Saturday Night at the Baths
Waterbearer Films
R0 DVD
Web: Http://www.waterbearerfilms.com
Saturday Night at the Baths,
directed by David Buckley is a nostalgic journey back to 1975. Filmed in the
Continental Bathhouse it shows firsthand gay life in the Seventies. The film is
unusual in that all the characters in the film are real except for actors who
play the lead male and female role.
While it would be too easy to critique the film for its very basic
production values, for its time it was a truly radical showing homosexuality in
an honest and sympathetic light. It has immense trouble gaining distribution,
the end result being that the director simply allowed it to sit unreleased for
some thirty years save for initial theatre showings. This release from Waterbearer films has been restored and footage cut from
the cinema released (including a gay sex scene) put back into its rightful
place. The restoration has been masterfully done offering a great picture and
very clear sound.
The
plot is simple but insightful. A young seemingly heterosexual man desperate for
work takes a job as a pianist at a local gay bathhouse. At first he does not
know how to deal with the wide sexuality of the new environment but along the
way a friendship slowly develops between Michael, his girlfriend and Scotti, a young gay man. The story includes two beautifully
filmed sex scenes which depict Michael’s exploration of his sexuality first
with his girlfriend and later with Scotti. The process by which Michael comes to an understanding of his own
fears and prejudices and later his sexuality are nicely presented and it is a
poignant film which has a timeless message. The film creates an amazing
mood as it shows the baths in operation with drag shows, dancers, discos and
more. It is so utterly realistic, not surprising really since while the plot is
director driven, the baths and everything else is real.
At
the same time the film becomes more significant when you realize that the film
was made at the real Continental Baths and that it really does offer a snapshot
of a unique time of history. The Continental Baths were central to the fight
for gay rights, raided some hundred times; they fought against restrictive laws
and won changes which paved the way for the gay liberation movement. They also
saw the launching of many careers ranging from Better Midler to Barry Manilow.
The
extras include a fascinating series of interviews including one with director
David Buckley and with the founder of the Continental Baths, Steve Ostrow, who
now lives in Australia. We get a fascinating insight into the lives of gay
people during the Sixties and Seventies and hear Ostrow
describe his continuing work with AIDS patients and with the mature age gay
men’s movement.
This
is a very significant film within the history of the gay movement as well as a
moving and accomplished work of gay cinema.
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