With the recent showing of the Itty Bitty Titty Committee I feel that an all gay movie is now on the cards for the LGBTQ movie night. The question remains however, what movie to watch?

Overall, gay films aren’t very good. There are a lot of cliché storylines (coming out, HIV/AIDs, hustlers, et al). Still, these 10 are all excellent movies and perfect for a film night. Here are my top 10 picks for best gay men’s films:

>	10. Mysterious Skin This is a hard movie to watch. It tackles a subject most of us would rather avoid. It goes places few films have the courage to delve into. The subject is paedophile. Two young boys are molested by their baseball coach but have wildly different reactions to the experience. One embraces being gay and actively seeks out older men, while the other has blacked out the experience and believes he was abducted by space aliens. Sounds strange, but it’s a great film that balances humour with great sadness.
	9. Brother to Brother One of the most disappointing aspects of gay movies is the lack of films focusing on black men. What few there have been, haven’t been very good. Finally, there’s a great film all about being black and gay. This film focuses on the Harlem Renaissance, as a modern-day student comes face to face with history. It switches back and forth between the past and present. We get to see the lives of some of the great gay writers of that era. For that reason alone, it belongs on this list. Add to it that it’s a very original film that will entertain as much as inform and you have a classic gay film.
	8. Victim This 1961 film dealt with homosexuality in a much more honest light that most films, and had an impact on society. By showing how gay men were being blackmailed, it helped change the British laws that made homosexual acts illegal.
	7. Wonder Boys This is a quirky film of misfits all dealing with the inequities of life. Michael Douglas shines in this film as a middle-age professor who has never been able to duplicate his success in publishing a first novel. He’s got problems with his wife and his girlfriend. Not to mention his editor and his drag queen boyfriend. The story keeps surprising the viewer and you’re almost sorry when it ends.
	6. A Love to Hide (Un Amour A’taire) I thought all the Nazi Germany films about gays were going to be about lesbians. Finally, one about gay men. In this tale a gay man tries to save the family business by day while he keeps his male lover secret at night. How long will it take the Nazis to discover the relationship and ship the men off to a concentration camp? And will the woman who is in love with the gay man be the one to turn him in? Or will it be someone else?
	5. Lilies If you watch the trailer for this one, you’re likely to be perplexed about it. A confessional where the roof comes off to show a balloon? I hear you ask: “Lilies, isn’t that a lesbian film?” No, it’s not. It’s the story of two young men in love in early part of the 1900s. But that’s the play. We meet one of those young men many years later when he’s in prison and giving his confession. It takes a second to adjust to how this story is presented, because it’s very original. It has excellent cinematography, a shocking story and hot boys. What more can any gay movie fan want?
	4. Another Gay Movie – Gays Gone Wild A treuly all gay movie, this is a no holds barred joke about the sterotypical antics of 4 gay men who go on holiday to fort lauderdale. There is lots of fake sex, gay jokes and if you don’t enjoy the movie you can always look the the obvious and no so obvious advertising. Why not turn it into a drinking game? While a lot of people still fight that this is a awful movie I believe it is awful but still brilliant.
	3. Brokeback Mountain Now that the hype is gone we can evaluate this landmark film based on what’s on the screen, not the impact it had on the mainstream. It still ranks very high and will no doubt be on this list for a long time. It’s a beautiful film and a tremendous love story. Why isn’t it higher? I like subjects that are bigger, and outside of the displays of homophobia and life inside the closet, this film just doesn’t have it. But, it did contribute to a fantastic year in gay films and earned more conversation than any gay film in history. So it doesn’t need me to rank it higher.
	2. American Beauty This movie was an easy winner for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Kevin Spacey plays a middle-age man having a bit of a crisis in his life. His wife is ignoring him, he’s been fired from his job and he’s suddenly experiencing erotic thoughts toward his daughter’s teen-age friend. Not to mention the crazy neighbors, including a gay couple (the only normal people on the street). The gay angle is not obvious for most of the film, but when it hits it is a major turning point. It was written by Alan Ball, who is gay and remains one of the most original films ever.
	1. Shelter Who could not fall in love with shelter? This brilliant film is about two surfers, one still exploring his sexuality and the other openly gay. It is a lovely and touching story of fighting through prejudice to be together. It also has a strong focus on family and the effects of coming out has on a person who relies on you.

In the run up to World AIDS day there is going to be increased publicity on the subject of sexual health and on HIV and AIDS in particular. Whilst it is most certainly the case that Sexually Transmitted Infections are not a unique issue to the LGBTQ community; more often than not, the issue becomes more complicated than when dealing with sexual health issues within mainstream society. Anyone who is sexually active needs to have a basic awareness of safety and how to protect their own personal health, regardless of their sexuality, yet lack of awareness is a widespread issue. A general guide to sexual health resources in the Birmingham area can be found here. Whilst the leading sexual health charity in the UK is the Terrance Higgins Trust.

However, there are unique issues with regards to sexual health in the LGBTQ community, and a number of services aimed at dealing with this :

1. There is very little information available for women who sleep with women with regards to safe sex practices. Lesbian sex is often regarded as a low risk activity, yet according to Stonewall, less than half of gay and bisexual women have been screened for STIs, and women who sleep with women are at high risk of STIs such as Herpes. This perception of low risk activity combined with the more general problem of lesbian and bisexual women’s invisibility means that sexual health in this area is all too often overlooked. The NHS has an online guide on lesbian and bisexual women’s sexual health issues which can be found here There is also a guide by the Lesbian and Gay Foundation which can be found here
2. The Trans population faces particular problems when it comes to accessing sexual health services and trans specific sexual health information. Personal issues relating to body image often make sexual health clinics very intimidating and intrusive; for those who have received treatment, or gender recognition this may be combined with the issue of disclosure. Other issues include sex specific clinics not necessarily being equipped to deal with trans individuals. These issues clearly make access to testing difficult for many trans people, and whilst progress is being made in this area, it remains problematic. The Terrance Higgins Trust is currently in the process of delivering trans specific sexual health training to its staff, and Gendered Intelligence are in the process of producing a sexual health guide for trans people. The only booklet currently available which I’m aware of is aimed at queer trans men: queertransmen.org
3. Men who sleep with men have far more resources available to them than either of the above, in some respects this makes accessing services and information easier. The importance of accessing this information is nonetheless important and available resources include Healthy Gay Life (Birmingham based) and Young gay men (Terrance Higgins Trust) Note: see THT’s main website for more relevant links.Once again, there are specific issues relating to men who sleep with men, notably HIV has had a disproportionate impact on the community in the past and although at this point in time the rate of new infections amongst heterosexuals is higher than that in the gay/bi male community, the issue remains relevant, and this trend can only be maintained if individuals continue to take responsibility for their own sexual health. The idea that HIV is a “gay disease” still causes issues to this day, for example attitudes within the medical establishment have been heavily influenced by this, which in turn can impact on patients.

This blog can only go into so much depth on these issues, but the importance of sexual health and protecting yourself cannot be understated. If you are sexually active, regardless of your sexuality or gender identity, it is important to make sure you are keeping yourself safe and getting tested regularly.

If you find yourself in a situation where you may have been exposed to HIV it is vital to get yourself to A&E or a GUM clinic within 72 hours (preferably 24 hours) in order to receive PEP treatment. This is a month long course of treatment (not a morning after pill) which can give an 85% reduction in the risk of HIV taking hold in the body. More information on PEP and a self assessment for risk factors can be found here: PEP microsite