The Queer Gaze

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 Silverstone, though!
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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, and debate about how rarely (or not!) this kind of story is told.
Seen the film or want to hear more details? Subscribe to our Patreon at patreon.com/TheQueerGaze for a ~33 minute bonus spoiler-heavy discussion.
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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/TheQueerGaze another ~23 minutes of spoiler-heavy discussion.
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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 details? Subscribe to our Patreon at patreon.com/TheQueerGaze another ~25 minutes of spoiler-heavy discussion.
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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? Subscribe to our Patreon at patreon.com/TheQueerGaze another 23:03 minutes of spoiler-heavy discussion.
Like the show? Rate, review and subscribe to help others find us
Follow the show on Insta and BlueSky: @thequeergaze.
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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.