Boys On Film 17: Love Is the Drug

After School

March 1973 •Japanese

Desert Hearts

October 1985 •English

While waiting for her divorce papers, a repressed literature professor finds herself unexpectedly attracted by a carefree, spirited young woman named Cay.

Mambo Italiano

June 2003 •English

When an Italian man comes out of the closet, it affects both his life and his crazy family.

Everything Is Illuminated

September 2005 •English

A young Jewish American man endeavors—with the help of eccentric, distant relatives—to find the woman who saved his grandfather during World War II—in a Ukrainian village which was ultimately razed by the Nazis.

Summer Storm

September 2004 •German

Tobi and Achim, the pride of the local crew club, have been the best of friends for years and are convinced that nothing will ever stand in the way of their friendship. They look forward to the upcoming summer camp and the crew competition. Then the gay team from Berlin arrives and Tobi is totally confused. The evening before the races begin, the storm that breaks out is more than meteorological.

Harold and Maude

December 1971 •English

The young Harold lives in his own world of suicide-attempts and funeral visits to avoid the misery of his current family and home environment. Harold meets an 80-year-old woman named Maude who also lives in her own world yet one in which she is having the time of her life. When the two opposites meet they realize that their differences don’t matter and they become best friends and love each other.

Cockles and Muscles

March 2005 •French

Crustacés et coquillages is a fresh French comedy film with numerous surprise turnarounds and about the tolerance of a family of four. The family spend an idealistic summer vacation together where each of the family members gets involved in a new or old relationship.

Mala Noche

June 1987 •English

Walt is a lonely convenience store clerk who has fallen in love with a Mexican migrant worker named Johnny. Though Walt has little in common with the object of his affections — including a shared language — his desire to possess Johnny prompts a sexual awakening that results in a tangled love triangle.

The Extravagant Illnesses

November 2022 •French

Louis, 17 years old, is a romantic boy, loving to spend time on a small island lost in the middle of a pond with his lover Thibault. But Thibault is in a relationship with Sophie. So, for Thibault to be all his own, Louis casts a love spell on him. When electricity shuts down during a party, Louis believes that it's the sign his spell worked out. But things don't turn out the way he hoped for.

Indestructible

December 2022 •Portuguese

He is a sensitive boy who represses his true personality. After experiencing traumatic experiences, our protagonist begins to open to the world on a journey that made him the person who is. This is not the complete story, but shows a trajectory of overcoming and change.

Almost Famous

September 2000 •English

In 1973, 15-year-old William Miller's unabashed love of music and aspiration to become a rock journalist lands him an assignment from Rolling Stone magazine to interview and tour with the up-and-coming band, Stillwater.

Closely Watched Trains

November 1966 •Czech

At a village railway station in occupied Czechoslovakia, a bumbling dispatcher’s apprentice longs to liberate himself from his virginity. Oblivious to the war and the resistance that surrounds him, this young man embarks on a journey of sexual awakening and self-discovery, encountering a universe of frustration, eroticism, and adventure within his sleepy backwater depot.

Great Freedom

November 2021 •German

In post-war Germany, liberation by the Allies does not mean freedom for everyone. Hans Hoffmann is repeatedly imprisoned under Paragraph 175, which criminalizes homosexuality. Nevertheless, over the decades, he continues his quest for freedom and love, even if he finds it in the most unusual places.

Nobody's Watching

May 2017 •Spanish

Nico is a famous actor in Argentina, but in New York, nobody takes notice. He needs to juggle bartending, babysitting and odd jobs to keep himself afloat. But when old friends from Buenos Aires come to visit, he needs to juggle the image of his old life with the reality of the struggling actor in New York City.

Beautiful Mystery

April 1983 •Japanese

Shinohara, a young bodybuilder, joins a para-military sect in northern Japan. His instructor, Takizawa, takes a liking to the new recruit. After an early “special” training session the two develop a lasting and loving relationship.

An Actor's Revenge

June 1935 •Japanese

An onnagata (female impersonator) of a Kabuki troupe avenges his parents' deaths. Remade in 1963 as Yukinojô Henge.

The Dam

August 2016 •English

A lifelong friendship is under siege when two mature Australian men visit the monolithic dam that defined their young lives and are confronted by feelings that were impounded long ago, but cannot be contained any longer.

If We Were a Season

September 2017 •Korean

Born on the same day and raised side by side, high school students Yoon Hae Rim and Uhm Ki Seok are close friends. They never say it, but they are precious to each other. One day, a transfer student from Seoul comes. Oh Dong Kyung is bold and not afraid to say what he is feeling, unlike Hae Rim and Ki Seok. Is Dong Keung enough to shake up their friendship?

Ostia: The Last Night

March 2011 •Italian

A dark story of desire and betrayal inspired by the events of the night of the brutal slaying of Italian filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini.

Faggot

November 2017 •French

This short film tells the story of Alexis, a 16-years-old hockey player who, after discovering he is gay, must face a heartbreaking dilemma: come out to his homophobic friends at the risk of being rejected and ridiculed, or stay in the closet even if that would mean abandoning Elliot, the only person who really loves him for what he is.