On the eve of Coming Out Day last October, you’d be hard pressed to find a movie with a more appropriate title than Coming Out. But there’s much more to this film than its generic name suggests: this is an astute narrative documentary about a young man in an open, tolerant society who cleverly tackles deep issues with honesty and warm humour.
As a New York film student, Alden Peters felt that coming out movies and YouTube clips seemed to miss the point. So he decided to document the moments he told his friends and family that he was gay. Their reactions are engaging and fascinating, because everyone is surprised but unbothered by the news. It’s where Peters goes from here that makes his film a revelation: he is struggling to work out how he fits into a subculture that is defined by stereotypes he can’t identify with. Yes, this superbly well-made film boldly confronts the myth that there’s a way gay men need to be, and Peters’ journey is both eye-opening and entertaining.
Talking exclusively to Boyz, Peters says that, even though he’s a private person, he’s happy that these personal moments were captured on-camera. “But some people I came out to didn’t react well,” he says. “Not just because I was telling them I was gay, but also because there was a camera in the room. Ultimately, anyone who had any shred of doubt about being in the film was taken out of the final cut, which partially explains why the film is so positive.”
The movie had its international premiere at BFI Flare in March, and Peters has been amazed by the positive reactions, as well as a few surprising ones. “A woman came up to me after a Q&A,” he says. “She was a little nervous and told
me her husband did what I did in the film. ‘He came out?’ I asked. ‘No, he met men on Craigslist,’ she responded, referring to how I secretly explored my sexuality. She then said, ‘We’re divorced now, and he’s married to another woman. Do you think he’s gay?’”
“I froze, then muttered something about sexuality being on the spectrum. Then an old gay film festival volunteer who overheard the whole thing says, ‘He’s gay, honey. Move on.’ I think we should have tried to look him up on Grindr together. For closure.”
Coming Out is available online at iTunes, Vimeo and Wolfeondemand.com.
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