Deliciously queer Dead Boy Detectives, a case worth taking

In 2024, with queer entertainment available on-demand through numerous streaming services, it’s sometimes easy to forget that such content was once very difficult to find.

That wasn’t actually that long ago. Even in the post-Stonewall 70s and 80s, films or series – especially mainstream ones – that dared to feature queer characters, let alone tell their stories, were branded “controversial” from the start. It’s been a difficult and winding road to bring queer storytelling to light on screen – despite the outrage and protest of bigots who, depressingly, still rear their ugly head against any efforts to normalize queer existence in the broader culture.

Of course, there is still a long way to go, but it is important to recognize how far we have come – and to recognize the efforts of those who have fought against the tide to pave the way. After all, progress doesn’t happen in a vacuum, and if it weren’t for the queer artists who have strived to bring their projects to fruition over the years, we would still be getting queer-coded characters as comedy substitutes or tragic victims from an industry careful to protect its bottom line by playing in the middle, rather than the (mostly) authentic, queer-friendly narratives that grace our screens today.

The list of such queer storytellers includes names that have become well-known over the years, pioneers of the “Queer New Wave” of the 90s such as Todd Haynes, Gus Van Sant, Gregg Araki and Bruce LaBruce, whose work at various levels of the indie and “Underground” queer cinema movement garnered enough attention—and inevitably notoriety—to make it, at least by reputation, known to most viewers in the community today.

But for every “Poison,” “The Living End,” or “Hustler White,” there are dozens of other, not-so-well-remembered queer films from that era; Screened mostly at LGBTQ film festivals like LA’s Outfest or San Francisco’s Frameline, they may have received widespread interest and occasional recognition, or even a brief commercial release on a few screens, before fading into obscurity. In the days before streaming, options for such titles were limited; Home video distribution was an expensive undertaking, especially when there was no guarantee of a solid audience, so most of them disappeared into a kind of cinematic limbo – from which they are happily rediscovered.

For example, consider: “I think I do” writer/director Brian Sloan’s 1998 screwball romantic comedy, which opened in Brooklyn last week – in a newly restored 4K edition from Strand Releasing – as the closing night selection of NewFest’s “Queering the Canon” series. It’s a film that stars the late pre-transition trans actor and activist Alexis Arquette in a lead role, as well as now-adult gay heartthrob Tuc Watkins and fellow queer actor Guillermo Diaz in supporting roles, but has been in existence for over two decades Considered is little more than a footnote in the filmographies of these and the other actors in his ensemble cast. He deserves to be seen as much more, and thanks to the resurgence of interest among younger film fans in the community in the renaissance of queer cinema, he’s finally getting that chance.

Set among friends and classmates at George Washington University in Washington, DC, it is a comedic – yet warm and nuanced – story about the unrequited and unresolved love of two roommates, the openly gay Bob (Arquette) and the seemingly straight Brendan ( Christian Maelen). , whose college relationship comes to an ugly and humiliating end at a Valentine’s Day party before her graduation. A few years later, the gang reunites for the wedding of Carol (Luna Lauren Vélez) and Matt (Jamie Harrold), who have been together forever. Bob, now a television writer engaged to a handsome soap opera star (Watkins), is the “maid of honor,” while old friends Beth (Maddie Corman) and Sarah (Marianne Hagan) show up to complete the bridal party, pursuing their own romantic interests . When another old friend, Eric (Diaz), unexpectedly shows up with Brendan in tow, it sets off a behind-the-scenes scenario of the wedding’s events in which Bob once again falls under the spell of his old crush and is confronted with lingering feelings, which could call his current romance into question – especially since the intervening years have apparently led Brendan to a new understanding of his own sexuality.

In many ways it is a film with the unmistakable stamp of its time and origins, a low-budget film that was at least partly shot under the borderline conditions of “guerrilla filmmaking” and is characterized by a certain “collegial” sensibility that is found in quite a few Cases are expressed through aggressively clever dialogue and a storytelling agenda that is perhaps a little too packed. At the same time, these rough edges also give it a raw DIY character that not only forgives any perceived sloppiness, but also gives it a kind of “outsider” atmosphere that it wears like a badge of honor. Add to that a collection of likeable performances – including Arquette in a winning turn that easily draws us into the story, and Maelen, whose DeNiro-esque looks and barely concealed sensitivity make him swoon while cementing the palpable chemistry between them – and Sloan’s 25th Years-old mix of classic Hollywood rom-com and raunchy ’90s sex farce turns out to be a charming, smarter piece of entertainment than expected, with an admirable level of compassion and empathy for even its most stereotypical characters – like Watkins’ soap star, a walking motif of swaggering celebrity made more human than appearances suggest by the actor’s honest, emotionally intelligent performance – leaving no doubt that his heart is in the right place.

Sloan confirms in his remarks today that his intention was always to make a film that was more than just frothy fluff. “Although the film seems like a glossy comedy, I always wanted to convey an underlying message that the gay couple is seen as equal to the straight couple getting married,” he says. “And the film is also set in Washington to underscore that.”

He also feels a sense of gratitude for what he calls “increased interest among Millennials and Generation Z in these (classic queer indie) films, many of which are surprising from that era, especially the comedies.” Indeed, there were there were two clips from “his film “I Think I Do” that were shown at the Queer Cinema Archive, which “attracted a lot of interest from their followers” ​​and “helped convince my distributor to bring the film back” after it was released has not been available for almost 10 years.

Mostly, though, he says, “I feel very lucky to have been able to make this film at this time and be part of this movement that signaled a sea change in the way LGBTQ characters were portrayed on screen.”

Thanks to Strand’s new 4K restoration, which will be available for VOD streaming on Amazon and Apple starting April 19, his film may now be available to a larger audience than ever before.

Hopefully it will open the door for the re-emergence of other iconic but obscure classics of its time and allow a whole new generation to discover them.