Cuatro lunas

We are treated to four different yet interwoven stories; the common denominator being that they deal with being gay and gay relationships.

In one story we meet an elderly closeted gay poet, Joaquín (Alonso Echánove); he is married, with a seemingly happy wife and daughters. He is smitten by a young male prostitute, Gilberto (Alejandro Belmonte) he meets in a bath-house.

In a second story we get an example of a long-term (ten year) gay relationship that is starting to fall apart. Unfaithful Hugo (Antonio Velásquez) is involved in an affair with another man. His sensitive partner, Andrés (Alejandro de la Madrid) is trying his best to save their relationship.

The relationship between two young gay men is put under pressure in a third story; Leo (Gustavo Egelhaaf) is closeted and scared to reveal his sexual orientation, whilst Fito (César Ramos) does not want to remain in the closet any longer. This leads to tension.

In the fourth story a clearly gay boy, Mauricio (Gabriel Santoyo) develops a crush on his older cousin, Oliver (Sebastián Rivera). Mauricio desperately wants to get closer to Oliver, but it is a risky move; what if Oliver is straight and homophobic?

The director, Sergio Tovar Velarde, effectively highlights some of the issues faced by gays: Social pressure resulting in fear and closeted lifestyles, a swinging lifestyle and promiscuity, and how hard it is to make a long-term relationship work. Furthermore, it shows us how a homophobic and intolerant society, fueled by the church, can result in bullying and assault.

I found the acting splendid, and so too the cinematography and soundtrack, and score 'Cuatro Lunas' an excellent 8/10.

This is one of the most enjoyable gay themed movies I've watched. In "Cuatro Lunas" everything is near perfection - the plots of the four stories, the characters, the actors, the music, the editing and the cinematography. The direction is excellent as well. But what really excels is its power to grab and thrill the viewer with stories that are as simple as those of their own life. While mainstream cinema need to thrill with fantastic, complex and sometimes implausible plots, "Cuatro Lunas" shows life as simple, strange and painful as it really is for each one of us. This is one of the 5 best gay themed movies I've watched, and I've already watched a bunch of them.

And interesting that (as of this writing) the one negative review here is from a Mexican who calls it the worst gay movie ever. He couldn't be more wrong. If you're reading this, reviewer, take a look at my reviews to find a selection of truly cringe-making gay movies. Try watching Regarding Billy, for example. Betcha can't make it all the way through.

Nevertheless, I think I know why someone from Mexico found this movie trite and a yawn. If you compare it to a Mexican movie like Y Tu Mama Tambien, yes, this is nowhere near that level. But it is competent, and it held my interest. Yes, it covers no new ground, but what is covered is done so in an interesting way.

Another reviewer points out how American this depiction of Mexico looks. Having lived in Mexico I would agree that most if not all of these homes would have had servants. I suspect the director felt that if servants were seen, European and US audiences would not find the characters as sympathetic. And he'd be right.

This is not a great film, but it is very good. I found nothing in this production to complain about. Well, all right, I didn't care much for the professor character or the actor who portrayed him. But maybe that's because (being in the same age bracket and out since Stonewall) I have little tolerance for closet cases--real or fictional--who have had their cake and now want to eat it.

There is a telenovista element to the story lines, but I think that's intentional. A scene where a mother's dry recitation to her son of a telenovela plot is very funny-and revealing. Let's face it. Gay life can be a telenovela.

From the Netflix description I too was expecting four short films. And I put off watching for that reason; it's not my favorite genre. But interwoven as they were worked well. I liked it. I think most American gay men will too.

Four gay themed plots with attractive, competent actors, and a decent script. OMG....none of the characters smoked....thank the lord. No drug fests either. But there were nude frontals and a bathhouse orgy. Nice to see masculine men displaying some hardcore emotional breakdowns, which tends to happen for two reasons....death of loved ones or the death of a romance. We find a bit of both, but mostly the latter in this film. Can't believe this was made in Mexico. Thank you.....this was free on Youtube in the USA.

It amazes me with all the talent and money in Hollywood that Gay films are generally so lousy. Except for a couple of films like GBF and The Geography Club there have been almost no good gay films in the past year or so. There are big director pretentious movies like Philadelphia or Broke Back Mountain in the past, but we need something more real and less hysterically depressing. This film is sweetly wonderful and true to life. Watching is like hearing the stories of people I have known. The well chosen actors give beautiful performances. The story telling is almost perfect. Chemistry between the leads is excellent and believable. When someone starts talking up an American gay director who makes a lot of product that isn't very good and acts like people should settle for it, I would rather read subtitles and see a movie of this caliber instead. Some of the very best Gay films are coming from outside of our borders where gifted directors are making very good films without huge budgets or overpaid actors. I have seen some excellent Gay films this year, none of them come from Hollywood.