Sydney Gay and Lesbian Film Festival looks lucklustre yet again

Once again the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Film Festival is almost 70% an all-boy affair. Sorry to say that this year that isn’t entirely the fault of filmmakers, some interesting-looking lesbian films have failed to appear this year from the big festival programs in the US, but that has been the case for some years now. With the Melbourne festival hot on it’s heels, I’m not sure that Sydney can actually claim to be the premiere gay and lesbian film festival in Australia, and it certainly no longer really ranks on the world stage where lesbian content is concerned.

Now that I’ve had that rant, let’s look at the headline feature films at this year’s festival.

AFFINITY
Probably the least popular of Sarah Waters’ amazing series of Victorian novels, Affinity is nonetheless a powerful story of mysticism and deception. When a lonely woman becomes a lady Visitor in a women’s prison, she is drawn to an infamous psychic and is finally convinced to assist in a mystical jailbreak.

It was always going to take all of accomplished screenwriter Andrew Davies’ powers to get this convoluted tale down to movie length. He has managed it, and the film is creepy, atmospheric and rewards careful viewing to pick up on the clues being dropped subtly in every frame. I have a bit of doubt over the casting (but everyone has their own image of characters in a well-loved book) but it is every bit as good as the adaptation of Fingersmith, but not in the same league, and does not have the same bawdy appeal, as the extraordinary Tipping The Velvet.

THE SECRETS
More mysticism now, this time in the form of both the Jewish faith, and the more misunderstood traditions of the Kabbalah. At a jewish women’s seminary a devout and a secular woman form an unlikely friendship, and use the secrets of the Kabbalah to help a mysterious foreigner in trouble. It’s lovely to see films so beautifully shot, and the actresses have remarkable chemistry. I also love films where romance takes a back seat to something more meaty, and the subject matter of this film may be the most original in a lesbian film for a long time. However, be prepared for some fantasy and magic, and leave your inner cynic at the door. Hebrew and French with English subtitles.

CANDY RAIN
I know very little about this offering from Taiwan except what is in the advance press material. Supposedly a gorgeous, cute, hip film about four couples living in an apartment building. Very Melrose Place with subtitles. The quality of Asian lesbian cinema in the past few years however has been so far above the rest of the world that I’m going along just to see what they come up with next. Taiwanese with English subtitles.

DRIFTING FLOWERS
The newest film from accomplished director of last year’s Spider Lilies, Zero Chou. This is yet another of those films where you don’t get one storyline but three, a weaving cacophony of characters and emotions that makes sense only in the final third of the film when all the threads are drawn together. Like many Asian dramas this film has a primary focus on the family, and the dynamics of sisters. There is also a sad look into the life of an aging lesbian struck down with the horrors of Alzheimers.

This is not as easy film to watch at times, but it is a rewarding experience, and with the Jury competition in its second year, this gem may turn out to be the surprise hit of the festival.

I CAN’T THINK STRAIGHT
I feel like this film has been made before, and much better at that. Just like director Shamim Sharif’s last effort, the pedestrian World Unseen, this film has so much potential and falls a little flat. This is a cross-cultural romance that explores similar territory to the far superior Chutney Popcorn, where the two women are daunted by the pressures they face but are ultimately lead down the aisle through the meddling of some friends.

It has some cute moments, and is certainly the light and fluffy RomCom of the festival for people looking for that kind of thing. Also, the happy ending never goes astray, but the title gives you an indication of the corniness factor of the film itself.

THE NEW WORLD
How is two women having a baby still the new world? They’re EVERYWHERE! Two French women negotiate the somewhat-now-humdrum world actually of insemination and expanding their family. Look, if you’re not completely over the lesbian pregnancy storyline this might hold some heartwarming moments for you, but there isn’t much here that we haven’t seen done before, only here they’re doing it while speaking in French. Possibly more interesting than the baby content is the view of two busy women forced to change their lives and priorities and struggling

That’s not just the highlights, that’s pretty much the entire lesbian feature film program. Pretty weak huh?