It Is Not the Homosexual Who Is Perverse, But the Society in Which He Lives
FREE
Rosa von Praunheim
67 min
German
West Germany
Many films have been called ‘revolutionary,’ but IT IS NOT THE HOMOSEXUAL… truly earns that description. The breakout film by director and activist Rosa von Praunheim (aka Holger Mischwitzky) became a foundational text of the German gay rights movement, and its call for liberation reverberated through the history of queer cinema. [The film] follows Daniel, a young gay man who tries to assimilate into the traditional way of life before realizing that it’s ultimately futile and finding his place in the gay liberation movement. If it sounds didactic, well, it is – but von Praunheim isn’t a complete scold. He empathizes with Daniel as he attempts to fill the void in his life by fleeing into ‘a romantic world of kitsch and ideals’ before discovering that another way is possible. – Joe Hoeffner, Collider
Daniel, a young man from the provinces come to the city and moves from one gay subculture to the next. His adventures begin on the streets of Berlin, where the shy brunette Daniel meets the blonde Clemens, who invites him home for coffee and offers him a place to stay. Soon Daniel is living with Clemens and believes he has found the love of his life. The two try to imitate a bourgeois marriage and its lifestyle. But after four months of tedium, Daniel is cruised by a rich older man who entices him to move into his villa, where he encounters a group of older gays, pretentious in their appreciations of fine art and classical music, who fawn over him.
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