Interrogantes - Dare Dovidjenko (Galería Lucía de la Puente)

À toute vitesse (1996) 
Directed by Gaël Morel

Can homosexuality be successfully articulated in society? According to some, homosexuals are doomed to be secluded and restricted to marginalized worlds. As filmmaker, Gaël Morel has often chosen to portray such worlds, enquiring deeply below the surface of what actually means to be an outcast.

In "Le Clan", for example, Morel digs into the lives of outcast youngsters, which share an obvious resemblance to some of the protagonists of "À toute vitesse". There is, however, a much subtler approach of such topics in this film, perhaps as part of André Téchiné's influence (who appears listed in the credits).

Spivak's book "Can the Subaltern Speak?" explains that authority is built upon a specific loci of enunciation. In this film, traditional society has already attributed a certain loci or place to those who dare to defy the heterosexual normative.

Nonetheless, Morel goes much deeper than that. Handsome and talented Quentin is a young writer that has just won an award and is on his way to success. He does have quite an ambivalent position about marginalization. For example, he accuses the French bourgeois of misunderstanding his novel, as he has no intentions of depicting outcasts because for him they are normal people; he affirms that it is the bourgeois who constantly ostracize and discriminate others. Clearly, some of that is truth, as the mesocratic class tends to judge harshly those who do not fit into the symbolic order.

As the film goes on, Quentin starts spending time with Samir, an Algerian boy that is still grieving the loss of his boyfriend; Quentin's tantalizing physic presence serves as cannon fodder for Samir's masturbatory urges as can be explicitly seen in one scene. Will the two boys consummate their passion or is only one of them interested in such consummation? Quentin apparently defends the rights of the Algerians as he publicly accuses acts of racism and violence, but at the same time he despises Samir just as much as he spurns Julie, his girlfriend or Jimmy, his best friend (interpreted by Stéphane Rideau, an actor extremely familiarized with gay productions). Over and over again, Quentin is seen as someone who takes advantage of social unfairness in order to gain publicity for himself, and certainly once he starts making his way in the publishing world he decides to move to Paris, quickly discarding friends and love interests.

Dare Dovidjenko

Jimmy is a jobless guy, with no real prospects of a 'decent' future. And Samir is a boy who barely has enough money to pay the rent. Except for Julie, all other characters are on the edge of poverty or delinquency. They are, however, strong and coherent. Julie trusts in the possibility to have a good relationship whether with Quentin or someone else, Samir decides to defend himself against French fascists that brutally assault him while Jimmy bravely defends Samir even if that means risking his physical integrity. Quentin, on the contrary, is unable to find coherence, his loci of enunciation becomes so firmly inserted in the symbolic order that he loses all true authority. That's how we can understand the lack of commitment in his acts: he has a relationship with Julie but seems willing to let her go as he sees fit; he starts a sentimental relationship with Samir only until he completes enough research for his next book; he supports gays or Algerians only as a marketing strategy, but he is never there when his friends need him. Despise all that, Morel manages to create a fascinating, talented, smart young man that carries the traits of a hero although none of the true virtues. 
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Dare Dovidjenko

El miércoles de esta semana, en la Galería Lucía de la Puente, se inauguró la muestra “Interrogantes” de Dare Dovidjenko Bozanik, artista croata de amplia trayectoria en el escenario nacional. 

Dare Dovidjenko eligió el Perú quizás en su época más convulsa, en los años del terrorismo y la súper inflación; en ese entonces, sus innovadores y curiosos dibujos eran publicados en el suplemento “No”, de la revista “Sí”; a menudo colaboró con cómics de temática experimental, en donde la narrativa visual prevalecía por encima de lo convencional.

Han pasado ya varias décadas desde aquellas épocas, pero Dare continúa experimentando. Su búsqueda, sus interrogantes, ya no se limitan a la expresión plástica ni a la técnica del pincel, sino al mensaje oculto, al contenido de las imágenes que comparte con nosotros. 

De manera sutil pero no por ello menos reveladora, los cuadros de Dare nos interrogan también a nosotros, los espectadores, y nos obligan a detenernos, a tomarnos una pausa, y a reflexionar. Con trazos depurados, precisos y de gran realismo, Dare delinea para nosotros el símbolo de pregunta. 

A mí particularmente me han encantado la imagen surrealista del caballo reflejado sobre el charco de agua, en un pueblo de la serranía peruana, la bolsa de pan que luce tan amenazante como un cráneo, y el extraordinario juego entre luces y sombras entre dos cuadros que, vistos por separado, parecieran no tener nada en común, pero que juntos sorprenden por su fuerza y cohesión.

Detrás del espejo - Lucy Angulo Lafosse (Galería Yvonne Sanguineti)

Les roseaux sauvages (1994) 
Directed by André Téchiné

In the past, director André Téchiné has relentlessly pursued complex subjects. His films don't pander to the audience, nor do they allow the public to be emotionally detached. In "Les Témoins", for instance, AIDS is understood not as a simple disease but as something that profoundly alters social discourse and human interaction.

In "Les Roseaux Sauvages" there is an immanent bellicosity among France and Algeria which lingers on in the background long enough to affect the protagonists. At the beginning of the film a wedding becomes the scenario in which we observe Serge's brother clumsily plotting how to desert from French troops, while François is idly chatting with Maïté, a girl he doesn't love but dates nonetheless. The war strongly infiltrates the world of these youngsters, as a new student arrives to the boarding school attended by Serge (interpreted by Stéphane Rideau in what would be the first of many gay related productions) and François (interpreted by Gaël Morel, director of several films of gay interest), an older boy named Henri that has experienced the aftermaths of the armed conflict in the flesh.

After a couple of visits Serge pays to François in the middle of the night, the two boys soon become friends, but not before sharing some intimate secrets and practicing mutual masturbation and sexual intercourse. Of course, for Serge this one night stand is the product of wild hormones and teenage horniness, but for François this moment changes everything: he will come forward to Maïté and from that moment, what at first seemed a typical high school relationship, is utterly modified.

It's not long before Henri finds out, quite easily, about the sexual escapades of the two boys, but seems preoccupied only with the development of the war. Henri is unable to come through a normal grieving process regarding his father and the Algerian reality. The need for a symbolic death becomes patently necessary for Henri. Jacques Lacan defined the symbolic death as a narrative of closure, as the final sentence one must utter in order to let the dead ones go. If every culture in the planet respects some sort of funerary rites it is precisely because of that. The real death comes naturally when a heart stops beating, but the symbolic death is something cultural, something that depends on any given individual and the ability to cope with loss. Coming to terms with death means to be able to write that epitaph in our head, to be able to understand someone else's life and then to let go of it.

my sketch / mi boceto

Serge, on the contrary, will eventually accept the casualties of war, and instead of being paralyzed by death he will keep moving on. When Maïté's mother suffers a psychological breakdown after hearing about the demise of one of her students, her daughter feels devastated. None of this matters to François who's having a hard time understanding his own sexuality. A most relevant moment takes place when he confronts his image in the mirror and starts repeating "Je suis pédé", ashamed of being gay. This degrading word will lead to the reformulation of the object of desire, according to new terms and surpassing the phallic response; François's desire will be inextricably linked to the question of the desire of the other in its ethical dimension insofar as it bears the possibility of alterity, of authentic otherness. Of course it's never easy to be young and gay, but it's even more difficult in an isolated French province in the early 60s. It is then that Maïté's emotional support proves to be fundamental for François, as he will comprehend that his initial object of desire may well be out of his reach.

The characters of the film adopt contrasting postures. Serge and François possess an adaptability and flexibility that will become indispensable. Henri and Maïté, however, are determined and stubborn individuals. Henri's teacher tries to make him understand that being strong like an oak is a disadvantage as oaks break when the storm comes, only reeds survive the storm because they bend but do not break. Drawing a divisory line between war and sexuality, Téchiné finally gathers the three boys and the girl in one final sequence that instead of focusing on the cliché of hope is centered on the pervasive reiteration of uncertainty and friendship. 
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Hace un par de horas se inauguró en la galería barranquina Yvonne Sanguineti "Detrás del espejo", de Lucy Angulo Lafosse. Aunque no pude salir de COSAS tan temprano como hubiese deseado, igual llegué a tiempo para poder admirar el abstraccionismo depurado de los cuadros de la artista; ella, sin duda, ha emprendido una trayectoria que aborda sin ambages figuras concretas subsumidas en un una puesta en escena densa, que sin ser abigarrada crea una sensación de completitud. Con estos cuadros podemos adivinar su proceso de búsqueda y de investigación. Sin duda, Lucy Angulo Lafosse ha evolucionado con los años, y con esta muestra podemos comprobar que marcha por buen camino.

Apenas llegué me encontré con mi gran amigo Marcos Palacios, y estuvimos conversando un buen rato. Marcos participa en una muestra colectiva que se inaugurará este viernes, en Euroidiomas, así que haré todo lo posible para ir. También hablé un rato con Hugo Alegre y Carmen Alegre, y me encontré con Tito Giesecke, un amigo de mi padre. En el transcurso de la noche también saludé a Tatiana Paez Sanguineti, Yvonne Sanguineti y, desde luego, a Lucy Angulo Lafosse. Luego de varias copas de vino blanco, me despedí de Marcos y de los demás, sin duda todavía había diversión para rato pero yo tenía que dormir mis 8 horas para poder llegar lúcido a la oficina. Gajes del oficio.

May films / películas de mayo

Although this has been an unusually busy month for me, I still managed to watch more than a dozen movies. I’ll start with the ones most of you are familiar with, such as The Tree of Life (2011) directed by Terrence Malick and starred by Brad Pitt, Sean Penn and others. With a peculiar theological approach, The Tree of Life is a story without a clear conflict, and in that regard it is highly experimental, perhaps excessively so. Every narrative should have a conflict or else the audience can’t feel engaged; at the same time, filmmakers can’t afford the luxury of being so experimental that they become hermetic. Eye of the Beholder (1999) by Australian director Stephan Elliott is another uncommon production about Ewan McGregor, a spy who lives tormented by visions of her dead daughter; he is trying to uncover the past of Ashley Judd, a woman who kills a very influential man. Nothing seems predictable about this story, and it has a very European feel to it, and at the same time it keeps a very personal, unique style. It has a very sad ending, but above all, it keeps us at the edge of our seat from the first to the last minute.

When “The Exorcist” was released decades ago a new horror subgenre was born. Nonetheless, I think that once you’ve seen a movie about exorcism you’ve seen them all. It’s hard to come up with something original or terrifying about it. The Rite (2011) isn’t particularly surprising but Anthony Hopkins acting is fantastic, and there are some really funny moments, like the one in which Mr. Hopkins is performing an exorcism and suddenly his cell phone starts ringing, he takes the call, talks, and then goes back to the exorcism, proving the inherent absurdity of this religious ritual. The Rite made me laugh almost as hard as 30 Minutes or Less (2011) a delightful comedy about a youngster without ambitions or goals -Jesse Eisenberg- who works as a pizza delivery boy; there are some really hilarious sequences here, as he’s blackmailed into robbing a bank. Like I’ve said so many times before, Jesse Eisenberg always chooses interesting projects. To this day “Dawn of the Dead” remains as my favorite Zack Snyder movie. I’ve seen “300” and “Watchmen” and they felt too artificial at moments, Sucker Punch (2011) has the same problem. Snyder seems to enjoy this “video clip meets computer game” aesthetic, and seems more focused into visual treatment than character development.
 
Gay men and fashion has turned into a very popular cliché. Why is it that so many gays are obsessed about the fashion industry? Fashion Victim (2008) (also known as Murder in Fashion) doesn’t pretend to answer this question but it does give us a very intense recreation of the murder of Gianni Versace. Jonathon Trent plays the murderer, a washed-up 27 year old hustler who suddenly realizes that in terms of gay prostitution he’s now irrevocably old. His gay costumers are more interested in newer models, and his gay friends tell him that he should try to lose a pound or two. This young man decides to travel all the way to Miami, killing several gay men until he finally arrives to Versace’s neighborhood. And just as it happened in real life, he shoots the world famous designer. Stéphane Rideau has worked with many French directors, and he has always participated in films of gay interest such as “Le clan”, “Presque rien”, “Sitcom”, “À toute vitesse”, “Les roseaux sauvages”, he has interpreted young gay men in several films, but in Gaël Morel’s Notre Paradis (2011) he’s not that young anymore. This time he is a 27 year-old gay prostitute that can’t get work, time and time again, he realizes the cruelty of his clients, nobody wants him anymore, he’s as good as dead. In one of his most desperate nights, he runs into Dimitri Durdaine, a beautiful teenager that falls in love with him. At first, the man tries to prostitute the boy, but then he decides to start killing his clients -the same people who replaced him with younger guys- and steal their money. Together, they run away to a secluded location, promising never to kill anyone again. But can they resist the temptation of manslaughter? Gaël Morel is an extraordinary French director, and his intense, cruel, erotic and violent film is absolutely astonishing.

Iván Noel’s En tu ausencia (2008) is a very tender coming of age story about a 15 year old boy (Gonzalo Sánchez Salas) who spends most of his time walking in the woods and helping his mother on the family farm, until one day he meets a mysterious stranger on the road. They soon become friends, and the boy can’t avoid feeling fascinated by this man, who becomes part of his masturbatory fantasies. As the child gets naked in front of the adult, trying to tempt him, the first step towards calamity seems to be taken. Christoph Hochhäusler’s Falscher Bekenner (2005) is one of the most captivating German films I’ve seen in months. Constantin von Jascheroff is a teenager who gets one job interview after another, but continues to be unemployed. At home, his parents keep putting pressure on him, making clear that if he’s not working then his life has no value. Here, the adult world is presented as a cold, manipulative and harsh place. The boy does everything he can to get hired, but he’s shunned by the adults over and over again. Eventually, he starts making anonymous phone calls to the police, confessing crimes he hasn’t committed. At the same time, he fantasizes about anal penetration and motorized men clad in leather jackets that engage in sexual activities with him. But are these sexual encounters imaginary or real? And what happens if his false confessions become true? For a short scene of En tu ausencia you can check this link.

It’s the 80s, the Berlin wall has just being destroyed and a group of high school teens are trying to form a rock band. That’s how Stian Kristiansen’s Mannen Som Elsket Yngve (2008) begins. Jarle (played by talented actor Rolf Kristian Larsen) is the protagonist of this enthralling Norwegian film: like any other boy his age, he has no interest in the political implications of the end of communism, he only wants to play his guitar and fondle his cute girlfriend, until he meets Yngve (played by actor Ole Christoffer Ertvåg), a mysterious and attractive boy that completely captures Jarle’s attention. As the two boys play tennis and eventually have a shower together, a special complicity is formed between them. Soon, Jarle stops paying attention to his girlfriend and his rock band, and wants to spend time only with Yngve, but he’s too immature to accept the possibility of gay romance in his life. The final scenes are sad and moving, and the soundtrack has some really melancholic songs that help build the atmosphere of this story about frustrations, prejudices and unrequited love. Also from Norway comes Ti Kniver I Hjertet (1994) directed by Marius Holst and starred by Martin Dahl Garfalk. Documenting the lives of underprivileged families, the filmmakers gives as a glance into the ugly reality of Oslo. Everything starts with Otto, a young boy who meets a stranger that seems to be very interested in him. When the two of them go for a swim into the river, they discover the rotten body of a woman, Otto, naked, tries to run to get help, while his friend takes the body out of the river. This, however, will only be the first of many future misfortunes in Otto’s life. For a short scene of Mannen Som Elsket Yngve you can check this link. And this other link.

I must admit I haven’t seen many films from Iceland, but Órói (2010) directed by Baldvin Zophoníasson exceeded my expectations. The director takes us deeply into the lives of a group of Icelandic teenagers, their love frustrations, their conflictive relationship with their parents, or their frustrations for having no parental figures. Atli Oskar Fjalarsson is one of the protagonists, he’s a student who travels to England and meets another kid; one night, they kiss and from that moment on everything changes. When he returns to Iceland everyone seems to notice something different about him, but they can’t quite put their fingers on it. The dead of a girl, one of his closest friends turns out to be a very traumatic experience for the whole group of youngsters. Death is never an easy subject, but Baldvin Zophoníasson has a very special sensibility that makes us feel emotionally invested, and when the girl dies, we feel as if someone we knew in real life had passed away.  Bavo Defurne’s Noordzee, Texas (2011) is a remarkable Belgian film. It begins with Jelle Florizoone, a child who is particularly fond of cross-dressing. His mother, a woman who flirts everyone, neglects her son, and so the boy seeks shelter in his neighbor’s house, there he meets Mathias Vergels, and they become friends. As the years pass by, they partake in more intimate activities, such as mutual masturbation. When Jelle is about to turn 15, his friend who is now 18 buys a motorcycle, and suddenly, he becomes very popular among the girls. A legal adult now, the boy leaves town with his girlfriend, Jelle cries and feels frustrated, but a few months later his mother leaves with an anonymous man and now he’s completely abandoned. Once again, he’s taken in by his neighbor. There Jelle waits patiently for his friend’s return. With a flawless art direction and a very emotive story, Bavo Defurne shows all his talent as a director. And at last, but not least, I also saw El inicio (2010), a short film from Argentina about two boys who start discovering the pleasure of touching each other as they wrestle on the forest. For a short scene of Noordzee, Texas you can check this link.

Without a doubt, May was a very good month for the seventh art.
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Aunque este mes he estado inusualmente ocupado, igual me las arreglé para ver más de una docena de películas. Empezaré con las más conocidas, como "The Tree of Life" (2011) dirigida por Terrence Malick y protagonizada por Brad Pitt y Sean Penn, entre otros. Con un peculiar enfoque teológico, "El árbol de la vida" es un relato sin un conflicto claro, y además excesivamente experimental. Toda narrativa debe tener un conflicto o de lo contrario la audiencia pierde el interés; al mismo tiempo, los cineastas no pueden darse el lujo de ser tan experimentales porque terminan siendo herméticos. "Eye of the Beholder" (1999) del director australiano Stephan Elliott es otra producción poco común sobre Ewan McGregor, un espía que vive atormentado por visiones de su hija muerta; él intenta descubrir el pasado de Ashley Judd, una mujer que mata a una persona influyente. Nada parece predecible en esta historia, que tiene un tono bastante europeo, y al mismo tiempo conserva un estilo muy personal, único. El final es sumamente triste, pero por encima de todo, nos absorbe por completo desde el primero hasta el último minuto.

Cuando se estrenó "El exorcista" hace décadas, nació un nuevo subgénero del terror. No obstante, creo que cuando has visto una película sobre exorcismo no necesitas ver más. Es difícil que haya algo original o terrorífico en esto. "The Rite" (2011) no tiene mayores sorpresas, pero la actuación de Anthony Hopkins es fantástica, y hay momentos divertidísimos, como cuando Hopkins contesta su celular en pleno exorcismo, demostrando el absurdo inherente de este ritual religioso. "The Rite" me hizo reír casi tanto como "30 Minutes or Less" (2011) una deliciosa comedia sobre un jovencito sin ambiciones ni metas -Jesse Eisenberg- que trabaja como repartidor de pizzas; hay algunas secuencias hilarantes cuando él es extorsionado para asaltar un banco. Lo he dicho muchas veces, y lo diré de nuevo, Jesse Eisenberg siempre elige proyectos interesantes. Hasta el día de hoy "Amanecer de los muertos" sigue siendo mi película favorita de Zack Snyder. He visto “300” y “Watchmen” y me parecieron demasiado artificiales por momentos, "Sucker Punch" (2011) tiene el mismo defecto. Snyder parece disfrutar con esta estética de "videoclip mezclado con juego de computadora", y parece enfocarse más en el tratamiento visual que en el desarrollo de personajes.

Los gays y la moda son ya un cliché. ¿Por qué tantos gays se obsesionan con la industria de la moda? "Fashion Victim" (2008) no pretende responder esta pregunta pero sí nos da una intensa recreación del asesinato de Gianni Versace. Jonathon Trent interpreta al asesino, un joven prostituto de 27 años que está en las últimas... se da cuenta que en términos de prostitución, es irrevocablemente viejo. Sus clientes gays prefieren chicos más jovencitos y sus amigos gays le dicen que debería bajar un par de kilos. Este joven decide viajar hasta Miami, asesinando a varios gays por el camino, hasta que finalmente llega al vecindario de Versace. Y tal como sucedió en la vida real, le dispara al mundialmente famoso diseñador. Stéphane Rideau ha trabajado con muchos directores franceses, y siempre ha participado en films de temática gay como “Le clan”, “Presque rien”, “Sitcom”, “À toute vitesse”, “Les roseaux sauvages”, ha interpretado a jóvenes gays en varias películas, pero en "Notre Paradis" (2011) de Gaël Morel ya no es tan joven. Esta vez, él tiene 27 años y se dedica a la prostitución, pero ya no consigue trabajo, una y otra vez constata la crueldad de sus clientes, nadie está interesado, es como si él estuviese muerto. En una de sus noches más desesperadas, se tropieza con Dimitri Durdaine, un hermoso adolescente que se enamora de él. Al principio, el hombre intenta prostituir al chiquillo, pero luego decide empezar a asesinar a sus clientes -los mismos que lo reemplazaron por chicos más jovenes- y robar su dinero. Juntos, ambos huyen a una localidad aislada, y prometen que no habrá más homicidios, pero ¿podrán resistir la tentación de seguir matando? Gaël Morel es un director francés extraordinario, y su intenso, cruel, erótico y violento film es absolutamente impactante.


Noordzee, Texas (penciled) / Noordzee, Texas (a lápiz)


"En tu ausencia" (2008) de Iván Noel es un tierno relato sobre el paso de la pubertad a la adolescencia, un muchachito de 15 años (Gonzalo Sánchez Salas) pasea por las bosques y ayuda a su madre en la granja, hasta que un día conoce a un misterioso forastero. Pronto se hacen amigos, y el chiquillo no puede evitar sentirse fascinado por este hombre, que forma parte de sus fantasías masturbatorias. Cuando el niño se desnuda frente al adulto, intentando tentarlo, se da el primer paso hacia la calamidad. "Falscher Bekenner" (2005) de Christoph Hochhäusler es una de las películas alemanas más cautivadoras que he visto en meses. Constantin von Jascheroff es un adolescente que pasa por muchas entrevistas de trabajo, pero al final sigue desempleado. En casa, sus padres lo presionan y dejan algo en claro: si no trabaja, su vida no tiene valor. Aquí el mundo adulto es presentado como un lugar frío, manipulador y duro. El chico hace todo lo que puede para ser contratado, pero es rechazado por los adultos una y otra vez. Eventualmente, empieza a hacer llamadas anónimas a la policía para confesar crímenes que no ha cometido. Al mismo tiempo, fantasea sobre la penetración anal y motociclistas con trajes de cuero que tienen sexo con él. Pero, ¿son estos encuentros sexuales imaginarios o reales? ¿Y qué sucede cuando la confesión falsa se hace verdadera? Para ver una escena corta de "En tu ausencia" pueden revisar este link.

En los años 80s, el muro de Berlín cae y un grupo de chicos de secundaria intentan formar una banda de rock. Así empieza "Mannen Som Elsket Yngve" (2008) de Stian Kristiansen. Jarle (interpretado por el talentoso actor Rolf Kristian Larsen) es el protagonista de este fascinante film noruego: como cualquier chico de su edad, a él no le interesan las implicancias políticas del fin del comunismo, todo lo que quiere es tocar la guitarra y manosear a su bonita enamorada, hasta que conoce a Yngve (Ole Christoffer Ertvåg), un enigmático y atractivo adolescente que captura por completo la atención de Jarle. Luego de haber jugado tenis, los dos chicos se duchan juntos, y una complicidad especial nace entre ellos. Pronto, Jarle deja de prestarle atención a su enamorada y a su banda de rock, y sólo quiere estar con  Yngve, pero es demasiado inmaduro para aceptar la posibilidad de un romance gay en su vida. Las escenas finales son tristes y conmovedoras, y la banda sonora tiene algunas canciones melancólicas que contribuyen a la atmósfera de frustraciones, prejuicios y amor no correspondido. "Ti Kniver I Hjertet" (1994) dirigida por Marius Holst y protagonizada por Martin Dahl Garfalk también es de Noruega. El cineasta documenta la vida de las familias pobres de Oslo y se centra en Otto, un chiquillo que conoce a un extraño que parece estar muy interesado en él. Cuando ambos van a nadar al río, descubren el cuerpo podrido de una mujer, Otto, desnudo, corre en busca de ayuda mientras su amigo saca el cadáver del río. Este, sin embargo, será sólo la primera de muchas desgracias en la vida de Otto. Para ver una escena corta de "Mannen Som Elsket Yngve" pueden revisar este link. Y también este otro link.

Debo admitir que no he visto muchas películas de Islandia, pero "Órói" (2010), también conocida como "Jitters", de Baldvin Zophoníasson superó mis expectativas. El director nos muestra las vidas de un grupo de adolescentes islandeses, sus frustraciones amorosas, las relaciones conflictivas con sus padres, o la frustración de no contar con figuras paternas. Atli Oskar Fjalarsson es uno de los protagonistas, un estudiante que viaja a Inglaterra y conoce a otro muchacho; una noche, se besan y ese momento lo cambia todo. Cuando regresa a Islandia todos parecen notar algo diferente en él, pero no saben qué puede ser. La muerte de una chica, una de sus amigas más cercanas se convierte en una traumática experiencia para todo este grupo de jóvenes. La muerte nunca es un tema fácil, pero la sensibilidad de Zophoníasson nos permite sentir la pérdida como algo real. "Noordzee, Texas" (2011) de Bavo Defurne es un extraordinario film belga. Empieza cuando Jelle Florizoone es un niño que goza vistiéndose como niña. Su madre es una mujer que coquetea con todos y descuida a su hijo, por ello, el infante busca refugio en la casa de la vecina, allí conoce a Mathias Vergels, y se hacen amigos. Conforme pasan los años, ellos realizan actividades cada vez más íntimas, como la masturbación mutua. Cuando Jelle está a punto de cumplir 15 años, su amigo ya tiene 18 y compra una moto, y repentinamente, empieza a hacerse popular entre las chicas. Legalmente adulto, el chico se va de casa con su enamorada, Jelle llora y se siente frustrado, pero pocos meses después su madre se va con un desconocido y ahora él está completamente abandonado. Nuevamente, su vecina lo acoge. Allí, Jelle espera pacientemente a que su amigo regrese. Con una impecable dirección artística y un relato muy emotivo, Bavo Defurne muestra todo su talento como director. Y por último también vi "El inicio" (2010) un cortometraje argentino sobre dos chicos que empiezan a descubrir el placer de tocarse el uno al otro mientras juegan a las peleítas en medio del campo. Para ver una escena corta de "Noordzee, Texas" pueden revisar este link.

Sin duda, mayo ha sido un muy buen mes para el séptimo arte.