Le Ciel sur la tête (2006)

Jérémy (Arnaud Binard) is a 30 year-old who has always excelled at everything and has just been promoted to an executive position at the bank where he works. His left wing petit bourgeois parents regard him as a golden child. They do not know that he is gay--in fact, the only member of the family that knows is his younger brother, Robin (Olivier Guéritée). One morning Jérémy stops at his parents' home for Sunday Brunch and tells them he is moving into a new house with his older, long-term boyfriend. Things heat up and Jérémy's folks who have always thought of themselves as liberals do not take the news well. Each of the parents accuses the other of knowing about their son and not telling.

They want to find out what caused Jérémy to be gay, and embark on a comical quest to find out what caused Jérémy's homosexuality. Rosine (Charlotte de Turckheim), Jeremy's mom, goes to a co-worker for advice and Guy (Bernard Le Coq), his dad, talks to his tennis buddies from whom he gets a few answers. New drama arises from the entire situation and the parents take out their frustrations on the younger son, who is hauled into the spotlight. Robin is elated as he is no longer the black sheep of the family. Will this family ever be the same after the shocking news?

The story is about a son coming out to his parents and them coping with it, with the focus more on the relationship of the parents. As the parents say, it could have been worse: Jérémy could have been in a car crash, have an orphan disease, cancer, or died in a terrorist attack. The parents' reaction to the fact their eldest and most beloved son is gay moves towards acceptance because they realize he is not so different. This quirky, delightful, and original TV movie features great performances and solid writing that avoids almost all the possible clichés of the genre. There is a little bit of everything: slapstick, comic situations, odd secondary characters, many unexpected but comical surprises, and quite original monologues and dialogues. Nicolas Mercier wrote the screenplay, and Régis Musset directed. In French with English Subtitles. The English title is "Times Have Been Better".

29th & Gay (2005)

James Sanchez (James Vásquez) is a 29 year-old gay man who feels he's reached a dead end in his life. Quiet, shy, balding, slightly paunchy, struggling to make it as an actor and find romance in Hollywood, he suffers an emotional crisis as he approaches his 30th birthday. His best friend Roxy (Nicole Marcks), an actress-turned-activist, struggles to show him there's life beyond the glitz of the disco ball, while his other friend Brandon (David McBean), one of those gay boys comfortable with his sexuality, works on getting James to at least talk to a boy. In his long journey through the film to find a boyfriend, he stumbles into many different guys. Most of them are from cheap sleazy gay bars. He attempts to find a man online, which leads him to Mike (Kurt Norby). They soon go on a date, which seems to be perfect, but James is never called back.

Throughout his relationship troubles, he also deals with his parents (Annie Hinton and James Synjyn) who try to be accepting, a lack of a job, a lack of inspiration for his talents as an actor, and his lack of confidence to approach the man he wants most: Andy (Mike Doyle) who is a server at a coffee house down the street. When around Andy, James loses control and becomes sloppy and ill at ease. After going through friendship troubles, depressing moments, and losing his apartment's electricity, he struggles his way back into life by getting an acting job and perhaps finding the man of his dreams. Feeling out of place in the world of circuit boys, caught between his Hispanic-American heritage and being gay, we watch James find his place in the world, realizing that life is in the journey, not the destination.

This sweet, charming, warm, and realistic romantic comedy is a small movie with a lot to say with wit and humor. The plot is nothing new, it's kind of an anti-"Queer As Folk", something that the average gay man can relate to. It's not without its faults, with the cute "street sign" introductions to each scene, frantic rewind flashbacks, and the MTV-style quick-cut film editing. But it delivers a good solid story with some stand-out acting without anyone getting naked. There is a hilarious scene between Sanchez and an HIV testing nurse (Kali Rocha). The DVD has deleted scenes, outtakes, trailers and a scene with two of the actors having their palms read by one of the extras. John Avila composed the music, James Vasquez wrote the screenplay, and Carrie Preston directed.