Big Gay Picture Show

Taking a look at the world of film through gay eyes - news, reviews, trailers, gay film, queer cinema and more

Taking a look at the world of film through gay eyes - news, reviews, trailers, gay film, queer cinema & more

CINEMA REVIEWS

The latest cinema reviews from BGPS

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (Cinema Review)

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So here we are at the end of Bilbo’s quest, and a journey that Peter Jackson and co started on many years ago to bring Middle Earth to the big screen. I am a huge fan of the Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001-2004) and they are some of my all-time favourite films.

It’s been more than a decade since I went to the cinema to see The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), and at the time I went in with little expectation, just knowing that it was a fantasy film based on a beloved book that had gained legions of fans worldwide. I was captivated by a fully realised world and became attached to the characters and their quest. And then suddenly it ended and I couldn’t believe I had to wait a year for more! [Read more…]

The Imitation Game (Cinema Review)

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Rule one of cinema? Show, don’t tell. This seems to have been totally ignored by Norwegian director Morten Tyldum, who chooses to take one of the most extraordinary British stories of the 20th century and make it in such a dull, flat way it stretches patience to snapping point.

The story itself has been the subject of a West End play in Breaking the Code, and a film already, Enigma, although the central character was fictionalized. Here we get the true story of Alan Turing, the mathematical and linguistic genius who cracks codes for fun. However during WWII the Nazis invent a machine so complex it codes vital messages with 19,000,000,000,000,000,000 possible answers. It’s impossible to crack, right? But with U-boats sinking ships in the Atlantic and the Luftwaffe creating havoc in the skies it’s vital that someone crack the code. [Read more…]

The Way He Looks (Cinema Review)

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The Way He Looks is Daniel Ribiero’s masterful treatment of his Iris Prize 2012-winning short, and in what might be a rare case, the extended version is at least as good as the original short – indeed it won the Teddy Award for Best LGBT movie at this year’s Berlin Film Festival.

As blind Leo (Gilherme Lobo) begins to grow into young manhood, his best friend Giovanna (Tess Amorim), who looks out for him, starts to get in his way, so he begins to plan an exchange trip abroad. However, when a new classmate called Gabriel (Fabio Audi) arrives, the three become friends and Leo begins to consider revising his plans. As the bond between Leonardo and Gabriel deepens, they start to realise there’s something beyond friendship brewing, but must also battle the social pressures of girls and drinking and schoolmates. [Read more…]

The Maze Runner (Cinema Review)

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With any teen action/fantasy film, there are always going to be comparisons to the very obvious Twilight, Divergent and the box office Phenomenon that is The Hunger Games – all film franchises adapted from highly acclaimed books aimed initially at the teen market.

Like many of these successful franchises, The Maze Runner is a trilogy also with prequel to follow, this one written by James Dashner.

The plot? Well to no real surprise, again we have a lead character thrown into a situation out of their control, where they have to battle against all odds for survival using sheer willpower and strength of character – also seen in past classics Lord Of the Flies and Battle Royale. [Read more…]

Gone Girl (Cinema Review)

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Want a nailbiting, edge-of-your-seat thriller perfect for those crisp autumn nights? David Fincher is your man. From Se7en to Zodiac he has proved he can crank up the tension to almost unbearable levels, and he knows exactly how to treat Gillian Flynn’s potboiler book. When the flaws and cracks start to appear it’s more Flynn’s fault than Fincher’s – she adapted her own screenplay so has no-one else to blame when the plot starts to develop holes bigger than a sponge. It’s been portrayed as the struggle between men and women, but actually it’s more subtle than that, and hits its stride when it is a look at the American class system. [Read more…]

Ballet Boys (Cinema Review)

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Back in 2000, Billy Elliott showed us that despite preconceptions, there’s nothing wrong with being a boy who wants to do ballet. However what’s it actually like if you’re a teenage boy who’s devoted themselves to an artform that many consider to be just ‘for girls’?

The Norwegian documentary Ballet Boys tries to find out, following Lukas, Syvert and Torgeir, who are all in the same class together at a ballet school, where they’re the boys amongst a sea of girls. To be honest, while early on the documentary asks questions about why the boys want to do ballet, it quickly realises there’s no better reason than ‘why not?’ After all like anything else, once you realise you have a talent, it’s no surprise you’d want to pursue it. However there are undoubtedly reasons to stop, not least the time, passion and dedication needed, especially knowing that there are no guarantees of a successful dancing career at the end of it. [Read more…]

Pride (2014) (Cinema Review)

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Pride opens at the London Gay Rights March in 1984, with openly gay men and women walking down the street with banners protesting their rights to love who they want. They’re suddenly joined by a young, fresh faced Joe (George MacKay), who’s quickly nicknamed Bromley, who nervously joins them in their crusade for equal rights.

There he meets Mark (Ben Schnetzer), a man who’s always keen to support a cause. Mark has the brainwave that the miners, who are striking and facing massive oppression from the government, have many goals that mirror those of LGBT. He decides that they should start fundraising for the miners, and to do it out and proud as the newly formed group, LGSM (Lesbian and Gays Support the Miners). [Read more…]

Guardians Of The Galaxy (Cinema Review)

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Over the last 10 years films based around the Marvel Comic Universe have dominated the box office raking in billions across the world. From Spiderman to the X-men series to the varying films that led up to The Avengers, cinemagoers can’t seem to get enough of superheroes.

So the latest addition to the never-ending stream of products is the highly anticipated Guardians Of The Galaxy which, we have been told, is like nothing we’ve seen before…but have we? [Read more…]

I Am Divine (Review)

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“Divine was the burlesque of John”

After premièring in the US at South by Southwest in 2013, I Am Divine finally hits the UK shores. It tells the story of how drag artiste Divine, aka Harris Glen Milstead, became John Waters’ cinematic muse and an international drag icon.

I Am Divine is a definitive biographical portrait of Divine, best known as the drag queen that ate dog poo in Pink Flamingo’s. The documentary honours Divine in just the way he always craved — as a serious artist and immortal star. Unfortunately, he died days before shooting began for Married with Children, where Divine was finally due to be taken seriously as an actor. [Read more…]

Chinese Puzzle (Cinema Review)

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After Pot Luck and Russian Dolls comes the third part in Cedric Klapish’s light comedy of modern life and romance. The setting is different again, now we are in New York (after Barcelona and St Petersburg), but the characters are the same – older, not much wiser and terrified of approaching the dreaded 40.

Romain Duris and Kelly Reilly, the apparently golden couple, have split. She has met a bland millionaire in New York and leaves him, taking their two young kids with them. Devastated, he follows, determined to keep in touch with his offspring but with little prospects. He does have some help though, in the form of Cecile de France, his lesbian pal who he has helped get pregnant, and who is living in Brooklyn with her partner. He also has a flying visit from Audrey Tatou, who is determined to throw aside her stuffy past and become a go-getter, and has a business meeting in Manhattan with a Chinese company to broker a huge deal. [Read more…]