‘Firebird’ Review: Steamy Gay Drama Rells Rsia’s Homophobic Past – IndieWire

Contents:

• RSIAN GAY PERD DRAMA WS BT PROJECT AWARD AT SERI MANIA
• A RSIAN REALY TV SHOW LLED 'I'M NOT GAY' MAK 8 NTTANTS GUS WHICH IS GAY — AND 'S HOSTED BY A RIGHT-WG POLICIAN
• ‘FIREBIRD’ REVIEW: STEAMY GAY COLD WAR DRAMA RELLS RSIA’S PAST ATROCI
• RSIAN POLICIAN ONTS ‘GUS WHO’S GAY’ REALY SHOW
• A FAR-RIGHT RSIAN MP IS HOSTG A GRIM ‘GUS WHO IS GAY’ TV SHOW
• RSIA LNCH HOMOPHOBIC ‘GUS WHO’S GAY’ REALY TV PETN
• A RSIAN REALY TV SHOW LLED ‘I’M NOT GAY’ MAK 8 NTTANTS GUS WHICH IS GAY — AND ’S HOSTED BY A RIGHT-WG POLICIAN
• FIRST RSIAN LGBT+ TV SHOW TELLS STORY OF GAY LIBERATN GROUP’S ACCINTAL VIS TO SOVIET UNN
• RSIAN GAY LOVE
• GAY RSIAN TV PERSONALY REFLECTS ON HIS FIRG AND HIS UNTRY
• RSIAN GAY DU

RSIAN GAY PERD DRAMA WS BT PROJECT AWARD AT SERI MANIA

Red Rabow, a perd drama om Rsia about homosexual activists the 1970s, has won this year’s bt project award om televisn ftival Seri Mania. The project, spired by a te story, follows the seri of mistak and misunrstandgs that led Rsian officials to ve three young, gay and votedly socialist activists om Wt Berl to Mosw 1979. Robbie, Stef and Arlene are lighted to be visg their munist utopia, unaware that homosexualy is illegal the USSR.

Thgs are plited when Robbie meets and falls love wh Maxim, a closeted gay man who is beg blackmailed by the KGB to act as an rmant on homosexuals.

A RSIAN REALY TV SHOW LLED 'I'M NOT GAY' MAK 8 NTTANTS GUS WHICH IS GAY — AND 'S HOSTED BY A RIGHT-WG POLICIAN

A Rsian realy TV show tled "I'm Not Gay, " hosted by one of the untry's most notor anti-gay policians, is drawg scty and abhorrence om wtern media outlets amid the untry's creasgly thorarian crackdown on LGBTQ rights. "I'm Not Gay" ps eight nttants agast one another a seri of gam centered around mascule stereotyp and homophobic humor, to terme which one of them is gay. The nttant who rrectly intifi their gay peer ws two ln bl, or $29, 000 USD, and the gay nttant ws the money if he mak through the gam show appears to be popular among Rsian dienc, and uld easily be dismissed as lowbrow entertament.

‘FIREBIRD’ REVIEW: STEAMY GAY COLD WAR DRAMA RELLS RSIA’S PAST ATROCI

Another challenge volv nttants reachg through what appears to be a glory hole, and gropg sntily clad men and one expert told Insir the show is more than jt trash TV — provis a fascatg study of Rsia's attus towards both homosexualy and masculy, and serv a dual purpose as both a cultural weapon agast Rsia's wtern adversari, and a distractn om the natn's enomic hardships and s vasn of Ukrae. The first two episos, which were shared on YouTube before beg taken down for "vlatg YouTube's policy on harassment and bullyg, " racked up over 1 ln views and 500, 000 views, Healey, a profsor of morn Rsian history at the Universy of Oxford's St Antony's College, said homophobia Rsia is often ed as a polil vice — and "I'm Not Gay" fs neatly to the Kreml's narrative of Rsia's cultural superry.

One of the -hosts is Valy Milonov, a member of the state Duma and a far-right lawmaker known for orchtratg Rsia's famo 2013 law banng "gay propaganda. ""My name is Valy Milonov and I'm for certa not gay, " Milonov troduc himself the seri' first episo, which is tled "7 Guys and 1 Gay. Healey told Insir he expects the Put regime's homophobia to late over time, and believ will only bee more difficult the g months and years for LGBT anizatns to operate wh the untry.

Based on a memoir by Sergey Fetisov, the steamy Cold War drama honors this lost chapter of gay history wh a handsome renrg that only ocsnally stumbl unr the weight of historil accuracy.

RSIAN POLICIAN ONTS ‘GUS WHO’S GAY’ REALY SHOW

A notorly homophobic Rsian MP has bee the prenter of a realy show which nttants have to gus which one of them is gay to w a sh Milonov, who was the thor of Rsia’s famo “anti-gay propaganda” law, was featured the first episo of the onle programme lled I’m Not Gay. ”“I hope that you will quickly figure out the gay, ” Milonov tells nttants the first episo as he mak a throat-sltg gtureThe show volv eight men, cludg a mic blogger, a mixed martial arts fighter and a heavily tattooed sexologist, movg to a untry hoe together.

Valy Milonov, a homophobic Rsian MP, is prentg a new realy TV seri where nttants have to figure out which of them is gay to w.

A FAR-RIGHT RSIAN MP IS HOSTG A GRIM ‘GUS WHO IS GAY’ TV SHOW

Durg his time as a Member of the State Duma, the far-right polician has ma a name for himself as the thor of the untry’s notor anti-gay ‘propaganda’ law.

The 48-year-old is now prentg the onle seri, tled I’m Not Gay, and is featured promently s first episo. They each share the two ln bl (£21, 000) prize if they gus rrectly, but if the gay man manag to avoid tectn, he tak home the money.

RSIA LNCH HOMOPHOBIC ‘GUS WHO’S GAY’ REALY TV PETN

“I hope that you will quickly figure out the gay, ” Milonov told petors at the start of the show, makg a throat-sltg gture as he did so. Gay men are ntuoly ridiculed on televisn Rsia, wh I’m Not Gay seeg those volved pete challeng where they have to rist the urge to fd men attractive and/or prove that they are sexually attracted to women.

The nttant who rrectly intifi their gay peer ws two ln bl, or $29, 000 USD, and the gay nttant ws the money if he mak through the gam untected. But one expert told Insir the show is more than jt trash TV — provis a fascatg study of Rsia's attus towards both homosexualy and masculy, and serv a dual purpose as both a cultural weapon agast Rsia's wtern adversari, and a distractn om the natn's enomic hardships and s vasn of Ukrae.

Dan Healey, a profsor of morn Rsian history at the Universy of Oxford's St Antony's College, said homophobia Rsia is often ed as a polil vice — and "I'm Not Gay" fs neatly to the Kreml's narrative of Rsia's cultural superry. "My name is Valy Milonov and I'm for certa not gay, " Milonov troduc himself the seri' first episo, which is tled "7 Guys and 1 Gay. The three left-leang legat of Homosexuelle Aktn Wtberl (HAW) have arrived Mosw wh the very bt, raly tentns at heart.

A RSIAN REALY TV SHOW LLED ‘I’M NOT GAY’ MAK 8 NTTANTS GUS WHICH IS GAY — AND ’S HOSTED BY A RIGHT-WG POLICIAN

His sensibily as a gay artist has shaped and elevated the magaze’s athetic, but he has to keep his creativy check lt Mx be seen as a magaze for gay men. But fish strong, as the nflict over Richie’s bathhoe project grows and Mx has to nsir whether ’s too risky for the magaze to speak to gay men, or even gay moments like this, the historil fictn feels not entirely historil. Before long, all three liv unravel, exemplified by a vis to a Buddhist healer, a three-way the bathroom of a gay bar, a faked ath and a kidnappg.

While well received at a Rsian film ftival Honflr, has yet to be released bee of the subject matter, which puts two famo Soviet filmmakers to a gay relatnship. A homophobic film that plays up the gay nnectn between Dant, who killed Phk a duel, and his adopted father Baron Heeckeren. MoonDaze TVCast & crewTriviaEpiso aired Feb 14, 2014Play full episo19:46Watch MoonDaze TV 25 - S02E02 - Rsian Gay LoveValente Day special where Breck performs as Vladimir Schovak wh Velma and her troupe a show lled Midnight Mosw.

The love story between Vanya (Ellt Page) and Sissy (Mar Ireland), a hoewife who disvers her thentic self, is one of the most groundg piec of the show's overall excellent sophomore season. Moreover, the show's heart is anchored by a queer Latx actor, Harvey Guillen, whose character Guillermo grappl wh his homoerotic longg to serve his master Nandor (Kayvan Novak) and embrace an anctry that clus a famo vampire hunter.

FIRST RSIAN LGBT+ TV SHOW TELLS STORY OF GAY LIBERATN GROUP’S ACCINTAL VIS TO SOVIET UNN

Laszlo (Matt Berry), wh his gay porn history, and his wife, Nadja (Natasia Demetru), who sced Beanie Feldste, are the wch-sk hat on this bloody ke. As -creator and star Eugene Levy said his awards speech, the show is "a celebratn of clivy, a stigatn of homophobia, and a claratn of the power of love. " His son, -creator Dan Levy, broadst this msage through his character, David, whose relatnship wh Patrick (Noah Reid) is one of TV history's sweett gay love stori.

RSIAN GAY LOVE

Add gay ins Cathere O'Hara as the matriarch, Moira, and Annie Murphy as the sassy sister, Alexis, and Scht's Creek is queer TV perfectn. Mega-producer Greg Berlanti's big-screen gay love story Love, Simon ma a splash when dropped theaters.

Now Hulu's TV seri Love, Victor, which featur lead Victor (Michael Cimo) g to his inty wh a ltle help om wrg to Simon, the gay teen whose epic love story endur at Victor's new seri begs wh Victor's fay movg om Texas to Atlanta, where Victor and his often-moody sister, Pilar (Isabella Ferreira), adjt to life a new town and a new high school. There, basketball star and all-around ial stunt Victor begs explorg his sexual inty while datg the sweet, popular girl Mia (Rachel Hilson) and cshg on the out gay kid Benji (Gee Sear).

Ultimately, Love, Victor is a worthy follow-up to s groundbreakg precsor and an enuragg spot of gay reprentatn a genre that has lacked .

GAY RSIAN TV PERSONALY REFLECTS ON HIS FIRG AND HIS UNTRY

They succeed, creatg a fairy tale that also speaks to the stggl margalized people face the prent-day entertament 's the screenwrer Archie (Jeremy Pope), who's gay and Black; Cale, the Black genue longg to break out of beg relegated to rol as servants; and the director Raymond Asley, played by Murphy regular Darren Criss, who's Filipo but pass as whe. And all of them, cludg Holland Taylor's stud maven Ellen Kid, Mira Sorvo's Jeanne, who's on the verge of agg out for good, and Joe Mantello's closeted gay stud executive Dick, get their own succs stori.

" Ined, Hudson (Jake Pickg) plays a pivotal role Hollywood as the closeted gay actor abed by his lechero agent, Henry (Jim Parsons, playg to and then breakg down Hollywood's trope of the villao, predatory queen).

As a Black gay man, Kwame go through his own hurdl procsg his asslt, cludg enunterg homophobia at the hands of a police officer.

RSIAN GAY DU

The show is remarkable not only for s msage on the power of diversy but also due to Benson (Coy Stewart), a Black gay lead who ma history by g out (and fdg a love tert! It may appear quat now, when we have TV seri like Hulu’s Love, Victor (about a Latx teen explorg sexual fluidy) or Netflix’s Bondg (about sex work and alternative sexualy), but the great gay panic set off by Ellen DeGener g out on her s 1997 was a bombshell that didn’t necsarily nvce the works that they’d open the gat to LGBTQ experienc.

Luckily Will & Grace buted 1998 and the groundbreakg NBC seri nvced many that gay people might not be so toxic (and wouldn’t sre off advertisers) — so much so that Vice Print Joe Bin later creded wh changg his md about same-sex marriage. Dpe the fact that lns of Amerins wnsed two men raise a happy and healthy dghter om the fort of their livg room sofas, took a fan mpaign to lobby Disney-owned ABC to fally allow Mchell (gay actor Jse Tyler Fergon) and Cameron (straight actor Eric Stontreet) to kiss ( fally happened 2010).

For years, ranged, perverse, and spible homosexuals were on full display — pecially om Ryan Murphy, who remas our most proment culture czar when to queer characters on TV. But he’s also supplied at least one murro (ghostly) gay man on Amerin Horror Story and too many crazi on Nip/Tuck to unt. From the Roy Cohn-flected Army-McCarthy heargs — which was the first time many people heard the word “homosexual” uttered on TV — through the “don’t ask, don’t tell” Neti, that clud The Goln Girls and Digng Women, to our current glter-and-glam era of RuPl’s Drag Race and almost-anythg-go pansexualy.