Aging Queers and Teenage Fears ‘ABOUT VIVIEN’ Dir: Kathy Sport, Australia, 2000, 16mm, 14 mins (full house) score: 5 out of 5 An amazing story about Vivien, a cross-dressing man (or maybe he was transgender, I’m not sure) in the 1950s and the things he had to deal with to live his chosen life. ‘OPENING CLOSET X’ Dirs: Max Kelly & Diana Polish, USA, 1998, video, 17 mins (full house) score: ? Damn, in all the confusion I’ve completely forgotten which one this one was… maybe I’ll remember later and be able to put something more interesting here. ‘GAY AND GRAY IN NEW YORK CITY’ Dirs: Nicholas Chesla, Cindy Creager and Julie Englander, USA, 1999, video, 22 mins (full house) score: 5 out of 5 With the out and proud gay community only really now greying the issue of what happens to older gay people needs to be addressed because despite what the dance bunnys might think gay people don’t just disappear after 35. ‘YOUTH OUTLOUD!’ Dirs: Becky Burklee and Kathy Hines, USA, 2000, Beta SP, 46 mins (full house) score: 5 out of 5 This one hit a few raw nerves. As the only place I’ve ever been personally been a victim of hate crimes was school, the stories these kids told about their experiences were much more personal. This film stirred up a bunch of reactions, guilt, fear, sorrow, grief. Some of the stories were far worse than anything I’d ever experienced and I found myself guilty feeling glad that nothing that bad happened to me and at the same time seriously pissed off that it happens to anyone at all. For more information about queerDOC 2001 or Queer Screen.
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