Another four films have been announced by Lil Cameron, the Auckland coordinator of the Out Takes Reel Queer Film Festival, which runs from May 27 to June 9 in Auckland and Wellington: First up we have Strella, alternate title A Woman's Way. Set in Athens, a man gets out of jail, meets a young transsexual prostitute, falls in love and wants to turn his life around. Yep. WANTS to turn his life around. There's always a conflict, isn't there? One for the ladies: Drool. Yep, and with the woman who had the infamous sex scene with Naomi Watts in Mulholland Drive starring, you'd better bring your bib. Laura Harring plays Anora, an abused wife who accidentally kills her husband and sets off cross country with her ungrateful kids and her new black (gasp!) neighbour/kissy kissy partner in tow. And her dead husband in the boot. This is quite an offbeat movie. And by offbeat I mean 'hey now the what now?'. Spoiler: Luckily there is no driving off a cliff holding hands a la Thelma We Are The Mods is my favourite of the festival - great production values, awesome fashion and music, gorgeous lead, charming story... the film pretty much inspired me to become a Mod myself before I realised I'm just. not. cool. enough. Sigh... Here's the synopsis: Everything changes for Sadie when she meets Nico, the new 'mod' girl on campus who relishes the spotlight and shakes up, and opens up, Sadie's world. Sadie, and the audience, are drawn along by Nico's irrepressible spirit in the pursuit of pleasure in a world full of 60's aesthetics with short skirts, subculture and scooters galore. In this journey nothing is predictable. Along the way, Sadie learns to look at a world beyond her permanently focussed 35mm lens and starts to establish her own rules for who she will become. PS. Got that song in your head yet? We're the mods we're the mods yeah yeah yeah yeah. Now you do, and my job here is done... Yngve. Now that's a name to wrap your lips around, isn't it? You may feel like doing so more literally after watching The Man Who Loved Yngve - Norway's third most successful film of 2008. After "Please pass the cod crisps: a seductive thriller" and "No, Bjork is not a bloody Norwegian." Seriously though, here's the synopsis: The Man Who Loves Yngve is set in November 1989. The Berlin wall collapses. In Stavanger town, Jarle Klepp (17) has no idea that everything is about to change. So far he has got everything; the best girlfriend in the world, and the world's coolest buddy. Together they will soon launch Stavanger's toughest punk band, "Mattias Rust Band". But then the new boy in class, Yngve, appears. He is not like anyone else, and Jarle is confused. Slowly but steadily Jarle lets everyone around him down, and finds out what it means to stand alone. Ah, young foolish love. Out Takes organisers will be distributing the programmes around town from April 28. Bookings open from May 3 on the Rialto website. Check out the trailer for We Are The Mods below. Lil Cameron - 19th April 2010