Queens (2005)

Powerful

Overrated

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

First I am gay so take the following seriously.This movie is boring and dull. It is not funny--it is a feel good attempt to make gays main stream although still plagued with bedevilments from straights--and make Spain seem to have arrived at the Dulce Vida. It is supposed to be a comedy and yes you smile at a few things but this thing is very badly written. It is cut up disjointed and boring.It follows several gay couples and their parents who are participating in a Spanish national first = a gay wedding of 20 couples at Hotel in Madrid. This premise is funny too bad the movie isn't.There is nothing funny about a gay man who falls for his mother in law...or one who ditches a dog in a park. The trade union leader of the hotel is the lover of the female owner so we get class things thrown in for more laughs. The gay stuff is enough adding class politics is not comedy stuff.There is something glib and very annoying about the whole movie.I finally pulled the plug half way through it was so irritating that it became unwatchable. The gimmicky plot technique that keeps skipping back in time didn't help---but the real problem is the movie is just boring garbage.DO NOT RECOMMEND

Yes,This fast,furious, madcap comedy concerning a mass wedding of Same-sex(gay)couples.The title refers to the mothers of a few of the guys. Carmen Maura is one of the mothers & to me she is a queen of Spanish cinema.A few of the lads fathers are involved as well, Some naturally have misunderstanding emotions on there sons marrying men. Most importantly there is NO HATE expressed. h Also all the gays are quite masculine even though they may be gay.I wish we here in the USA made gay themed movies of this typeThe acting by all is first rate,,the direction & other productions aspects are first rate.Warner Bros. of Espana are the producers, even tho the Frere's Warner are longer here, They were known to film with very tight budgets. This may be a 2005 film. It is to the films credit that they did not go overboard on the production. Madcap screwball comedies do not need excessive production values. The film is quite sexual in nature but is not graphic at any point,the one nude scene is done naturally.The film had a very skimpy theatrical run in 2006 in the States. It deserved better.Rent this, you hopefully will like it as much as I did.Ratings: ***1/2 (out of 4) 93 points (out of 4) IMDb 9 (out of 10)

This is an amazing journey, and the posters and advertisement does it no justice at all.We are about to witness a huge Gay wedding in where over 20 gay couples are to be wed at the same time in Spain. If can only imagine the thought of focusing on six of those gay couples and followed them around as they are frantic and running around in a hurried attempt to get ready for their wedding. That would be pretty stressful and exciting for you would have a hilarious drama with this plot alone, right? Well what if you took the emphasis from the grooms and followed their high strung mothers. Mothers who are loving and supportive of their gay sons, yet to some degree are a bit embarrassed that they are about to attend a gay marriage and that is when you will have the real dramatic journey of our "Queens" in this tale. That is what makes this realistic, edgy, dramatic, and hilarious story. No matter what your mother is like, one of these women will probably remind you of yours. Yes, even if she is a whore and cannot keep her legs closed for more than five minutes.This film is brilliant and clever, all the while successfully avoiding cliché stereotypes for how the gays should or may seem to appear in most movies (ex: Drugs, Clubs). Some of the couples are from mixed social classes but the film approaches all the couples as if they were any regular couples seriously getting ready for a wedding. Yet no matter how rich or poor you are, or how gay or straight you are everyone has drama as they approach their wedding day and ironing out all their kinks and making this day magical.Thus leading us to several scenes where traumatic conflict occur and one of the most shocking scenes involve a mother and her future son in law, I was mortified. I will also say that the only unrealistic fact of this movie is that almost all of the scandals or unfortunate situations resulted in a surprisingly optimistic end.I was most impressed with this film for the overall message was love, happiness, tolerance and letting go of prejudice. There is one warning however. You will need to pay attention for some of the flash backs even to a few hours before start to give you a bit of whiplash. You will need to watch to see where you are in the time line. Even though this can be a bit confusing I must say that this is the best subtitled movie I have ever scene. For I literally forgot I was reading the film and was focused or should I say caught up in the drama and action of the movie. Go see it for you will Love it.PS. If there is ever an English remake I would love to be in this movie, for the only thing it lacked was a female impersonator. *wink*

I too saw this movie in Spain when I was at school in Barcelona.I saw it 3 times actually because I was learning Spanish and since no subtitles in spain of course it was a great exercise in learning. Plus it's so funny! I can't wait to buy it on DVD (of course subtitles optional for my English friends) THIS movie is funny. The Spanish really do believe viva como tu quieras (live as you want) Though yes some of the mothers don't fully understand homosexuality you can see how they simply want their children to be happy.This is a great movie about finding happiness and letting go of prejudices.Go see it at the artsy theatres when it comes here or rent it when it's on DVD.