Hey ya’ll,

From here on out, hopefully, we’ll be able to focus on 4 movies each month centered within a specific time period/subject matter/theme/director/etc. Which also means more opportunties to catch the queer films considering everyone’s busy schedules!

This month we’ll be focusing on Hollywood films made in the early years of the Hayes Code. Our second installment will be focused on two films featuring male relationships with plenty of coded language and homoeroticism.

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For those of you who missed the first one, here’s my mission statement:

My goals for this series is to educate and spread awareness of films not normally sought out by the straight-cis world or even seen by LGBTQ folks who aren’t cinephiles themselves. Through-out the series, I hope for the audience to gain a greater understanding about the outside forces that suppressed our community for so long (and who continue to do so) and how despite everything, LGBTQ characters continued to appear and eventually break-free of the oppressive hollywood/moralist shackles.

Although for many decades, LGBTQ characters were not shown under a flattering lens and were often sad, suicidal or muderous people, I will do my best to showcase the rare instances of characters being able to take some positive ownership of their sexualities in addition to the darker films.

Also, due to how western society works as well as the distribution of wealth and technology, the majority of the films, at least through the 1970s will also mostly be cis, white and male, but rest assured that there will be more diverse films as the series comes along. I hope to have a few “specials” inbetween the chronological order we will be watching the films in to break things up; including documentaries on LGBT historical/popular figures and films that are Queer-Coded starring LGBTQ icons.

I’m doing my best to read-up as much LGBTQ film theory/history as I can and will be happy to moderate discussion after the films have been shown!

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“Only Angels Have Wings” (1939) directed by Howard Hawks. At a remote South American trading port, the manager of an air freight company is forced to risk his pilots’ lives in order to win an important contract.

“Gilda” (1946) directed by Charles Vidor. A small-time gambler hired to work in a Buenos Aires casino learns that his ex-lover is married to his employer.

$$FREE$$

Please be considerate of the audience and subject-mater, The Learning Machine is a safe-space and anyone who acts otherwise will be asked to leave.

BYOB and BYOP (Bring your own pillow for comfort!!)
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Tags: Bridgeport, Chicago, Queer Film Series: Episode 3: Part II, The Learning Machine