From a hookup that leads to an ethical dilemma to a football-pitch friendship and the last embers of an urgent young romance, these five beautiful French shorts are outstanding examples of the power of short film in exploring emotions and feelings that far too many boys and men continue to keep locked away. The Male Gaze: French Connection is available to rent, stream or buy on October 30.
In their timeless song “Words”, the Bee Gees wrote, “You think that I don’t even mean a single word I say. It’s only words. And words are all I have to take your heart away.” Words carry power, and just a single word can change our world and the world of everyone around us. However, words aren’t always easy to find, especially when they relate to our most profound emotions. Men and boys often struggle to find the right words, instead opting to hide their feelings behind a smile in fear of letting their innermost thoughts escape.
The Male Gaze: French Connection presents a stunning mosaic of stories about unspoken words, newly discovered words, challenging emotions, and feelings denied expression. From a hookup that leads to an ethical dilemma to a football-pitch friendship and the last embers of an urgent young romance, these five beautiful French shorts are outstanding examples of the power of short film in exploring emotions and feelings that far too many boys and men continue to keep locked away.
Opening the collection is 9TH FLOOR TO THE RIGHT (9ème étage droite), directed by Andrea Romano. Thirtysomething masseur and physio Lorenzo can’t wait for Marvin to arrive at his front door. He likes Marvin, and tonight is going to be special as he plumps the cushions in his apartment and nervously waits for a knock at the door. But when Marvin arrives, he isn’t alone; with him is a homeless man who lives on the streets outside Lorenzo’s block of flats. Taken aback, Lorenzo is at a loss for words as Marvin asks him to allow the man to use his shower. Feeling guilty at the prospect of saying no and losing Marvin, Lorenzo agrees. But is Marvin a good Samaritan who regularly helps the homeless, or is something more sinister at the heart of his request?
Andrea Romano’s powerful short tackles the importance of standing up for what we feel is right and calling out what we know is wrong, no matter how hard that may be. When we meet someone new, someone we are attracted to, it can be hard to find the words to push that person away when we realise we made a mistake. But as Lorenzo is about to discover, not all knights in shining armour have good hearts.
The next film in The Male Gaze: French Connection collection is the outstanding HUGO 6:30, directed by Simon Helloco and James Maciver. During a casting session, young actor Hugo is invited to tell a story that highlights the power of the spoken word, with a single camera in front of him and a small crew listening in.
Hugo could have picked so many stories to tell. But, he opts to recount a journey far more personal than the crew may realise. It is a story of sex, love, friendship and support as a blood test reveals the presence of HIV. Simon Helloco and James Maciver’s beautiful short explores the healing power of friendship and the strength of storytelling and performance in helping us express our deepest feelings.
Performance and art are also at the heart of Victor Boyer’s tender, funny, and charming CARY & JAMES. Boyer’s tale of severe writer’s block, therapy, a friendship that might be more, and a love of Hollywood’s golden age is an absolute joy. Nathan is an aspiring writer whose career is going nowhere fast, and to add insult to injury, his therapist just threw a book at him in a fit of rage after he recalled a dream in which he was counselling her. Still, at least he has his good friend Francis to console him.
Francis shares Nathan’s love of old Hollywood, and they love nothing better than trips to watch a classic at the local cinema, talking all the way through it, much to the dismay of fellow audience members. But a day that starts like any other is about to transform their friendship and unlock Nathan’s writer’s block, all with the help of some LSD found in Francis’s wallet. Can these two young men finally find the words that express their love? A meandering trip across Paris, some second-hand 1940s suits, and a suicidal therapist might just provide the answer.
Next up is FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME (Pour l’amour du jeu), directed by Clément Bompart. John’s life is consumed by his love of football, even though most of his team hurls homophobic insults at him in the changing rooms at every opportunity. It’s not like John has even told them what his sexuality is. Instead, he remains silent, concentrating on his skills, and avoids social contact with all but one of his team members, a gentle and caring individual who offers John a hand of friendship. However, the support John’s only friend offers is about to end when he announces his plans to leave for Marseille with his girlfriend.
Clément Bompart’s tale of self-imposed silence, an unrequited sexual interest and the homophobia that continues to permeate many sports is both tender and powerful. While John’s silence and distance may allow him to pursue his love of football, they will never allow him to be genuinely free, either on or off the pitch. Is that something John is willing to accept? Only time will tell.
The final short film in The Male Gaze: French Connection is the poetic and enchanting YOUSSOU AND MALEK, directed by Simon Frenay. Our first love is often the most intense we ever experience. Sometimes, that first love lasts a lifetime, but for most of us, life, education, and the need to embrace new experiences mean it ends before we reach our twenties. Youssou and his boyfriend, Malek, love each other deeply. Still, they have known for some time that Youssou is about to travel 10,000 miles to Berkeley College on a prestigious scholarship, an opportunity he cannot pass up despite the difficult decision to leave Malek.
On a hot summer day, that decision suddenly becomes real as the pair face their final evening together. But as they both wrestle to find the words to express their love and what they have and will always mean to each other, fate seems determined to keep them apart in a race across the city to say a final goodbye and share a last kiss.
Simon Frenay’s sun-soaked tale of two star-crossed lovers attempting to navigate their emotions and find the words that celebrate what their love means and will always mean to each other is exquisite. Using poetry, rap, music, and prose to tell its story, Youssou and Malek isn’t just a tale of two Romeos saying goodbye; it’s a beautifully crafted exploration of what it means to be young, gay, Black, and Arab in a society that labels and disempowers you at every turn.
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