G Spot's Christmas Presents Recommendations
It’s less than a month now until Christmas and so begins the tiresome and stressful task of buying presents for friends and loved ones. So to help you out with the task at hand is G Spot’s recommendations for DVDs with a LGBT theme.
Television Boxsets
We’re going to start with a slightly controversial recommendation; Queer as Folk USA. There is a big divide between fans of the original British series and the American remake. 
Purists claim that original is the best but fans of the American remake will here none of that. For the first few episodes the remake is essentially the same but it quickly establishes its own identity and set of storylines; it ran for five years compared to the British version’s meagre two years. Queer as Folk USA is glossy, sexy but at times heart-warming and dark. It has a stellar cast; Gale Harold, Randy Harrison, Scott Lowell, Peter Paige, Hal Sparks, Michelle Clunie, Thea Gill and the wonderful Sharon Gless which should be enough reason on its own to purchase the series.
Our second recommendation is for the old G Spot favourite Dante’s Cove; the supernatural gothy/camp series for which we’ve been waiting a very long time for a fourth season and sadly the wait continues. The first three seasons are all available on DVD separately on in one lovely big box-set. The series is set on the tropical island of Dante’s Cove and revolves around the witches and warlocks who inhabit that island. It’s very camp, very sexy and an ultimate guilty pleasure. Amongst the cast are Tracy Scoggins, William Gregory Lee, Charlie David, Michelle Wolff, Gregory Michael and Thea Gill guest-stars in the second and third seasons.
Got a friend who loves vampires? Well The Lair will be perfect for them. It’s similarly themed to Dante’s Cove and that’s because it was originally intended to be a spin-off. There are a few nods between the 
two shows though that hint they are both set on the same island. The Lair revolves around a coven of vampires who run a sex club and whose presence has attracted the attention of an investigative journalist. Lots of camp horror shenanigans ensure across three seasons as werewolves and killer plants (yes seriously) are thrown into the mix as well. Amongst the cast of The Lair are Peter Stickles, David Moretti, Dylan Vox, Frankie Valenti, Colton Ford and Beverly Lynne.
Will and Grace will be perfect for lovers of comedy. The series revolves around two best friends as played by Debra Messing and Eric McCormack. It is just as equally about their friends Jack (Sean Hayes) and Karen (Megan Mullally) though – in fact the two often steal the show and perhaps are secretly the real stars of the show. The comedy follows the up and downs of all four’s love lives and personal drama’s. It ran for eight seasons, during which two live episodes were produced, and all of them are available to buy on DVD.
Movies
There are plenty of gay movies out there where the plot is about a “straight” guy who realises he is gay – the plot has become a stable of many a soap opera in more recent years. Some films do the plot 
justice and others do not. One of the more notable films with straight-turned-gay premise is Shelter starring Trevor Wright, Bred Rowe and Tina Holmes. Aspiring artist, and surfer, Zach (Trevor Wright), has put his life on hold to look after his sister Jeanne (Tina Holmes) and her son. However, the return of Shaun (Brad Rowe), the older brother of his best friend, turns his life upside down and makes Zach question himself and his sexuality.
The British film industry certainly isn’t what it used to be but there are still some good films to be found out there if you look hard enough. An age old favourite amongst gay fans in Britain is the 1990s film Beautiful Thing; based on the stage play written by Jonathan Harvey. The film stars Scott Neal, Glen Berry, Linda Henry, Ben Daniels and Tameka Empson. It’s set in a South London estate where teenager neighbours Jamie (Berry) and Ste (Scott Neal) slowly discover their feelings for each other.
There are plenty of gay comedies out there such as Another Gay Movie which perfectly pokes fun at the American Pie franchise as well as other sex comedies out there. Equally as fun though is Longhorns which was released on DVD earlier this year. The film is set in the 1980s in Dallas though there’s no sign of J.R or Sue Ellen or even a hint of that classic theme tune. There are cowboy hats 
though and plenty of nudity so maybe that makes up for it. The comedy turns the premise of straight-boy-turned-gay on its head and pokes plenty of fun at it. Amongst the cast is The Lair’s Dylan Vox alongside Jacob Newton, Kevin Held and Derek Efrain Villanueva.
Judas Kiss, also released on DVD earlier this year, is another good film for any collection. The quirky drama blends science fiction with ordinary drama as failed film-maker Zach Wells (Dante’s Cove actor Charlie David) has return to his college as a judge for a film festival/scholarship competition. Zach is reluctant to return but does so where he encounters a boy named Danny Reyes (Richard Harmon) whose film is titled Judas Kiss. Zach denies the boy can be who he says he is – slowly Zach realises he is being given a chance to change his life and stop himself making the mistakes of his youth.
You can read a review of Longhorns here >>
And a review of Judas Kiss here >>