The Upcoming
  • Cinema & Tv
    • Movie reviews
    • Film festivals
      • Berlin
      • Tribeca
      • Sundance London
      • Cannes
      • Locarno
      • Venice
      • London
      • Toronto
    • Show reviews
  • Music
    • Live music
  • Food & Drinks
    • News & Features
    • Restaurant & bar reviews
    • Interviews & Recipes
  • Theatre
  • Art
  • Travel & Lifestyle
  • Literature
  • Fashion & Beauty
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • News & Features
    • Shopping & Trends
    • Tips & How-tos
    • Fashion weeks
      • London Fashion Week
      • London Fashion Week Men’s
      • New York Fashion Week
      • Milan Fashion Week
      • Paris Fashion Week
      • Haute Couture
  • Join us
    • Editorial unit
    • Our writers
    • Join the team
    • Join the mailing list
    • Support us
    • Contact us
  • Competitions
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Instagram

  • YouTube

  • RSS

Berlin Film Festival 2016

Who’s Gonna Love Me Now

Berlin Film Festival 2016: Who’s Gonna Love Me Now | Review
24 February 2016
James Fisher
Avatar
James Fisher
24 February 2016

Movie and show review

James Fisher

Who's Gonna Love Me Now

★★★★★

Links

FacebookWebsite

Special event

Berlin Film Festival 2016

11th to 21st February 2016

Who’s Gonna Love Me Now is not just the name of the this film, it is also perhaps the most important question within it. After all, for a young man who is diagnosed with HIV, it’s a fairly pertinent question. Factor in being disowned by your own Jewish ultra-orthodox family, and you’ve taken your first steps in Saar Maoz’s shoes. If you wish to keep walking, watch Tomer and Barak Heymann’s stunning documentary, premiered at this year’s Berlin Film Festival.

The focus of Saar’s love isn’t actually another man, but rather his search for reconciliation with his own family in Israel. Ejected from home when he was 23 by a society where homosexuality is still the gravest of sins, he rebuilds his life in London. It’s here that he contracts HIV, and 18 years later, we pick up his amazing story and get a glimpse of his incredible resilience in the face of adversity.

It’s important to remember that documentaries tell a story, and whilst the subject matter of this particular film may seem intense, it’s unquestionably heart-warming.  Whilst his family are portrayed as the villains of the piece, they are surprisingly amiable, and if you weren’t aware of their considerable prejudices, you would probably quite like them. And that’s what makes this documentary so clever. It would have been easy to pit Saar against his family, but what matters more is both side’s attempts at reconciliation. Saar’s family aren’t evil people; they are just relics of a different time, struggling to adapt to a world that is becoming increasingly alien to them.

A focal point is Saar’s membership in the London Gay Men’s Choir, which he affectionately refers to as his new “family”. Whereas Saar’s real family is kept largely in the background, his relationship with the choir shows the real power of community. The irony is not lost on the audience, as community is supposed to be at the very heart of Jewish religion, yet Saar is not allowed to be a part of his own family.

Who’s Gonna Love Me Now? is an outstanding piece of filmmaking. It reminds the audience that not every great story is invented in the mind of a Hollywood scriptwriter, and some of the best involve real people. Saar’s story is moving and relevant, and it should be shared with as many people as possible.

★★★★★

James Fisher

Who’s Gonna Love Me Now does not have a UK release date yet.

Read more of our reviews and interviews from the festival here.

For more information about the Berlin Film Festival visit here.

Watch the trailer for Who’s Gonna Love Me Now here:

Please accept YouTube cookies to play this video. By accepting you will be accessing content from YouTube, a service provided by an external third party.

YouTube privacy policy

If you accept this notice, your choice will be saved and the page will refresh.

Related Itemsreview

More in Berlinale

A Little Love Package

★★★★★
Oliver Johnston
Read More

Sonne

★★★★★
Selina Sondermann
Read More

Gangubai Kathiawadi

★★★★★
Selina Sondermann
Read More

“I was always trying to find this equilibrium between improvising and following the script”: Carla Simón on Golden Bear-winning Alcarràs

Sarah Bradbury
Read More

A E I O U – A Quick Alphabet of Love: An interview with Nicolette Krebitz

Selina Sondermann
Read More

Berlinale 2022: Awards predictions and highlights from the festival

Selina Sondermann
Read More

Concerned Citizen

★★★★★
Oliver Johnston
Read More

So-seol-ga-ui yeong-hwa (The Novelist’s Film)

★★★★★
Selina Sondermann
Read More

Rimini: An interview with director Ulrich Seidl

Selina Sondermann
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap

Movie and show review

James Fisher

Who's Gonna Love Me Now

★★★★★

Links

FacebookWebsite

Special event

Berlin Film Festival 2016

11th to 21st February 2016

  • Popular

  • Latest

  • TOP PICKS

  • Ed Fringe 2022: Hungry
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Kasabian – The Alchemist’s Euphoria
    ★★★★★
    Album review
  • Tips for creating a peaceful home
    Feature of the week
  • Royal Ballet School students return to the stage for post-Covid performances
    Theatre
  • “Even people who’ve been through adversity might say ‘Well, I wouldn’t change anything because I wouldn’t be who I am'”: Eva Noblezada and Flula Borg on Luck
    Cinema & Tv
  • Kasabian – The Alchemist’s Euphoria
    ★★★★★
    Album review
  • Rita at Charing Cross Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Ed Fringe 2022: Hungry
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • “Even people who’ve been through adversity might say ‘Well, I wouldn’t change anything because I wouldn’t be who I am'”: Eva Noblezada and Flula Borg on Luck
    Cinema & Tv
  • “Film offers a way of looking at the past, the present and the future simultaneously. That’s its wonder”: Sarah Beddington on Fadia’s Tree
    Cinema & Tv
  • Kasabian – The Alchemist’s Euphoria
    ★★★★★
    Album review
  • Rita at Charing Cross Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • “Even people who’ve been through adversity might say ‘Well, I wouldn’t change anything because I wouldn’t be who I am'”: Eva Noblezada and Flula Borg on Luck
    Cinema & Tv
  • South Facing Festival: Richard Ashcroft and his band were on impressive form from start to finish
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • Nope
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
The Upcoming
Pages
  • Contact us
  • Join mailing list
  • Join us
  • Our London food map
  • Our writers
  • Support us
  • What, when, why
With the support from:
International driving license

Copyright © 2011-2020 FL Media

Berlin Film Festival 2016: Brüder Der Nacht (Brothers of the Night) | Review
Berlin Film Festival 2016: Mariupolis | Review