Conceptually & visually outdated - felt like I was watching a gay doc from the 90s. I was utterly surprised to see it was actually from 2017, which makes the lack of US BIPOC perspectives particularly unforgivable. Some parts are interesting (moreso the interviews with historians), but generally hokey, shaky, and overly autobiographical. Ironically attempts to have a "global" perspective while ignoring intersectionality, post-colonialism, and non-white LGB experiences in the US & Europe (briefly touches on two-spirit - but while rolling footage of the white host in "tribal" dress unironically... cringe).
2 Reviews
Hodgepodge of tidbits
baygelldawg12 November 2017
Warning: Spoilers
This documentary features the talking heads of various scholars, illustrated with artifacts showing that same sex behavior has existed in many ancient cultures. As this is already widely known and accepted, this film begins with the disadvantage of not having much new to say.
There is no coherent story line and no logical order of presentation. A bigger problem is that the director, writer, and executive producer (all the same person) appears throughout the film to tell the viewer about himself and make pronouncements. Since he didn't live in antiquity, his personal story, which might be interesting if fully developed as a memoir, comes across in this context as vanity. Why are we shown video clips from his wedding? Addressing the camera wearing a baseball cap and speaking informally doesn't help matters.
What this film needed was strong narration, voice-over by a professional, a chronological presentation of history, and a few developed stories. Instead, we are introduced to the first man to publicly come out (Ulrich) without being told much about him and teased with the discovery of a secret Victorian club and then told no more about it.
The interesting tidbits are few and far between, making this film feel far longer than its running time. While the viewer might learn something, this movie does not succeed as either an educational tool or as entertainment.
There is no coherent story line and no logical order of presentation. A bigger problem is that the director, writer, and executive producer (all the same person) appears throughout the film to tell the viewer about himself and make pronouncements. Since he didn't live in antiquity, his personal story, which might be interesting if fully developed as a memoir, comes across in this context as vanity. Why are we shown video clips from his wedding? Addressing the camera wearing a baseball cap and speaking informally doesn't help matters.
What this film needed was strong narration, voice-over by a professional, a chronological presentation of history, and a few developed stories. Instead, we are introduced to the first man to publicly come out (Ulrich) without being told much about him and teased with the discovery of a secret Victorian club and then told no more about it.
The interesting tidbits are few and far between, making this film feel far longer than its running time. While the viewer might learn something, this movie does not succeed as either an educational tool or as entertainment.
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