‘The Male Gaze’ series returns for new instalment ‘The Male Gaze: Secrets and Lies’, following on from the summer release ‘The Male Gaze: Breaking Dawn’. This brand new collection pulls together 6 shorts with similar themes, once again highlighting unsung LGBTQ+ film-makers from across the globe. The ‘Secrets and Lies’ theme is explored through several characters, all of whom are keeping secrets for their own reasons.
‘Science Around Us’ from director Arif Abdillah is first-up and it features the director himself as the lead actor. Budi (Abdillah) is cleaning up the morning after a party and trying to usher a hook-up out of his flat, when he receives a call. Living in the Netherlands, Budi finds himself having to deal with his father’s ailing health back in Indonesia and the two engage in a complex and layered conversation. The short is a reminder that our time on this earth is short but it also highlights the separate lives a lot of gay people live away from their families.
Taiwanese film-maker Han Lin offers up something completely different with ‘Blossom’. Drag Queen Cherry (Ming-Shuai Shih) finds herself in the middle of a very bad night when she discovers her boyfriend has been cheating on her. With a big show to concentrate on, the last thing Cherry needs it to happen upon an abandoned baby… ‘Blossom’ is a little bit bonkers and it’s certainly very colourful. Imagine ‘Hustlers’ with a drag twist set in Taiwan and you’re halfway there. In some ways the short is a tale of resilience against the odds and it’s one of the most entertaining here.
Over to Israel next for Bar Neiman’s ‘Drowning Duck’, where outcast Gabriel (Dorian Zfadia) is being bullied after trying to kiss popular kid Roei (Tomash Bergel Roter) in the toilets. While Roei outwardly seems angry with Gabriel’s attention, it soon transpires that he might be enjoying it a lot more than he’ll publicly admit. Filmmaker Neiman catches an unusually sweet attraction between two very different boys, and the story unfolds like a high school memory of your first crush.
Perhaps the hardest-hitting short on this collection is Pablo Saura’s jaw-dropping ‘Love Lost’. João (Fernando Mariano) enters a men’s bordello in London with his sights on Mr Warren (Christopher Hunter), a man that he’s desperate to get close to. What starts off as a sexual push-and-pull soon turns into something completely different. João has an ulterior motive for wanting to be alone with Mr Warren, and it’s nothing to do with being paid for his services. There’s something inherently devastating about this short and I thought about it long after it finished.
‘How Do I Know?’ from French film-maker Joachim Larrieu turns to ChatGPT when Stari (Léon Exbrayat) attempts to understand his feelings for his friend Harry. Does he just miss having his friend around or are his feelings something deeper? Larrieu’s short is creative, incorporating the technology we’re all utterly hooked on, which proves to be a source of help for Stari who needs to talk to someone but doesn’t want any of his friends to know how he feels. It’s quirky but it works!
Swedish director Alecio Araci closes out the collection with ‘Chavo’, a dark and brooding tale focusing on Tommy (Michell Tatter Alfredsoon), a man who is forced to face a shameful experience in his past when a young Romani man visits his restaurant. The chance meeting stokes up old memories and regrets in Tommy, and he extends the hand of kindness to the stranger. His reasons for doing so aren’t wholly virtuous though, and a layered story begins to unfurl. Like many of the shorts on this collection, this one is deeply affecting and it packs a punch in only 15 minutes.
‘The Male Gaze: Secrets and Lies’ continues to deliver the high quality that we’ve come to expect from the series. NQV Media is reliable when it comes to unearthing hidden gems that may not otherwise get the attention they deserve. This is a very solid collection of shorts with plenty to say, and many of them will leave a lasting impression. We can’t wait to see what the franchise has up its sleeve next.
Cast: Arif Abdillah, Tommaso Genovesi, Ming-Shuai Shih, Dorian Zfadia, Tomash Bergel Roter, Fernando Mariano, Léon Exbrayat, Michell Tatter Alfredsson, Ado Mehic Dzafic Directors: Arif Abdillah, Han Lin, Neiman Bar, Pablo Saura, Joachim Larrieu, Alecio Araci Certificate: 13+ Duration: 103 mins Released by: NQV Media Release date: 8th September 2025 Buy ‘The Male Gaze: Secrets and Lies’ now
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