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

REVIEWS

Cinema, DVD and Blu-ray reviews

The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug (Cinema)

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After the massive success of Lord Of The Rings, The Hobbit: An unexpected Journey wasn’t as well received by fans and critics. This was due to running time, the lengthy introduction to all the new characters, as well as Peter Jackson’s controversial decision to film and project it at 48fps (which many complained gave it a video feel).

So has Jackson redeemed himself with the diehard fans of Middle Earth with part two of the Hobbit trilogy? Yes, Smaug is The Two Towers compared to the slower Fellowship of the Ring. [Read more…]

Leather (US DVD)

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After the death of his father, Andrew (Andrew Glaszek) returns from the city to the Catskill Mountains where he grew up, taking his rather fey boyfriend, Kyle (Jeremy Neal), along with him. They head to Andrew’s father’s house/cabin, only to find that rough-hewn mountain man/hunk Birch (Chris Graham) is living there.

Birch was a childhood friend of Andrew’s, however they haven’t spoken for many years, partly due to the fact Andrew’s father, Walter, was difficult and had trouble accepting his gay son, which led Andrew to leave the mountains behind completely. Birch and Walter grew close though, which Andrew has a difficult time dealing with, feeling that Birch essentially became the son Walter wanted, as he could never accept the one he had. [Read more…]

Undressing Israel: Gay Men In The Promised Land (US DVD)

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Michael Lucas is best known for his eponymous gay porn label, but in the last few years he’s also become known as an ardent supporter of Israel, even if his pit-bull Israel-has-never-done-anything-wrong-ever style has put off as many people as it’s attracted. Now Lucas has directed (alongside Yariv Mozer) Undressing Israel, which takes a 46 minute look at being gay in the Holy Land. [Read more…]

Mr. Angel (US DVD)

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Buck Angel is a very interesting figure. He is the epitome of masculinity – shaved head, rippling muscles, beard and body hair. Yet he’s also known to many as the self-titled ‘man with a pussy’. Buck was raised a girl but transitioned to male as an adult. He had breast reduction surgery but decided to retain his vagina.

He then went into porn and has become renowned in certain circles, not just for his erotic efforts but also for his advocacy work in trying to challenge perceptions of trans people both on-screen and off. [Read more…]

The Falls: Testament Of Love (US DVD)

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2012’s The Falls (read our review here) gained a lot of fans with its story of young Mormon missionaries RJ (Nick Ferrucci) and Chris (Benjamin Farmer), who fall in love with each other despite the fact they know being actively gay is strictly prohibited by their religion. While many had hoped that after the film’s credits it would be happily ever after for the couple, the sequel lets us know that wasn’t the case. [Read more…]

Kick-Ass 2 (DVD)

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2010’s Kick-Ass gained a lot of fans who loved its blend of heart, humour and over-the-top comic book violence. Now we get the follow-up, which sees Jeff Wadlow take over from Matthew Vaughn in the director’s chair. While it’s an okay effort, it’s difficult not to wish Vaughn had stuck around.

Picking up some time after the first movie, Dave Lizewski (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) has left his Kick-Ass superhero alter-ego behind and is now attending high school along Mindy McCready (Chloe Moretz), the former Hit Girl. While they may not be trying to fight the bad guys, Kick-Ass has inspired others to take up the costumed vigilante cause. [Read more…]

Percy Jackson: Sea Of Monsters (Blu-ray)

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After Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief failed to become a massive success, most people thought that would be the last we’d see of Rick Riordan’s boy demigod. While it took Fox a while to decide to make a follow-up, it’s now here.

This time around Percy (Logan Lerman) is living at Camp Half-Blood alongside the other half-human kids with Olympian parents, which is the only place they’re safe, thanks to a protective barrier that prevents the forces that would like to kill them from getting in. However just as Percy learns that his nemesis from the first film, Luke (Jake Abel), isn’t dead, the tree that’s responsible for the maintaining barrier begins to die. The only way to reverse the poisoning is with the mystical Golden Fleece. [Read more…]

The Conjuring (DVD)

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People often bemoan with horror movies that it’s just the same old plots over and over. However The Conjuring shows that sometimes you don’t need a brand new story if you have a director and actors who know that they’re doing.

James Wan has been proving that idea with the likes of Saw and Insidious, and it’s certainly true with The Conjuring. It may be a pretty typical haunted house story, but it delivers on the entertainment and jolts. [Read more…]

Interior. Leather Bar (DVD)

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Sometimes it’s difficult to work out what’s going through the head of James Franco. There’s some evidence in Interior. Leather Bar that Franco isn’t sure himself, but that he’d sure like to find out.

First some background. In 1980 Al Pacino starred in Cruising, with The Exorcist’s William Friedkin directing. The movie sees Al as a cop who is tasked with going undercover into the New York S&M scene, where a gay serial killer is lurking. At first he hates it, but soon a strange fascination grows. [Read more…]

Floating Skyscrapers (Cinema)

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Poland has absolutely no history of gay-themed cinema, but this year has seen the arrival of two acclaimed movies from the country, In The Name Of and now Floating Skyscrapers. The latter initially sold itself as Poland’s first LGBT movie, but it was actually beaten into film festivals by In The Name Of by a few weeks. [Read more…]