The New Queer Cinema
Origin and Introduction
“… from the beginning the New Queer Cinema… was meant to catch the beat of a new kind of film- an video-making that was fresh, edgy, low-budget, inventive, unapologetic, sexy and stylistically daring.” –B. Ruby Rich Queer and Present Danger
Born out of the AIDS crisis sweeping through America, many filmmakers (particularly those who were homosexual) felt a need to bring gay rights to the forefront of consciousness. Beginning in the 80’s, the New Queer cinema (a term coined by B. Ruby Rich) is aptly named because it is not the first type of queer cinema. In fact, queer cinema’s origins can be traced back to around the time that synchronized sound was becoming standardized for film (at or around 1930). However, the differences between New Queer Cinema films and the (for the purposes of this article shall be called) “Prior Queer” films before it is in the way narratives unfolded, aesthetic changes, and more openly homosexual themes.
One particular example of the openly homosexual themes can be clearly seen in Todd Haynes 1991 three part film, Poison.
Clip from Poison: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AFMVoAwrw4&oref=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D5AFMVoAwrw4&has_verified=1
Influences
NQC aesthetics were largely influenced by Avant Garde cinema. Much of the Avant Garde elements NQC were adopted via a different avenue, rather than directly, through the vastly Avant Garde influenced Underground movement. These previous movements show their influence on NQC through experimental narrative structures, and settings that shift (at times) from realistic setting in favor of more symbolic representations of realistic settings. In addition to aesthetic influences, some Underground films included gay themes (such as Andy Warhol’s Flesh from 1968). These “cross-over” films served as examples for NQC directors in how to incorporate gay themes and create narratives centered on gay characters. One Underground director in particular was widely known for incorporating homosexual themes into his films — Kenneth Anger. Anger began his work in the Underground movement then took a break away from film, returning in the prime of the NQC movement.
Inauguration Of The Pleasure Dome (1954)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pThz_nfcUtQ
Note: Kenneth Anger’s Directorial work during the Underground Cinema
Anger Sees Red (2004)
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xojlt_anger-sees-red_creation
Note: Anger’s return to film in the NQC
However, NQC directors were not interested in merely taking Underground cinema in a gay issues/AIDS direction, but revving up the presence of gay characters and themes to make socio-political statements.
A second influence, then, clearly comes to mind: Third Cinema. Third Cinema being focused on making social commentary to point out negative aspects of society and provide audiences with a new way of thinking about current issues. NQC adopted these principles in various ways including aesthetics, narrative and the narrative structure.
Themes, Aesthetics, Examples
Although the AIDS virus epidemic was most prominently affecting the gay community, it was a large point of concern that was infiltrating the heterosexual community as well; it served as a common ground between the two groups of peoples.
By the 90s, established NQC directors and some that may not have been largely considered part of the NQC movement were making films independently and with assistance from major distributors, hitting the box office with the same air of excellence many blockbuster films were getting.
Trailer from Philadelphia (1993): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cl4B9AU45P4
Note: Directed by Jonathan Demme starring Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington. Plot of a man diagnosed with AIDS seeking justice after being fired from his job. It shows how people diagnosed are treated, and how their sexual orientation is questioned.
Trailer from Boys Don’t Cry (1999): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOarssJWHhI
Note: Directed by Kimberly Peirce starring Hilary Swank and Peter Sarsgaard. A woman assumes the identity of a man who pursues women is raped and killed.
Clip from Being John Malkovich (1999): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPeattKV74A
Note: Directed by Spike Jonze starring John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, Catherine Keener, and John Malkovich. Includes character interaction of a woman (Lotte) entering a man’s body (John Malkovich who then falls in love with another woman (Maxine). The love affair continues after Lotte returns to her own body and wishes to continue her pursuit of Maxine.
This proved and helped bring the movement to popularity amongst all audiences, homosexual and heterosexual alike.
To pull audiences out of their natural social mindsets and replacing them with those held by the characters, long takes were far from uncommon. This is an incorporation of Third Cinema, Italian Neorealist, and French New Wave aesthetics.
Spotlight: Influential Directors and Their Works
Gus Van Sant:
My Own Private Idaho (1991), Milk (2008), Paris je t’aime (2006)
Jennie Livingston:
Documentary: Paris is Burning (1990); Short Films: Who’s The Top? (2005), Through The Ice (2006).
Gregg Araki:
Three Bewildered People in the Night (1987), The Long Weekend (O’Despair) (1989), The Living End (1992), The Doom Generation (1995), Mysterious Skin (2004)
Todd Haynes
Poison (1991), Safe (1995), Dottie Gets Spanked (1993), Far From Heaven (2002), and I’m Not There (2007). All of these films reveal, at varied degrees, the struggles that homosexuals faced during and beyond the AIDS crisis through metaphor. For example, the entirety of Safe can be interpreted as a metaphor to the AIDS virus.
NQC in Modern Cinema
Examples:
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Milk (2008)
I Love You Phillip Morris (2009)
Orange is the New Black (Netflix Original Series 2013)
There is no doubt that NQC has made a lasting impact on film history and continues to influence cinema today. For anyone that thinks otherwise, there is only this remaining to prove it:
Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2F7JGhHLiX0
Sources:
Aron, Michele. New Queer Cinema: An Introduction. New Brunswick: Rutgets University Press, 2004. 3-7. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. <http://books.google.com/books?id=PGd4-qtfyzIC&pg=PR13&source=gbs_selected_pages&cad=3#v=onepage&q&f=false>.
Rich, B. Ruby. “Queer and Present Danger.” BFI. N.p., 10 Feb. 2012. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. <http://old.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/feature/80>.
Internet Movie Database. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. <www.imdb.com>.
dailymotion. Web. 10 Dec. 2013 <http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xojlt_anger-sees-red_creation>
Wikipedia. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Queer_Cinema> (For general knowledge and starting point for further research)
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