The seminal documentary on Black gay life, Emmy Award-winning director Marlon T. Riggs’ 1989 Tongues Untied uses poetry, personal testimony, rap and performance (featuring poet Essex Hemphill and others), to describe the homophobia and racism that confront Black gay men. The stories are fierce examples: the man refused entry to a gay bar because of his color; the college student left bleeding on the sidewalk after a gay-bashing; the loneliness and isolation of the drag queen. Yet they also affirm the black gay male experience: protest marches, smoky bars, “snap diva,” humorous “musicology” and Vogue dancers. Preceded by: Anthem (Marlon Riggs). This screening is part of Lightbox Film Center’s new series, Queering the Lens, a selection of groundbreaking nonfiction films that re-imagine or “queer” the form of documentary.
Tickets: https://lightboxfilmcenter.org/programs/tongues-untied
Recent Comments