The second collection of the Out Film Festival took us back to India, and a trip to 90s USA.
One thing that has stood out to me in the course of attending the festival is the unique creative identities illuminated with each film, and The Watermelon Woman and My Comrade delivered.
The Watermelon Woman 1996 USA
An aspiring black lesbian filmmaker researches an obscure 1940s black actress billed as the Watermelon Woman.
The first feature film directed by a Black lesbian, it stars Cheryl Dunye as Cheryl, a young Black lesbian working a day job in a video store while trying to make a film about Fae Richards, a Black actress from the 1930s known for playing the stereotypical “mammy” roles to which Black actresses were relegated during the period.
This romantic comedy ushers in documentary filmmaking to further immerse one to the acting history of black lesbian women in America and most importantly the life of Fae Richards.
An important aspect is its correlation of queer rights and black power which blends seamlessly with the plot as Cheryl battles with her lack of considering the black perspective in Fae’s filmmaking as one of her old friends puts it across to her. Her film ends up being a celebration of Queer pride and black power in arts.
The Watermelon Woman is a story to be considered timeless, not for aesthetic reasons but for the themes that ring true today especially with its creative blend of them.
My Comrade 2025 India
When a wounded rebel (Bikash) accidentally takes refuge in the home of a tribal villager (Nanda), both the men’s lives spiral into a tense interplay of politics and forbidden love.
As an Indian Cinema enthusiast, this one for sure impressed me. One thing I love about them is the emotional hold in their soundtracks carefully placed in character driven moments, My Comrade did just that.
Performances from Sounak Kundu and Aratrick Bhadra offer subtle but moving sequences of connection that tease to a developing romance that pay off in a heartbreaking but story-serving way.
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