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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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Sad Jokes (German/English)

By Golu
There is a scene in this film where the film maker takes his script to show to a producer (?) and he remarks saying, 'I don't understand what this film is about' and that is exactly what I felt having watching the film. I just wasn't sure what the film is about. Online reviews call it a self-reflective fiction that muses on what we find comic about the human condition, and what can reduce us to tears. Made for festival circuits and arthouse cinema, there was absolutely nothing that I liked about this film.

Joseph is a gay man and a film maker who has a 3 year old son Pino with his best friend Sonya. He broke up with his boyfriend more than 3 years ago and is now planing to make a passionate comedy film. Sonya returned prematurely from the clinic dealing with depression and she needs to go back there. His meetings with the producer who keeps asking for what he wants to make next creating another weird scenario especially when producer chews dog treats and gives it to the dog. The stars of Joseph’s last film have a very public fight after the premiere, and Joseph ruins a date with Dominic, the handsome nude model from his art class, after romantic expectations collide with parental responsibilities. He also wants a big head sculpture of his own for his film for some reason. Earlier, when Joseph gets his fingers stuck in a vending machine, his only help is an awkward woman who fusses over what snack to buy. Each scenario, ripe for and attuned to comedy’s absurd and pathetic potential, tests the limits of Joseph’s ability to pretend everything is fine. Towards the end, he meets his ex, who has moved on and wishes Joseph best of luck.

The actor-director has tried to experiment with various facets of comedy. juxtaposes philosophies and absurdism, exploring different layers of laughter, but you know what.. I didn't laugh even for a single second. Half of the time I was rolling my eyes. I really don't understand the kind of humor that uses sarcasm during an intense argument, laughter arising from the depths of a degenerative mental illness, or outward joy masking hidden pain. And when his producer says he doesn't understand his script, I screamed - Finally, someone said what I am feeling. I din't think the film was parody or satire or even comedy and yet I am still chocked reading all these glorious reviews by critics all over from multiple film festivals. I have realized one thing that European films that feature in those big film festivals have a huge disconnect between what critics like and what a generic audience like me prefers. I have seen this play out time and again and I see that still happening. To each his own, but this film should be a hard miss for just ordinary folks like me. (2/10)
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