A Revry original, Unconventional is a really well-liked queer dramedy that feels totally different from the usual stuff. The heart of the story is about two pretty eccentric queer siblings and their partners trying to build a family that doesn't follow the traditional rules. It takes a super raw and unfiltered look at queer life, diving deep into things like mental health, addiction, and how complicated identity and relationships can get. It’s not afraid to get messy or show people at their most vulnerable, and it really pushes boundaries while showing a lot of different queer experiences. The first season has nine episodes, and each one is about a half-hour long. The story centers on Noah, a grad student who’s been struggling for years to wrap up his PhD. He’s been with his husband, Dan, for nine years, and they’ve recently gotten married and moved to Palm Springs. While they're trying to figure out how to start a family and have a baby, they decide to shake things up by in...
17 year old Klaus is a brilliant student and a gifted painter but to his father, who only understands money, Klaus is not normal since he doesn't bring home any girlfriend. Klaus spends most of his free time with Manfred, a low academic achiever raised by a relatively poor single mother. The two boys share an interest in the arts. Klaus protects Manfred from bullying as well. Klaus' parents get more worried when they learn that Klaus has been introduced to an antique dealer Boris, who hosts all male get togethers with electronic music and wrestling by young men. While the father takes matter in his hands by confronting Boris and suing him to having seduced his son, the mother is not far behind. With the help of their housemaid, Gerda, she devises a plan to seduce Klaus and turn him from his homosexual ways. Gerda successfully seduces Klaus and in effect turns him straight. Boris gets to know about that and sues the parents for procuration, hoping in vain to defend himself from the father's legal attack. In the end the mother is convicted while the art dealer is arrested - still without any reason and admittedly without a warrant.
I am not sure if the message was that homosexuality can be "cured" by a straight relationship, but I felt the film was definitely veering towards it. In some places you hear and feel that they are trying to show tolerant behavior, but to doesn't come across to obvious. But again, you can't ignore that this film is from 50's when situation in Germany was probably very different. It would be ridiculous to expect political correctness or an in-depth and realistic study of homosexuality from a movie released in 1957. It's hard to critically review a film of such nature. For folks who are interested in learning more and getting to know how over a period of so many years, perception of gays in cinema has changed, this would be a good film to watch. But of you are looking something for entertainment purposes and enjoying an evening of a movie, you may be underwhelmed. Take your pick. (4/10)
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