Gays.com recently caught up with independent gay filmmaker Noel Alejandro in Barcelona to talk about the philosophy behind his films. Gays.com writer Steffen Hafenmayer reviews Noel’s latest release, ‘Call me a Ghost’.
Russian writer Nikolai Gogol once said: “The longer, and more carefully we look at a funny story, the sadder it becomes.” With the release of Noel Alejandro’s new film, the Spanish director shows us that this idea also applies to the pornographic genre.
However, ‘Call me a Ghost’ is no ordinary porn movie. It’s a quiet, dark and unagitated short 18-minute film that follows the story of a sad young man (Valentin Braun) who finds an alluring physical ‘entity’ (Pierre Emo) in his attic.
The film includes an explicit (and rather beautiful) sex scene, but what’s surprising is that the film also evokes everyday experiences and emotions such as sadness, loneliness and depression – feelings like these usually do not appear in mainstream porn.
Although somehow mythic, supernatural and transcendent, the film isn’t freaky or tacky, by a long shot. Instead, by combining incompatible elements regarding cinematic narration (sex & depression), Noel Alejandro cleverly opens the horizon of experience to his audience.
But the question is: are lust, sadness, passion and loneliness; desire and depression mutually antagonistic? Is it permissible to draw a clear line between positive and negative emotions?
‘Call me a Ghost’ intends to represent emotions such as melancholia and sadness as what they are: something very natural and human. Hiding them should not be the solution. Noel Alejandro wants us to deal with our feelings in a more open, more active way. It’s okay to feel blue sometimes. Even regarding sex.
CALL ME A GHOST by Noel Alejandro – trailer soft from Noel Alejandro on Vimeo.
Love to see more of Noel Alejandro’s work? Check out all of Noel films here or follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!
All images © 2016 – 2017 Noel Alejandro
