Goldstein Locks and the Three Gay Films

I enjoyed a VERY quiet New Year’s Eve with my lady. The boys had lost track of the date, and we did not remind them that we were staring 2015 in the face. They were asleep by 9PM on New Year’s Eve, and I was ready to sit by the fire and watch movies while Gabriella watched cooking shows and football. Romantic, right? Well, we were sitting by the fire, anyway.

I decided to educate and entertain myself with films du gay. And so, I watched three gay flicks, and my reactions were quite Goldie Locksian. Goldstein Locksian? I enjoyed them all, but there was definitely a winner of the three. I give you my Goldstein Locks opinions of three worthy films for your queer repertoire.

Chichicastenango Regarding Susan Sontag

Photo credit: Henri Cartier-Bresson / Magnum Photos

I LOVED this documentary about Susan Sontag. It appealed to me as a feminist, lesbian, Jew, writer, New Yorker, and mother. I enjoyed listening to the people who knew Sontag; her son, her colleagues, her lovers….my favorite being writer Harriet Sohmers Zwerling – a long, white-haired ol’ crone with a gravelly, smokers voice and a dirty mouth who dressed in a mauve, polyester blouse that drew attention to her flaccid, braless bosoms. She spoke of some very interesting times, and she did it with old school, lesbionic flare.

But as much as I appreciated learning about Sontag, I wouldn’t say this is a crowd-pleaser for any time. It’s the intellectual’s version of foreplay, and after you watch it, you just want to grab your partner by the hair and draw them close to you so that your nose is within inches of theirs, and growl at them in a lower register than is usual, “Do you want to fucking read a book?” Either that or put on a black turtleneck and read beat poetry with a cigarette dangling from your cotton-mouth-dry lips.

Thành Phố Hòa Bình Goldstein Locks said, “This documentary was too serious!”

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Remembering the Artist Robert De Niro Sr.

Photo Credit: People.com

I couldn’t wait to watch this documentary after all the press about Robert De Niro’s gay dad. I thought I’d learn about how De Niro Sr.’s sexuality impacted and influenced his son’s life. I wanted to see queer history through eyes of both the De Niros. But his homosexuality received little attention in the film. It was mostly about his art.

De Niro Sr. suffered from depression, and it didn’t help that his art was never appreciated. He was a great artist according to peers and teachers and critics, but he never received the recognition that he deserved. As a result, he was resentful of other artists and the economy of art. Artists may never know their value as their value may only be realized after death.

When there were mentions of De Niro’s sexuality, it was only in the context of how miserable he was to be gay. From his diaries:

Being a painter is an infection like being a homosexual – to accept life without recognition before or after death just as you accept life alone without romantic attachment.

I did appreciate the art and the bit of art history I gleaned, but watching this documentary is like inviting a few friends over for festive drinks and only when you are all in tears do you recall that alcohol is a depressant.

Goldstein Locks said, “This documentary was too sad!”

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Beyond the Candelabra

Photo credit: HBO

This account of Liberace and his relationship with Scott Thorson is the perfect mix of gay history, comedy, and shiny things. Matt Damen, Michael Douglas, and Rob Lowe are super fun to watch, and I simply can’t think of one example of a sour note. See what I did there?

Rob Lowe has received much praise for his small part in the movie as Liberace’s plastic surgeon Dr. Jack Startz and now I know why. He is definitely a scene-stealer with his surgically over-altered face and comical manner.

Watching this film was like dipping a silver ladle into a crystal bowl of a delightfully frothy sherbet punch, pouring it into a champagne glass, and ringing in the new year with a hopeful toast.

Goldstein Locks said, “This one was just right!”

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And then Goldstein Locks went upstairs and crawled under the covers of a bed that was just right next to a lady who was more than just right.

Let me know if you’ve seen any good gay flicks recently that you’d recommend or avoid. Goldstein Locks hasn’t had her fill.