FISH FILMS
Bilal Hassani, here in “The Queens of Drama” alongside Louiza Aura.
CINEMA – Have you ever heard of Mimi Madamour? We do. And you, soon. The lesbian pop star, heroine of Drama Queensthe tangy first feature film by Alexis Langlois, hailed at Cannesarrives on our screens in preview on the occasion of the 30th edition of Chéries-Chéris, the film festival LGBTQIA & + of Paris.
The festivities, which start this Friday, November 15, welcome several dozen varied productions to the capital addressing, among other things, internalized (and societal) homophobia, the importance of friendship, the sexuality of seniors and even asexuality. We have selected six, which you are likely to hear about.
1. Drama Queens
The year is 2055, and Steevyshady is back in front of his camera. Now hyperbotoxed, the ex-YouTube star played by Bilal Hassani promises us to return unvarnished to the tragic destiny of his lifelong idol, the singer Mimi Madamour. You will know everything about his terrible descent into hell, closely linked to his love story with the other darling of the recording industry, the punk Billie Kohler.
Presented at Critics’ Week during the last Cannes Film Festival, Drama Queens by Alexis Langlois is an exuberant, funny and wildly musical comedy, whose songs are likely to stay in your head, like good old telecrochet hits. Not just a reflection on the excesses of fan attitude or hetero-normative formatting in music, this is a definitively “ camp » to be seen in theaters from November 27.
2. Big boys
Jamie is 14 years old and this weekend he is going camping. While it was supposed to be a family trip, he learns at the last moment that his cousin Allie is coming with Dan, her boyfriend. At first hesitant, he quickly changes his mind when he meets the guy, a tall, virile guy who reminds him of the other men he secretly watches through his window.
“Coming-of-age” tender and hilarious, Big Boys by Corey Sherman reminds us all that growing up as a gay boy often means having unreciprocated crushes on straight people. A comedy praised in several festivals, but which (unfortunately) does not yet have an official release date here in France.
3. Fotogenico
Direction Marseille, for an investigation of the Ju course at Pointe Rouge, and in red underwear. Raoul has just arrived in the Marseille city with one idea in mind: to discover the truth about his dead daughter. And when he learns that she had recorded a record with a group of girls, he will do everything to get the group back together. Crazy and fanciful comedy with Christophe Paou (The Stranger of the Lake), Fotogenicoby Marcia Romano and Benoit Sabatier, arrives in theaters December 11.
4. Close to You
Absent from the big screen since coming out as trans in 2020, Elliot Page is back. In Close to You by Dominic Savage (A happy woman), the Canadian actor is Sam, a young thirty-year-old living in Toronto who returns to his family for the first time after announcing himself to his loved ones that he is a trans man. That was also four years ago.
Intrusive questions, discomfort and ignorance of those close to him… Our hero will have to face a real emotional journey, accompanied, however, by a very beautiful reunion with a former love and a feeling of rediscovered confidence. An intimate drama carried by its performer, in theaters soon.
5. Habibi, song for my friends
The names Ruby on the Nail and Sara Forever are certainly not unknown to you. Finalists of Drag Race Francethe two drag queens are, here, brought together under the aegis (and the camera) of their friend Javel Habibi, another Parisian drag star known in civilian life as Florent Gouëlou. It is to him that we owe the pleasant romantic comedy Three nights a week released in 2022 with Cookie Kunty.
Competition and maxi-challenges? Out. On the program for this documentary: political, funny and intimate discussions behind the scenes of drag. Love letter to his friends, but also to a place: the Golden Arrow. The former emblematic concert hall in eastern Paris, which in just a few years has become a necessary place for sharing, solidarity and celebration, hosts every month the fantastic “drag and cinema” evenings to which Javel opens the doors for us here.
6. My Sunshine
We are flying to Japan, and more precisely to the island of Hokkaido where winter has just fallen. While the hockey season has resumed for the boys, Takuya prefers to follow Sakura, fresh from Tokyo, and her figure skating routines. In his corner, he tries to reproduce his steps on the ice.
And it pays off. Arakawa, Sakura’s gay coach, spots him and offers to take him under his wing for an upcoming competition. While the young, shy, stuttering boy blossoms throughout the adventure, the ex-skating champion rediscovers meaning in his life and a taste for his profession. A delicate film, but also critical of homophobia in Japanese society. Available at the cinema, from December 25.
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