[Engsub] End Of The Century (2019)

 

Director:

 Lucio Castro

Stars:

 Juan Barberini, Ramon Pujol, Mía Maestro

Few films have captured the dual fleeting and enduring nature of intimate connection as poignantly as “End of the Century.” The film, an elegant three-hander that mostly revolves around two men who meet-cute on a Barcelona balcony, leaves a lingering impression on the heart. Like a great poem, “End of the Century” gives voice to a seemingly indescribable feeling, one anyone who’s ever fallen in love will recognize from deep in their soul — as if bumping into an old friend you forgot how much you liked. Written and directed by Argentinian filmmaker Lucio Castro in his feature debut, “End of the Century” is the natural descendant of lush romances like “Weekend” and “Call Me By Your Name,” and will certainly endure as one of the most evocative gay films of the decade.

Though no one speaks for the first 12 minutes of the film, the engaging opening relies solely on the capable and strong shoulders of Ocho (Juan Barberini), an Argentinian visiting Barcelona by way of New York. Giving the unmistakable impression of a visitor absorbing his surroundings with a traveler’s fresh eyes, he wanders through the simple-yet-lovely establishing city shots as he cycles through common activities of the solo traveler: Eating alone, observing locals, reading, swimming, showering, jerking off. From the balcony of his Airbnb, he spots a cute guy from the beach in a KISS shirt, and calls out the film’s first line: “Kiss!”

[Japan Engsub - Movie] Mood Indigo (Pornographer)

 The story begins with Shiro Kido's reunion with a former classmate, Rio Kijima, at a college teacher's funeral. In the past, when they were students, Kijima used to show talent as a novelist, even earning a big prize. Kido was jealous of Kijima's success, but after reading his works he became aware of his lack of talent and gave up writing novels and became an editor of erotic novels. However, after reuniting it became clear to Kido that Kijima was stuck; facing a wall. He had used up all his talent. With Kido also being in a lost state he offers Kijima the opportunity to write pornographic novels. With the intense eroticism and closeness, both men open up and feed into their desire. As their lust grows so does their toxic craving. The two become a relationship beyond the line while a mixture of emotions are drawn from the suffering Kijima.

[Japan - Movie] Dangerous Drugs of Sex (Sei no Gekiyaku) (2020) Engsub

Director:

 Hideo Jôjô

Stars:

 Seiki Chiba, Takashi Kitadai, Sho Watanabe

Katsuragi, an elite office worker who fell from a perfect life, drunkenly attempted to jump and commit suicide. Suddenly, he was suddenly helped by a mysterious man, Yoda, but that was the beginning of a horrible life of confinement training.

[Movie] Hawaii

Directed by	Marco Berger
Starring	Manuel Vignau Mateo Chiarino

The third feature of Argentinian director Marco Berger, a two-hander starring Manuel Vignau and Mateo Chiarino, is a solid home run.

The agony of unspoken same-sex desire is impressively prolonged to feature length in Hawaii, the third and by far most mature feature of Argentinian director Marco Berger.

Though it’s a two-hander set primarily in one location for over 90 percent of its running time -- much like Berger’s debut, the low-budget, fluid sexuality-themed talkathon Plan B -- the 36-year-old filmmaker here displays a newfound finesse and confidence as a writer-director. The seemingly off-the-cuff conversations between a house-sitting hipster novelist and the handsome drifter he hires to do odd jobs around the house benefit from a razor-sharp sense of direction and purpose, illuminating character and queer yearning as well as class and other socio-political issues. The increasingly erotically charged atmosphere, which never seems to translate into any action, practically becomes an inverted coitus interruptus, where the actual doing of the deed would interrupt the joy and innocence of the games of almost-foreplay, which is prolonged to almost unbearable length.

Beyond the attention of the LGTB niche circuit of festivals and distribution, which is virtually guaranteed after Berger's Plan B and its follow-up, the Berlinale Teddy award winner, Absent, this is also a good fit for indie-loving festivals such as Thessaloniki, where Hawaii recently played as part of its focus on contemporary cinema from Argentina.