As part of PinkFest 2018 by Pink Dot in Singapore, the LGBTQ community has come together to celebrate the freedom to love through film at The Projector, bringing you the best of the best with award-winning movies all over the world.
BPM
(BEATS PER MINUTE) or (120 BATTEMENTS PAR MINUTE)
Taking place in France in the early 90s, BPM, by César award-winning director Robin Campillo, narrates a passionate story of Parisian activists fighting the AIDS pandemic in its early days. The activist group, ACT UP, challenges the government and other institutions like major pharmaceutical companies through rallies, protests and dance. Amidst the fight against the overwhelming opposition of the French government and pharmaceuticals, sparks fly between newcomer Nathan and the passionate HIV-positive veteran Sean. A deeply emotional story sharing the personal experiences of those involved in ACT UP in the 1990s, the movie has moved hearts all over the world and should not be missed.
GOD’S OWN COUNTRY
Still waters run deep in God’s Own Country. A love story between a young sheep farmer, Johnny, and Romanian migrant worker, Gheorghe, is brewing and shaking Johnny’s world completely. Johnny is a young alcoholic who has spent his days sleeping and drinking around until the handsome, confident and competent Gheorghe shows up, helping with the family’s farming business after Johnny’s father suffers a stroke. Despite a rough start, the two begin to bond and fall in love, but homophobia in the rural village haunts them, and they begin to question their conviction to make things work. The movie’s phenomenal cinematography combined with its deeply emotional plot makes it exceptional and the quaintness of the movie makes it ever so enchanting.
KIKI
KIKI, named after New York’s thriving underground ballroom scene, is a documentary film that introduces viewers to the gay New York, a world less seen by the public. KIKI is an intimate peek into the marginalized community of LGBTQ youths, where the dance scene provides not just contests, but a safe haven and a social structure for the youths who have no place to go. KIKI shows the treacherous road ahead of the young community and their awareness of the struggles they must go through, but their determination to live their lives against all odds shines through in the film.
TOMBOY
It would’ve been difficult to know the sex of the protagonist of the movie in the early minutes if not for the title, as young actress Zoe Heran sports a short boyish haircut and introduces herself in the movie to a new friend as Mikael instead of her given name, Laure, which her mother calls her by. The movie explores the formation of Mikael/Laure’s identity and the divide between gender and sex, and whether people are hardwired or socially conditioned. The story draws you in despite its simplicity as the young actors and actresses bring a heartwarming touch to this drama, and the beautiful cinematography makes it an overall worthwhile movie to watch.
