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Stop! That! Train!

By Golu
Coming out of the same studio that gave us RuPaul's Drag Race, and stacked with a whole crew of former contestants, Stop! That! Train! plays like RuPaul basically taking a bow for the entire franchise she's built. It's not really a gay film in the traditional sense, but with so many drag stars from Ru's shows popping up alongside a few cameos from well known out gay actors, I figured it earns a spot on this blog anyway. The whole thing is completely over the top, packed with GenZ slang, loud flashy visuals, and humor that's constantly winking at you knowing how ridiculous it is. Going in you'd assume it's meant to be a laugh riot, and a lot of critics online seem to be eating it up, but I just couldn't get into it at all. I've never really been someone who vibes with campy silly stuff like this, so honestly my reaction doesn't surprise me one bit. The setup follows Tess and DeeDee, two low level stewardesses who sneak onto the fancy Glamazonian E...
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Manuela y Manuel (Spanish) [Manuela and Manuel]

By Golu
I loved this film. There are very few gay comedies and if there are they are usually romantic comedies. This was comedy and drama and I absolutely loved it. I have a feeling if this film was in English, it would have lost its charm. I am so glad that I saw it in the original SPanish version with subtitles. Something about the Spanish language that makes this film even more interesting and a whole lot of fun to watch.

Manuel has always lived as Manuela, a drag queen full of energy and talent whose job in the local nightclub is secure along with his fellow 'lady performer' Fararona. But in private his heart is broken because the love of his life Tono has left him. His landlady DOna Rosa is the mother figure in his life who although bitches, looks after him as her son. Her life is spent waiting for a letter from a man who she alway loved. Her niece also now lives with her whose husband Ramon left her for another woman. His best friend Coca confides in him that she is pregnant by a soldier off to war and wants to keep her child, asking Manuela to act as the father of the child when she confesses her problem to her parents. Manuela is very confused but Coca is his bestest friend and he agrees to play her boyfriend. Fate though has something else in store. Coca's father proposes marriage right away. What started off as a short joke has now taken a completely new turn. Initially reluctant, Manuel agrees to it to keep his promise to his friend. Dona Rosa helps Manuel with masculine clothes. When the final D-day arrives, all manner of hilarious mistaken identities occur and secrets are revealed. Fararona comes with her boyfriend who turns out to be Ramon who also happens to be the real father of Coca's baby. Dona Rosa and her niece also come and turns out it is the same man who left her niece. The 'marriage' opens many doors to the 'superb' finale and a fantastic ending.

I loved each and every moment of the film. First and foremost I have to applaud the actor who played Manuel/Manuela character. He was spot on. And the dances he has done in the film are absolutely fantastic putting any girl to shame. All the scenes between Dona Rosa, her niece and Manuel are also very funny. I laughed like crazy when the niece seeing Manuela dressed in her husband's clothes thinks Manuel is Ramon and just pounces on her. It is hilarious. Similarly when they think that Dona Rosa is dead. Coca was also good but truly the heart of the film were Manuel and Dona Rosa according to me. One other very good thing about the film was that each and every character was properly sketched out. There was nothing half-baked. The audience could even connect to Fararona who had a very small role.

Strongly recommend the film specially very few gay films actually make you laugh without making an issue about an individual being gay. (7.5/10)
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