Every Monday in December, Rialto Channel is shining a spotlight on award-winning, heartfelt LGBTQI+ films from around the world. Here are some of express’ top picks!
BENEDETTA
Visionary Director Paul Verhoeven (Basic Instinct, Showgirls, Total Recall) presents a lesbian love story set in late 17th-Century Tuscany. A hallucinating nun experiencing visions of a suave and strapping Jesus; a stranger seeking refuge from a life of abuse; an attraction they can’t hold back.
This utterly original epic explores female desire in a world that denies it. Have your Virgin Mary-shaped dildos at the ready!
SORRY ANGEL
This film celebrates uniquely gay friendships in a way seldom seen in cinema before. It could be a distant younger relative of Boys In The Band, without the dry bitterness. Set in early-nineties Paris, an older writer and a younger student fall deeply for each other against a turbulent backdrop of terminal illness, societal expectations and flawed intentions. French filmmaking at its finest!
SUMMER OF 85
One of the most critically acclaimed queer films to come out of France. Set in the mid-eighties, this coming-of-age romance is easy to compare to Call Me By Your Name, yet feels infinitely more authentic as beloved director François Ozon adapts Aidan Chambers’s classic novel, Dance On My Grave. This immersive love story is further enhanced by Hichame Alaouie’s intimate cinematography that leaves you feeling kissed by the French sun.
I CARRY YOU WITH ME
A heartbreaking romance that examines gay love and the desire for a better life under the constant strain of uncaring societal norms. I Carry You With Me is a fantastic example of a documentary maker (director Heidi Ewing) bringing an unflinching authenticity to a fictional motion picture. Two Mexican men dream of a free life in New York, repressed by homophobic religious teachings in their homeland. Should they risk a harrowing journey and a potentially racist welcome? A Sundance Film Festival Audience Award winner!
Rialto Channel’s December celebration of queer world cinema doesn’t stop there. Also screening in December, you will find: Falling, Carmilla, Little Girl, Making Montgomery Clift, Are You Proud?, Light in the Water, Larger Than Life: The Kevyn Aucoin Story and Miss.
A subscription to Rialto Channel is the perfect Christmas present for any SKY customer. Visit rialtochannel.co.nz to find out more.
