Trailer for Moonlight African American Gay Film coming out soon

[MorrisseyX]

I know I am probably late with this but I just heard about an interesting African American film called Moonlight by director Barry Jenkins. I am not sure how this film will do? I have searched some forums online such as The Coli.com which is mostly a straight black American male website many said they would pass seeing this movie. The quandary for a film like Moonlight is who is the target audience? I am not sure straight black people would want to see a movie about gay black men? Would straight black women really want to see a movie about good looking black men who are gay? I am guessing this movie is meant for the LGBT audience? But then the LGBT audience is such a niche market too. Kind of sad, I hope people who are not gay will see this film learn something about a group of people often ignored in films. The trailer looks REALLY GOOD, the two male leads are very handsome. I also like that the lead character is a black gay man who is NOT EFFEMINATE, does not act like a woman and is not a drag queen. This movie is refreshing. I wonder though, a few years ago a black lesbian film Pariah got some buzz but fizzled out. But I read an interview with the director Barry Jenkins in the Guardian he said he is just happy the movie is made and hopes people see it. Link to trailer:

 

[pat grimshaw]

^



That music score!

It sounds like Phillip Glass but it was done by a VERY young Floridian named Nicholas Brittel who did this movie

 

[TickTockMan]

Moonlight (2016/I)

A timeless story of human connection and self-discovery, Moonlight chronicles the life of a young black man from childhood to adulthood as he struggles to find his place in the world while growing up in a rough neighborhood of Miami.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4975722/combined



Moonlight has got some great reviews. I am really interested in seeing it. I just wanted to let others know about the movie in case it was in your interests.


Has anyone already seen it? Without spoilers, how did you like it?

 

[SFLMAN]

I saw the movie last night and was disappointed! The movie is not very gay at all. There is only one scene where 2 guys kiss and jerk each other off. There is no nudity and no gay sex in the movie.

 

[TickTockMan]

A good film, but it is too bad people are calling it a black and gay movie. Really it is neither. It is a character study of a man that happens to be black and may or may not be gay. The labeling of this movie is not helping it.

 

[Taralen]

Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

I never seen Moonlight, and I don't think I ever will. Maybe if I'm half drunk and it's on HBO on Friday night or something like that. lol.

Very quickly, Moonlight is a drama film which all the characters and actors are black, and the two main characters are young gay black men who go through childhood being involved with each other, and it goes onto their teenage years and 20s still being together.

But I saw the trailer for it and the plot and everything way back a long time ago, and said this just looks like some amateur short college film. At best a movie of the week on Lifetime, BET, etc.

I appreciate how as young gay black man, this movie should realistically be the perfect epitome of me as a person and I should totally relate to it and be connected to it.

However, that shouldn't be the only factor into it.

There are tons of shows and movies that I like that have no black or gay characters which I love.

Would it be nice to see people who I can relate to, absolutely. But it's not the definining point.

Long story short, the Academy Awards or Golden globes?, I don't know, I don't watch that crap. Anyways, they came on over the weekend.

Moonlight won best picture, and I'm just really confused right now.

No I haven't seen the movie, but that's very dismissive. I know plenty enough about it to make the claim that it's not a critically acclaimed movie it's not.

In my opinion though, I think they are trying to throw some kind of agenda with this. I'm not saying nessarily the film makers on Moonlight are to blame or invovled, because they might be, but the academy awards, golden globes, all that shit does have some type of agenda with this movie.

It's a movie in my opinion that shouldn't have gotten farther than being shown late at night on BET, to all of a sudden winning best picture of the year?

They have an agenda, and it's to squash the black card and the gay card both at the same time.

You have Hidden Figures which I haven't seen as well, but I think is a way better acclaimed film than two homosexual black boys in love.

But because Moonlight is not only a black film, but a GAY film as well, that's where the agenda gets played.

I'm also pissed that none of the actors are queer men themselves. That's kinda shitty, but oh well.

What do you guys think. You agree or disagree with me?

 

[luckynumbah7]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

I appreciate how as young gay black man, this movie should realistically be the perfect epitome of me as a person and I should totally relate to it and be connected to it.

The characters in movies aren't supposed to be the epitome of their audience. Movies are supposed to give their audience a peek into the character's thought processes or actions with situations/experiences that one either hasn't experienceed themselves or to consider views on such that they have experienced themselves, but through an alternate lense.

If movies were actually supposed to be the illustrative of their audience's personal lives, 'bout no one would go to see it as everyone has already experienced it.

I also think you're willfully ignoring all those 'nerdy white boy-meets-modelesque girl (all she needs to do is lose the glasses & books, ain't that amazing) and gets revenge' plots movies, now there's an agenda I wouldn't mind seeing overhauled. And those are pretty blatant with reinforcing inaccurate 'norms'. So I'm not seeing where having an agenda as a director trying to put more out there than the usual whitebread fare is a bad thing.

 

[zoltanspawn]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

...They have an agenda, and it's to squash the black card and the gay card both at the same time.

...But because Moonlight is not only a black film, but a GAY film as well, that's where the agenda gets played.

I don't really understand what you are arguing the agenda is.

Though I imagine it must be very hard to explain, never having seen the film.

 

[MakeDigitalLove]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

I stopped right at the point where you said you didn't see the film, it's kind of hard to point something like that about a film you haven't and don't plan to watch.

 

[Taralen]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

I stopped right at the point where you said you didn't see the film, it's kind of hard to point something like that about a film you haven't and don't plan to watch.

No it isn't. We aren't debating as to whether or not it's a good movie.

I don't need to see the whole film. I've seen teasers, and know basically how the story works. I don't need to see the whole film.

I fucking lived it for one. How you like them oranges?

I never said it was a bad movie.

I just said it's not critically acclaimed as people are saying it is.

In addition, the only reason it's critically acclaimed is because of the agenda people are pushing it to be both a black and gay film. It won best picture because they are trying to prove a point, when there were far better movies on the docket.

 

[mcbrion]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

Never seen the film but ' I know plenty enough about it to make the claim that it's not a critically acclaimed movie it's not.'

So, the critics were all paid off to promote a Black, gay film?

Los Angelenos were never known for their intellectual rigor, and here is proof. Or perhaps the OP is friends with Tucker Carlson, who claimed the film earned its Oscar for 'political correctness' reasons.

Either way, there are two people competing for roles in the next Dumb & Dumber film.

 

[TheLoveableLoner]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

Girl, bye! You are looking for drama, and the fact that you world go so hard on a movie you haven't even seen proves it.

==================

For anyone curious about Moonlight: I saw it weeks before its major release. At the time, it was a small indie film with a 98% Rotten Tomatoes rating. I was instantly intrigued to see that a movie with a gay, Black protagonist had such a rating.

I saw the movie, and fell in love with it instantly. Not because it was a gay, Black character, but it definitely helped to see one on the big screen (for once!)

The movie makes no huge statements about what it is to be gay and doesn't try to. It doesn't do that about being Black either. It tells a simple, coming of age story of a boy with a rough childhood in Miami. Its use of three acts to divide chapters of childhood, adolescence, and adulthood is innovative, the acting is strong throughout, and the cinematography is beautiful.

This was a great movie. I loved it, watched it gain press throughout the seasons, and quietly amass more "best picture" awards than any other film this year. By the time Oscar night arrived, the only thing keeping its "underdog" status was the fact that it was low-budget, or had an all Black cast, or perhaps that the main character was LGBT. Looking at the awards it had scored elsewhere, the outcome should've been expected.

I absolutely adore this movie and recommend it for everyone to see. Even (especially) self-hating Internet trolls.

 

[luckynumbah7]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

....It has a 98% on Rotten Tomatoes? Damn, movie's going in my list then; so few movies rate that high that it's gotta be good. Bates Motel has a 91% and the acting in that is superb. (I mean the show, not the film).

 

[luckynumbah7]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

So, the critics were all paid off to promote a Black, gay film?

Yeah, I'd find that bloody difficult to believe. Despite all the shrieks of "Pc!" & "Must be the Kool Kids", anything that's not 97% (to pull a # outta my ass) generically mainstream doesn't tend to get lauded. If anything, it's the opposite, people popping out've the woodwork to say it doesn't deserve the same kinda recognition just because there's not oodles of similar films to choose from. But I'm still boggling at RT giving anything 98% (I don't follow the Oscars myself) so the film's moved ahead in my queue.

 

[TheLoveableLoner]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

....It has a 98% on Rotten Tomatoes? Damn, movie's going in my list then; so few movies rate that high that it's gotta be good.

Yep. The film is incredible. That score was the first thing that got my attention.

 

[EddMarkStarr]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

I share your point of view Taralen. I've bought dvd's of Oscar winning movies only to be disappointed and wanting my money back. I'm going to watch this film eventually - maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised.

 

[willie metcaffe]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

Moonlight is a lovely film. All the characters were real and universal, and true to themselves. The story felt genuine. The film looked like a film. Not some television wannabe.

What the Academy Awards do is inconsequential to the greatness of the film. Hollywood's a business. A corporation. Of course it's going to have an agenda. The primary one is to make money. Maybe there's another of creating art. It wouldn't surprise me though if money is first on the list. I prefer the creative element. But Hollywood doesn't have my number.

As for the actors not being gay. I personally don't know any of the actors' sexuality, because in this instance I really don't care. I think that the three actors playing Chiron at the three stages of his life gave the character vitality. If the three actors diminished the character in some way, then I'd care. But that didn't happen.

 

[NotHardUp1]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

I find this fantasy too unfulfilling. If we're going to hypothesize about a movie without watching it, we need to expand the detail to include some details about our hypothetical viewing to add more realism.

Fantasy me is going to watch the movie with a box of oversalted popcorn and a flat oversized, overpriced Dr. Pepper. The fantasy kid behind me keeps whispering too loudly to his mother that he needs to go to the bathroom. Two rows down and five seats over, a jackass is texting on his cell phone.

The best scene in the whole movie is fantasy ruined by a passing fire engine followed by two police cruisers and an ambulance, all with sirens blaring.

On the way home, I stop off for some fantasy spumoni but find it borderline soured, and toss it in the fantasy trash.

It will be a bad evening.

 

[luckynumbah7]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

Spumoni?

 

[NotHardUp1]

Re: Am I the only one who thinks "Moonlight" has an agenda?

More like spewmoni. Put some imagination into it.