplifting and life-affirming message wrapped in a carnival of Angelean queer decadence.



Pictures, trailer, description...
Click HERE

A CAUSE D'UN GARÇON (2002)

A CAUSE D'UN GARÇON (2002)

Još jedan film na temu kako biti srećan peder u balkanskoj Francuskoj?
Več su mi dosadili ovi coming out filmovi. Uvjek ista priča, patnje i ostala sranja. Pa ko ih ćera da svima objavljuju kako vole da se ližu sa mušarcima umjesto da kao sav ostali "normalni" svjet jure za ženskim suknjama.
Sram da ih bude.
Evo na primjer ovaj Vincent, uspješan plivač, omiljen u školi, ima prelijepu dijevojku, roditelji za primjer, brat koji se bavi boksom ( a uz to je zgodniji i ljepši od njega)... I sada taj Vincent ispade peder. I svi ga u školi maltretiraju, rugaju mu se, odbacuju i slično. Čak ga i djevojka optuži što joj nije rekao da je peder prije no je opalio.
Pa i ja bi ga tukao zbog toga. Trebao joj je reći prije snošaja kako voli da se trpa i sa muškarcima.

I sve u svemu nakon svih tih maltretiranja, plakanja i mučenja svi se nekako pomire sa tim da je njihov Vincent kurcopušač i budu sretni do kraja života.

E pa to ima samo u Francuskoj. Ođe lijepo pederu stave etiketu dupedavac, zaposle ga kao frizera ili modnog kreatora i pričaju viceve o njemu tokom cjele zime. Kada dođe ljeto i turisti svi se zgroze kakvih groznih pedera ima i pričaju priče o njima, tako da zaborave na svog frizera.

Šta da vam kažem klasična coming out priča!





Director: Fabrice Cazeneuve
Writer: Vincent Molina (writer)
Release Date: 13 March 2002 (France)
Genre: Drama

Plot Keywords: Coming Out | Homosexuality | Homosexual | Teenager | Outing

Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)
Julien Baumgartner ... Vincent Molina
Julia Maraval ... Noémie
Jérémie Elkaďm ... Benjamin
François Comar ... Stéphane
Patrick Bonnel ... Bernard, the Father
Christiane Millet ... Sylvie
Antoine Michel ... Régis, the Brother
Nils Ohlund ... Bruno
Bernard Blancan ... Swimming Coach
Eric Bonicatto ... French Professor
Paco Boublard ... Swimming Teammate 1
Vincent Billouin ... Swimming Teammate 2
Adrien Saint-Joré ... Swimming Teammate 3
Vincent Nemeth ... Guidance Counselor
Blandine Pélissier ... Guidance Counselor Secretary



Also Known As:
Carnets d'ado - Ŕ cause d'un garçon (France)
Tu verras, ça te passera (France) (working title)
You'll Get Over It (USA) (festival title)


Runtime: 90 min
Country: France
Language: French








Excellent French telepic "You'll Get Over It" treads familiar ground in its tale of a high school swimming star who's "outed" when he's barely figured out he's gay. But non-formulaic character interactions, a uniformly strong cast and deft handling by vet TV helmer Fabrice Cazaneuve render a refreshing take on youthful coming-out. Feature could definitely score specialized offshore home-format sales, with theatrical exposure not out of the question despite vid lensing.

Seventeen-year-old Vincent (Julien Baumgartner, from Gallic "American Pie" knockoff "Sexy Boys") is a role model at his high school -- well-liked, star of its high-profile competitive swim team, part of an inseparable triad with best friend Stephane (Francois Comar) and girlfriend Noemie (Julie Maraval). But he's also seeing older gay man Bruno (Nils Ohlund) on the sly, and feels the burden of maintaining a secret identity.

When quirky, ostracized new student Benjamin (Jeremie Elkaim) pursues him with charmingly dogged effort, the mere fact of their being seen together results in graffiti that "outs" Vincent before the whole school. His fall from grace is immediate and psychologically near-unbearable. Teammates turn on him. Noemie, with whom he'd recently had first-time sex, feels betrayed. His parents are in shock, having been tipped by thuggish ne'er-do-well older brother Regis (Antoine Michel), who gloats over the "golden boy" sibling's humiliation. But not all responses are negative, and few prove unchangeable in the long run.

While Vincent Molina's script has its uneven moments, story packs a tremendous amount of character complexity and incident into tight runtime, just occasionally underdeveloping threads (most notably Benjamin's). Drama and humor are judiciously twined, happy ending well-earned.

Baumgartner's wholly winning (though credibly immature) protag is supported by nicely observed, dimensionalized perfs all around. Editorial presentation is headlong without seeming rushed, lensing sharp, production package smartly turned.

Watch this movie HERE