Review on Amazon - A Queer Journey Through India

March 4, 2007

A Queer Journey Through India

Amos Lassen and Cinema Pride

Ravi and Paul are two best friends who go on vacation to India. They find themselves at an all night gay sex party which surprises them. They were not aware that India could be so open and that the natives could be so aggressive and they quickly find themselves in the midst of Indian gay culture. India has always been a place we have known little about in terms of homosexuality and it is surprising to see it here on film, uncensored and laid bare. This is an eye opening look into it as the movie goes deep into the subculture of a society that frowns upon gay life. Many of the things that we take for granted here in America pose a great challenge to the gay men of India. "Yours Emotionally" gives a clear and concise picture of gay Indian life with great emotion and honesty.

What the film does is "explore cultural differences and similarities" between an Asian from Britain and a guy from rural India. As it shows us the gay life, it does so vividly and with great passion. As the movie progresses it also crosses generations and we are shown the younger generation as well as what goes on in the lives of men in their fifties. It is interesting to see this as it is so missing in the canon of gay American cinema.

The cinematography is absolutely exquisite and it creates just the right mood for the film. The camera techniques use many of aspects of new wave cinema. The film is groundbreaking as it explores the naked truth of gay Indian life. What is lacking in the film is characterization. All we know about the characters is that they are "hot to trot". Everyone seemed to want to have sex with everyone else and the sex seemed to be added on for the purpose of titillate (not that it isn't fun to watch). We had no insight into the nature of relationships and the inter-relationships seem very shallow. Everyone is into everyone else without the slightest idea of why.

With that said, I must also say that the beauty of the movie so overshadows everything else that the above is minor; The editing is very interesting as people just seem to disappear. And the colors used give a surreal atmosphere to the film.

The fact that the plot is shallow is made up for by the fact that the men are hot and the film is beautiful to watch. Additionally you get a look at a gay subculture that we know very little about.