IMAGE+NATION 2012: Festival Highlights

I don't know if you are like me, but I have certainly exhausted Netflix's selection of quote-end-quote Gay and Lesbian themed films. I've seen some real zingers that have questionable content , whether they are actually categorized correctly. So when this time of year rolls around, it is always very exciting because it marks the beginning of Image + Nation, Montreal's queer film festival, and the opportunity to see some amazing films, in the best format, on the big screen, with the good sound system. To celebrate their 25th year as a festival, the programmers of Image + Nation have gone all out and put together a great array of films, conquering some very difficult subjects.

The full list of programming is available on their website, and check out my list of festival highlights, followed by an interview with festival programmer Katharine Setzer. See you at the festival!

This year there are two 2011 Oscar contenders for Best Foreign Film! ZOMG! Big screen drama times!

Beauty (South Africa) Described as "explor(ing) complex and shifting intergenerational tensions around class, language, race – and their financial and personal costs – through one man's repressed sexuality." These discussions seem to be almost omnipresent in the gay dichotomy of life, so it seems like a visual treat to see it done at this calibre of the cinematic scope. I will see you at Cinema du Parc on Tuesday, November 27th at 9pm.

The other Oscar contender is Bullhead (Belgium). This noir-vengeance thriller, done in the same style as Shame and Raging Bull, with heavy Cronenberg visual references, about destiny and human sexuality, sprinkled with a dash of homoerotic tension, is being shown twice, with French and English subtitles. Yay to distribution rights that don't interfere with existing language politics! Be sure to check the listings for the subtitles of your choice on Tuesday November 27th, French subtitles at the 7:15pm screening, and English at the 9:15pm show, both at Cinema du Parc.

Call Me Kuchu (Uganda) is the intense documentary about Ugandan LGTBQ activist David Kato. If you aren't aware, currently, again, there is a bill in Uganda being pushed forward by their parliament to have homosexuality punishable by death. With that being said, knowing this is a documentary, please be prepared for some heavy content, and bring a tissue, or several. It screens at Cinema du Parc on Wednesday, November 28th at 9:15pm.

Lesbiana: une révolution parallèle (Canada) is a homegrown documentary, showcasing the rise of the radical lesbian movement, right here in Quebec. Using archival footage and interviews, learn the faces and names that fought the struggles, united against patriarchy, in a time when Quebec was in its most recognized political era, post October crisis. Bonus study points if you have any papers or critiques due in your Lesbian Issues and Realities class, or if you can work the content in to another term paper. Check it out on Sunday November 25th at 5pm, Cinema du Parc.

Following that same political feminist radical lesbian angle, be sure to see the doc, Audre Lorde: The Berlin Years 1984-1992 (Germany) at Cinema du Parc on Saturday, December 1st, at 3:15pm. This documentary by German filmmaker Dagmar Schultz, uses archival footage, interviews and rare home movies to portray an era in German history full of profound socio-political change, with Audre Lorde at the helm of organizing, and facilitating relevant dialogues with other feminist activists. Once again, take notes for bonus marks for your Women's Studies or English term papers! If I was your TA, I would give you a venerable nod for any reference involving Audre Lorde.

Interview with Image + Nation Festival programmer Katharine Setzer, originally aired on CJLO's With Gay Abandon on Friday, November 23rd.

-- Julie M hosts With Gay Abandon, Fridays 1-2pm on CJLO 1690AM