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Queer Classics - A Bay Area Film Series

@thequeerclassics

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A monthly screening in the Bay Area celebrating films by/for/about queer people throughout cinema history

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by @thequeerclassics

13

3

a year ago

ADDAMS FAMILY VALUES (1993)
dir. Barry Sonnenfeld
Screenplay written by Paul Rudnick 🏳️‍🌈

Saturday, November 8th, 3pm
🎟️ link in bio

MAL-I-BU BAR-BIE!

If those words trigger a jolt of adrenaline, then you’re in the right place!

Thankfully, The Addams Family has proven for decades, from comic strip to TV to film, that rejecting the normal world altogether is how you live your best life. Even if you didn’t know what being gay meant as a kid, the queer cinematic voice of this film was familiar in a way that resonates as strongly now as it did the day it came out in 1993.

Working without the hetero collaborators forced on him by the studios in the first film, gay screenwriter Paul Rudnik let his freak flag fly in the sequel ADDAMS FAMILY VALUES. And with that queer freedom, he created the most savage, hysterical satire of the decade; skewering the horrors of American culture, and so-called “traditional” family values, with a flaming red-hot poker that has never cooled since.

ADDAMS FAMILY VALUES explores the commonality of late-20th century growing-family dynamics that every parent and child have to deal with, through the Addams’ macabre Grand Guignol lens; the birth of a new baby, sibling rivalry, finding the right nanny, the frights of new romance for the young and old, puberty, kids going off to summer camp, balancing passion with domestic responsibility, dealing with in-laws, and last but certainly not least, the white American version of family-togetherness hell that is Thanksgiving, exposed as racist fairytale in legendary musical fashion.

There never was a better Addams Family cast than the one assembled here, and the addition of Joan Cusack as Debbie Jelinsky earns this one icon status. Even Jinkx Monsoon turned her big monologue into a song!

If you’re unlucky enough to have never seen this, make sure your first time is special, and see it on the movie screen where it belongs with other queers ready to mock the straight world.

Happy Happy Turkey Day!

#queerclassics #lgbtq #90s #addamsfamily #addamsfamilyvalues #90smovies #thanksgiving #wednesdayaddams 🌈 🎥 🍿 🦃 taken in The New Parkway by @thequeerclassics

12

0

a year ago

STRANGER BY THE LAKE (2013)
dir. by Alain Giraudie

Saturday, Oct 11, 3pm
🎟️ link in bio

Summer may have ended, but this Halloween season Queer Classics is going on a French cruise (of sorts). The heat is on in this unprecedented erotic thriller about an important truth: a good cruising spot is worth saving for many reasons that, like people, are complex…

This is our first foreign-language film in the series, (directed by an openly gay Frenchman) and one of the few wide-release films about gay eroticism that not only doesn’t shy away from showing full-frontal nudity in same-sex intimacy, it garnered fame upon its release 12 years ago for the genuine realism of the sex that occurs onscreen. The actors are acting, but the closeups and the fluids (provided by body doubles) are real, playing with the minds of the viewer in ways that make the term Hitchcockian even more appropriate than it sounds. The effect is one of mingling intense sexual and psychological thrills that makes the line between them seem both painfully distinct and irrelevant at the same time.

This film follows a man looking for love in the right places, but this place may have been infiltrated by a fatally hot newcomer, and manages to be many things at once. A reflection of how far you’ll go to find a safe space to be shamelessly gay and sexy without fear of discrimination or reproach; a curious exploration of what really makes the heart race (sex, danger, a combination of the two?); and it’s also a film about the deep human need to connect with each other, how hard a homophobic world makes queer people work to fill that need, and to feel and be loved in a lonely world.

Cum to The New Parkway to experience all the feels for our Queer Classic this Halloween season! 🎃 👻 🍆 💦

#queerclassics #newqueerclassic #lgbtfilm #queerfilm #queerfilmmakers #fullfrontal #sex
#gay #gayfilm #halloween #cruising #french #frenchfilm #thriller #queer #erotic #eroticfilm taken in Oakland, California by @thequeerclassics

13

2

a year ago

CABARET (1972) dir. Bob Fosse

Saturday, September 13, 2025 at 3pm
🎟️ 🔗 in bio

QUEER CLASSICS is back from summer break and school is in session! Because the times they are a changin’ back, and the time has come again to teach the children (young and old). We FINALLY have Liza represented in the series, in her Oscar-winning role from 1972!

CABARET won a lot of Oscars that year actually, besting The Godfather for many of the major awards, a velvet mafia success story if ever I heard one. Choreographer and director Bob Fosse fossilized his legendary status with this triumphant masterpiece.

For those of us with more trips around the sun under our belts, we remember there once was a time when knowing the work of Liza (with a Z) was a more widespread part of the common language in the gay scene.

If you are a young gay who wonders why Liza Minnelli is a big deal, or who Bob Fosse is; this is the movie that answers those questions. She becomes an icon before your very eyes as you watch the film, proving both that she inherited the best her mother Judy Garland gave her, and that she is a superstar in her own right. And Fosse brings his instantly recognizable style to film in all its glory here as well. Nobody ever filmed dance in cinema the way he did, because dance flowed in his veins.

For everyone, the film will be a revelation in these modern times where everything old now seems disturbingly new again. Especially how much we need entertainment (and safe spaces to enjoy it) to survive, and how much we still need to learn from the stories it tells.

CABARET questions everything from the limits and the power of love and pleasure as the world crumbles around you, to the need for (and the deconstruction of) the musical as a genre. And somehow it does it all with a brilliant score that reminds you joy is important too while warning you of the dangers of distraction.

Come to the CABARET, and let’s luxuriate in some of the best song and dance ever to grace the movie screen, ON the movie screen where you should always be watching the #QUEERCLASSICS

#queerfilm #musicals #lizaminnelli #70smovies #bobfosse #fosse #oscar #academyawards #cabaret taken in Oakland, California by @thequeerclassics

12

3

a year ago

Hard to believe it’s been three whole years since I started this series! It wasn’t easy, but we managed to pull enough queers together over the years to keep it running. And we need it to continue now more than ever!

We’re going back to the 90s to celebrate this milestone with a seminal film, a mainstream Hollywood film that brought gay icon Bette Midler together with comedy greats Diane Keaton and Goldie Hawn to form the best diva trio of the 90s, a story where femininity is heroic and topples toxic masculinity, and which unashamedly included a lesbian character and lesbian bars in the film in a normal and positive light.

This movie was LIFE for many a gay kid (and adult) back then and it still holds up today! Let’s all rejoice and proclaim to those who try to harm our community - YOU DON’T OWN ME!

🌈 🎥 #queerclassics #lgbtq #pride #90s #womeninfilm taken in The New Parkway by @thequeerclassics

13

0

a year ago

Queer Classics: Encore Editions
PEE-WEE’S BIG ADVENTURE (1985)
Saturday, June 14 - 3pm
🎟️ link in bio

Summer is coming soon and we need a dose of sunny silliness more than ever. By popular demand, we are bringing Pee-wee back to the big screen!

With the @hbo documentary about him coming out soon, now seemed like the perfect time to honor queer legend Paul Reubens and the totally unrivaled, unique character he created.

There was no better icon and champion of being your quirky self in the 80s than PeeWee, and thank goodness someone had the good sense to hire Tim Burton to make the film. It was a match made in heaven, and now you can see his James Bond kind of stuff again on the big screen where it belongs!

#peeweesbigadventure #queer #queerclassics #lgbt #queerfilm #80s #80smovies #rebel #timburton #paulreubens 🏳️‍🌈 🎥 🍿 🚲 taken in Oakland, California by @thequeerclassics

8

2

a year ago

Queer Classics Encore Presentation!
LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS - Director’s Cut (1986)
Saturday, April 12 - 3pm @thenewparkway

🎟️ link in bio

Despite our dire warnings last year, someone still fed the plants and now they’re back for revenge! Spring is on its way and this most strange and unusual plant has flowered… it will soon be on display at Mushnik’s Florist, aka @thenewparkway for your viewing pleasure.

The legendary queer musical genius Howard Ashman passed so young from AIDS, but before he saved the Disney animation department with his vision, he conceived of this gem in the early eighties, and stuffed it full of little goodies that stand out when you watch through a queer lens. The phallic plant, the hints of homoerotic bdsm, and multiple examples of innuendo that pulls of the unique challenge of being totally benign to a kid and unmistakably risqué to an adult. It also effortlessly accomplishes a mashup of genres that no other creative person other than Stephen Sondheim ever mastered while making it a simultaneously rich and emotional experience.

And we ONLY show this movie at QUEER CLASSICS with its long lost and now faithfully restored original ending, with the original closing number. It’s a practical special effects extravaganza that’s not to be missed!

#musicals #80smovies #80s #80shorror #queerfilm #littleshopofhorrors 🪴 🩸 🌈 🎥 taken in The New Parkway by @thequeerclassics

3

1

2 years ago

INSTANT QUEER CLASSIC:
THE SUBSTANCE (2024, dir. Coralie Fargeat)

Saturday, Feb 08, 3pm
🎟️ link in bio

Respect the balance! And come show your love for this one of a kind masterpiece, which ignited a passionate fandom that powered the movie all the way to MULTIPLE nominations at the Academy Awards this morning! There will never be another nominee like this. And thanks to @mubi it’s coming back to theatres! So of course @thequeerclassics had to snag a dose for the new year!

The Oscars rarely honor horror films, but they couldn’t deny the cacophony of voices that cheered on this gory gross out body horror spectacle unlike any other. I think a lot of us for whom gendered standards have negatively impacted our lives, found something to appreciate in the film’s gleeful exaggeration of those standards to highlight their ridiculousness. Gory though it may be, it’s also a brilliant dark comedy that shows no fear in depicting the horrors of sexism and ageism as the disgusting things they are, and mashes together themes and inspiration from so many sources to make a queer brain explode, from Cronenberg, to Brian Yuzna’s SOCIETY, to PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY, to DEATH BECOMES HER, and the list goes on!

Do yourself a favor and try THE SUBSTANCE, you’ll be a better version of yourself for having experienced it in the theatre! Praise be to @coralie_fargeat !!!

#queerclassics 🧪 💉 🪡 #thesubstance #academyawards #oscars #instantclassic taken in The New Parkway by @thequeerclassics

7

0

2 years ago

Queer Classics - Twisted Holiday Edition:
BATMAN RETURNS (1992)
Saturday, Dec 14, 3pm

🎟️ link in bio!

There’s no place like Gotham for the holidays. Meow.

Tim Burton really knew how to speak to the weirdo inside us all, and how make Hollywood pay to put his delightfully perverse visions on the screen. That’s because everyone felt cool being their weirder darker self when a new Burton movie came out back then. And he struck us right in the heart of darkness with this gem in the early 90s. Let’s all appreciate the gift that this major studio mashup of gothic fetishism and comic book lore is, together at The New Parkway this December! The best place to appreciate its gothic glory is on a movie screen, where BATMAN RETURNS returns again for one day only!

Maybe this year you might forgive Batman a little more for his unprocessed trauma pipeline to vigilante justice. Thankfully Catwoman is here to rein him in! If you have never seen Michelle Pfeiffer as (easily) the best Catwoman of them all-stop what you’re doing and buy tickets to this movie immediately! So many awakenings happened when she hit the big screen back in 1992, slaying in her leather cat suit; and you deserve that revelatory experience. Join your fellow queers and let’s fill the theatre for this one-of-a-kind holiday movie!

This is the finale of our”Superior Sequels” series to end the year, and it feels like the right movie at the right time. Beyond the appeal of the sensual interplay between Batman and Catwoman (rubber leather crossover) we also have the strange spectacle of Gotham City grimly persisting with holiday celebrations as chaos explodes around them. Then there are actual villains in the face of toxic philandering billionaire Max Shreck (a malevolent Christoper Walken) and the most grotesque interpretation of The Penguin character ever committed to celluloid (Danny DeVito in his most fearless performance) who seem like two halves of a real and recognizable figure. At least in Burton’s world, these wannabe autocrats get their comeuppance.

#queerclassics #lgbtq #queerfilm #90skid #gothic #gothicstyle #catwoman #batman #batmanreturns taken in The New Parkway by @thequeerclassics

3

0

2 years ago

Paddington 2 (2018)
NOVEMBER 10, 3pm
🎟️ link in bio

Yes, PADDINGTON 2! For the commencement of the family togetherness holiday season, we’re once again going down the path of a blended chosen family, and finding the power of community as family. And it’s perhaps the most controversial choice in the Queer Classics series yet; a family film! I hope you’re into bears, because for November, we’re taking a trip across the pond to visit one from Peru. In keeping with our ode to the “Superior Sequel” for the rest of this year, that means we’re watching PADDINGTON 2!

Before you come to the conclusion that I’ve lost my mind, there’s no “hidden meaning” here; just an exuberant embrace of a lovable outsider that everyone young and old can take comfort in. I also think it’s important to celebrate the work of the queer actors of yesteryear and those living openly today. It’s worth celebrating that an openly gay actor (Ben Whishaw) can now play one of the most beloved icons of children’s literature in a film without controversy, and be a huge success.

And frankly, after election Tuesday I think we could all use a jolt of pure cinematic joy to soothe our jangled nerves. If the beautifully crafted Wes Anderson-esque visuals, the characters and the delightful mystery subplot based on London landmarks weren’t already enough to do that, we could all use the collective hug that PADDINGTON 2 is, where kindness and compassion save the day. As Pedro Pascal said of this film “It makes me want to be a better man.”

Hey, it’s the #1 rated movie on Rotten Tomatoes for a reason, come to the New Parkway and find out why. And you can bring the kids to this one!

#queerclassics #lgbtq #queeractors #marmalade #bears 🐻 🎥 taken in The New Parkway by @thequeerclassics

6

0

2 years ago

QUEER CLASSICS: SHE’S ALIVE Edition 🎥🏳️‍🌈🎃

BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935)
Saturday, October 12, 2024 at 3pm

🎟️ link in bio

It’s the first day of fall, and with it ushers in my favorite season of the year - HALLOWEEN! 🎃 The season of the magic and the macabre, when the veil between the living and the dead is at its thinnest, and the horror genre gets its moment in the moonlight.

To get us in the spooky mood, we’re going back to a true classic, one that abounds in so much queer energy behind and in front of the camera, the sensors couldn’t edit it out: BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN.

🍿🎥🏳️‍🌈💀🎃

After the success of FRANKENSTEIN, Universal Studios was eager to create another film with the Monster. So they very strongly pressed that film’s director James Whale (who lived openly as a homosexual within the industry) to work on a follow-up, which he finally relented and committed to. Only this time he was going bigger, bolder and gayer than before. The product is this incredible film; a huge box office hit at the time, that stands today as easily the best and most influential of all the Universal Monster movies.

The movie dared to poke shady fun at the genre and moral attitudes of the time, with the very definition of Gothic style and a hilariously withering view of straight society. AND it has one of the queeniest characters ever to grace the silver screen in “Dr Pretorius.” A character who leaves no doubt as to his proclivities without ever having to say it explicitly.

You might be familiar with the characters (because their designs have remained undead for many generations), but you have never seen the films from which they came. Now’s the time to change that! If you haven’t watched BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN before, this is the best way to do so - on a movie screen where it shines best. Join the Queer Classics family, wear your best spooky season drag, and come to The New Parkway - you’re in for a great Halloween treat.

#queerclassics #queerfilm #lgbtq #queerfilmmakers #classichollywood #classichorror #horror #horrormovies #Frankenstein #halloween taken in Oakland, California by @thequeerclassics

5

3

2 years ago

Sunday September 08, 3pm

QUEER CLASSICS is joining forces with Weaving Spirits Festival of Two Spirit Performance this September to present a must-see event! Join us for a screening of Cheryl Dunye’s groundbreaking film The Watermelon Woman, bookended by two short films from Native filmmakers. 🎟️ link in bio

Program also includes:

“The Daily Life of Mistress Red” by Peshawn Bread

“Chaac & Yum” by Daniel Arizemendi, Roberto Fatal, and Javier Stell-Fresquez

Please also follow the link below to learn more about Weaving Spirits:

https://www.weavingspirits.com/ taken in The New Parkway by @thequeerclassics

19

0

2 years ago