A Queer Review of the Austin Film Festival (2023)
Highlighting the many ways in which AFF 2023 illustrated that the queer experience is not a monolithic one.

Somehow, three came to these lands to the camp of ataman Sidor. One of them recently escaped from Turkish captivity, where from the centurion dying on his hands, he learned about a chest hidden in these places with the Ryazan treasury. The Cossacks, having conferred, decide to go in search of her, but the Turks are already looking for the treasury, who once hid her here.
Highlighting the many ways in which AFF 2023 illustrated that the queer experience is not a monolithic one.
The new biopic 'Elvis' highlights the beginning and end of the career of this rock and roll legend. The audience is taken on this journey knowing the tragic ending but not so much about what led him there. A large topic of discussion is the influences on Elvis that made him who he was as a singer, musician, and performer, which were blues, gospel, and country. Many of the songs that rose him to fame were songs by Black artists he heard growing up in primarily Black settings.
Trolls: World Tour doesn’t just pay lip service to diversity and inclusiveness. There is no white-washing of the voice actors. From the actual K-Pop group Red Velvet voicing the K-Pop Troll bounty hunters to Keenan Thompson playing the Tiny Diamond baby to Kunal Nayyar’s Guy Diamond, the cast includes more than just token minorities.
The Chronology of Water is a raw, honest, and unforgiving portrayal of how an abusive childhood ripples throughout one’s life. It is definitely the best movie I’ve seen Imogen Poots in. And even though Kristen Stewart has a long acting career for her young age, her directorial skills in this film show a lot of promise. Her feature debut as a director, an adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch's critically acclaimed 2011 autobiographical memoir, is fully immersive, mesmerizing, and impressive.
A historic documentary about the iconic Disney character gives viewers a glimpse into animation.
"King Richard" paints a nuanced portrait of a Black father trying to ensure his daughters’ success in a racist, misogynistic world. Yet, Richard and his kids overcome that fear and adversity to succeed.