The Queer Gaze

After six films, Conrad and Joe wrap up our 'Sex Work and Pornography' theme by revisiting common threads and themes, our favourite discoveries, and the titles we'd most recommend to listeners. Want more content? Subscribe to our Patreon at patreon.com/TheQueerGaze for bonus episodes Like the show? Rate, review and subscribe to help others find us Follow the show on Insta and BlueSky: @thequeergaz...

Conrad and Joe wrap up our theme with Camille Vidal-Naquet's 2018 film Sauvage  ('Wild'), a purportedly "judgement-free" documentary-style, gritty depiction of 'Sex Work and Pornography.' The trauma porn narrative, however, feels pretty moralistic to us! Plus: comparisons to 2024's Baby ; Félix Maritaud's "brave" central performance; Léo and Ahd's interesting relationship; and a tease of...

Conrad and Joe hit pause on 'Sex Work and Pornography' to discuss one of 2025's biggest queer films: Harry Lighton's Pillion (2025). It may surprise you to discover that we're ambivalent about the film! We don't entirely understand its reception as a romance, especially given how disaffecting (and possibly abusive) the central relationship is. Plus: adaptation changes from Adam Mars-Jones's novell...

The second to last entry in our 'Sex Work and Pornography' theme is Brazilian director Marcelo Caetano's Baby (2024) about a newly released convict who is introduced to a life of sex work by an older man. From cruising spots to the intersection of sex & drugs, this beautiful film features a great debut performance by João Pedro Mariano as the title character. But there are a few elements, such...

Conrad and Joe check out Sebastian , the sophomore effort of Mikko Mäkelä (see previous episode on A Moment in the Reeds ) which concerns a writer, Max (Ruaridh Mollica), who uses his sex work as fodder for his "fiction" writing. It's an intriguing concept, though the film occasionally loses focus on what it wants to explore. Plus: Conrad's displeasure at the film's end, a third act tonal shift, a...

The next entry in our 'Sex Work and Pornography' theme is Gregg Araki's masterful 2005 adaptation of Scott Heim's devastating novel Mysterious Skin .  Starring a grown-up Joseph Gordon Levitt and a pre-Oscar winning director Brady Corbet, the film examines two very different responses to childhood sexual abuse (C/W). Plus: praising Michelle Trachtenberg, the strategic way Araki worked with th...

It's a Conrad pick as our theme on 'Sex Work and Pornography' continues with Robin Campillo’s genre hybrid, Eastern Boys (2013). The film tackles several uncomfortable subjects, including a significant age gap between client and sex worker, an incredibly tense home invasion-style "party" and a challenging protagonist in Daniel (Olivier Rabourdin). Plus: shifting genres, a dialogue-free opening, an...

Conrad and Joe check out writer/director Moshe Rosenthal's exquisite 80s throwback, which played Sundance 2026. Featuring incredible performances across the board, this 5 star film about a tumultuous father/son relationship feels extremely Pedro Almodovar-coded. It's one to watch when it becomes available! Subscribe to our Patreon at patreon.com/TheQueerGaze for bonus content on our other titles....

We're kicking off a new theme, 'Sex work and Pornography', with Justin Kelly's 2016 true crime adaptation, King Cobra (2016) which tells the story of underage porn star Brent Corrigan and the murder of Bryan Kocis (here named Stephen). Starring Christian Slater (superb) and James Franco (ick) as predatory older gay men, the film is stylish, but hollow. Bonus points for Molly Ringwald and Alicia Si...

Conrad and Joe are joined by Horror Queers' Trace Thurman to discuss Charlie Polinger's debut feature, The Plague (2025). Expect plenty of discussion about pre-teen bullying, queer-coding, and body horror as we're collectively triggered by this story about hazing rituals gone awry at an all-boy water polo camp. Plus: praising Kayo Martin as central antagonist Jake, Joel Edgerton's useless Coach, a...

For our final 'Cruising' entry, we've returned to France to discuss Alain Giraudie's Stranger By The Lake (2013). It's one of Joe's favourite contemporary texts, but what did Conrad think of his time watch? Plus: unsimulated sex, naturalistic sound design, Henri's separation, and the lake as a gay utopia Seen the film or want to hear more details? Subscribe to our Patreon at patreon.com/TheQueerGa...

Our second last 'Cruising' title arrives in the form of Nate Dushku's feature directorial debut, Birder (2023). Prepare for innuendos abound courtesy of Amnon Lourie's screenplay, which is brought to life by charming chameleon Michael Emery in the lead role. Plus: queer diversity, and why Conrad and Joe feel differently about David Sachs' father figure Miles Seen the film or want to hear more deta...

Our 'Cruising' theme continues with Andrew Ahn's feature directorial debut, Spa Night (2016) which follows David, a second generation Korean-American living in Los Angeles, as he struggles to make a human connection. This is a beautiful film, although David's near passivity could prove frustrating to some. Good thing Joe Seo is a captivating performer! Seen the film or want to hear more details? S...

We're venturing to rural India to discuss Rohan Kanawade's feature directorial debut, Cactus Pears / Sabar Bonda (2025). This heartfelt romantic drama follows Anand (Bhushaan Manoj), an out gay man in Mumbai, as he returns home for the 10 day mourning ceremony following his father's death, reconnects with his hunky neighbour Balya (Suraaj Suman), and dodges invasive questions about his personal li...

Hold onto your jockstrap because we're hunting a serial killer in the Big Apple with William Friedkin's Cruising (1980). Starring a 39-year old Al Pacino as an ambitious young police officer going undercover in New York's leather scene, the film - which was picketed by the queer community at the time - has aged well thanks to its ambiguity. Plus: debate about the success of Pacino's performance, t...

Our final preview of coming attractions from TIFF 2025 hails from queer Spanish director Alejandro Amenábar as he tackles the infamous story of Don Quixote writer Miguel de Cervantes' time imprisoned in Algier. Starring Disney Channel star Julio Peña in the lead, The Captive is an expensive period piece that follows Cervantes' efforts to develop his skills as a storyteller, execute a daring prison...

The History of Sound (streaming on Mubi) is the new film from Moffie director Oliver Hermanus and stars Josh O'Connor and Paul Mescal as 1920s music students falling in love while they collect samples of American folk music. It's a beautiful film with great chemistry between the leads, but Joe and Conrad aren't entirely satisfied by the way the narrative plays out, the runtime, and the deliberate...

Our 'Cruising' theme continues with writer/director Carmen Emmi's 2025 film Plainclothes , starring Tom Blyth and queer actor Russell Tovey. The period film follows undercover NY police officer Lucas, whose job is to entrap queer men in a public bathroom so they can be arrested. The issue? Lucas is struggling with his own sexuality, which is only exacerbated when he falls for Andrew, who has his o...

Our fifth preview of coming attractions from this year's TIFF features bilingual queer icon Jodie Foster, as an American psychoanalyst in Paris who becomes convinced one of her patients was murdered. A Private Life (Vie Privée) is a scintillating psychological thriller with a dash of French farce, as Lilian (Foster) becomes an amateur sleuth with her lovable ex-husband Gabriel (Daniel Auteuil), an...

Our TIFF coverage continues with two horror-inflected films centring indigenous characters, using hauntings as a method of exploring generational and personal trauma. In Bretten Hannam's At the Place of Ghosts (Sk+te'kmujue'katik), two estranged Mi’kmaw brothers journey into the Canadian woods to avenge spirits that haunt them from their childhood. Meanwhile, Taratoa Stappard's Mārama , follows a...

To kick off our 'Cruising' theme, we're checking out writer/director Eliza Hittman's Beach Rats (2017) featuring the feature film debut of Harris Dickinson. We've got questions about Frankie's kink (expect talk of 'Daddy' issues) as well as his dependency on drugs and alcohol. Plus: shitty boyfriend behaviour, bad friends, and debate about why the film doesn't inspire an emotional connection. Seen...

Our second bonus episode of TIFF coverage explores John Early's directorial debut Maddie's Secret (2025), in which the comedian plays a dishwasher who gets her dream of being an influencer at her food content creation company, but reawakens an eating disorder rooted in childhood trauma. Has the first-time director bitten off more than he can chew? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more in...

Our coverage of this year's Toronto International Film Festival kicks off with a review of Richard Linklater's biopic of Lorenz Hart, starring his 'Before Trilogy' collaborator Ethan Hawke, Margaret Qualley and Andrew Scott. Set on the opening night of Oklahoma! , the smash hit success of his former writing partner, Rogers, and his replacement, Hammerstein, Blue Moon finds Lorenz holding court in...

So much for swimming! It turns out the 2014 Dutch film Jongens is actually a track and field 'Sports Gay' film. Directed by Mischa Camp, this beautifully shot made for TV film was so popular that it was eventually shown in theatres and distributed around the world. Plus: Marc's patience with Sieger, motorcycles, and another fair! Seen the film or want to hear more details? Subscribe to our Patreon...

Our last true "Sports Gay" entry is American football film Riley (2023) from writer/director Benjamin Howard. The film stars Jake Holley as the titular character, Dakota Riley, a promising high school football player who can't suppress his same sex attraction. The problem (and most interesting aspect of the film) is that his sexuality doesn't "fit" in the narrative that he and his oppressive fathe...