Mr. Gay Syria
First screened in September 2017
Director: Ayşe Toprak. Documentary about a competition among gay Syrian men living in exile in Istanbul, staged to draw more global attention to their multiply embattled community. Twitter Capsule:
Pageant build-up is delicious, inspiring, and complex, and that's not even half the film. Deeply humane document.
VOR:④
I'm a highly susceptible audience but beyond its documentary value and human-interest hook, I was impressed by its avoidance of easy narratives.
