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It Is Not the Homosexual Who Is Perverse, But the Society in Which He Lives (HKLGFF 2026)

It Is Not the Homosexual Who Is Perverse, But the Society in Which He Lives (HKLGFF 2026)

非同之罪 (HKLGFF 2026)

Released
20 Sep 2026
Runtime
67 min
Original title
Nicht der Homosexuelle ist pervers, sondern die Situation, in der er lebt
Language
de

Drama

The verdict

There are not yet enough audience votes to give this a reliable score. It is not currently playing in Hong Kong cinemas. 67 minutes.

What it is about

Daniel, a young man from the provinces come to the city and moves from one gay subculture to the next. His adventures begin on the streets of Berlin, where the shy brunette Daniel meets the blonde Clemens, who invites him home for coffee and offers him a place to stay. Soon Daniel is living with Clemens and believes he has found the love of his life. The two try to imitate a bourgeois marriage and its lifestyle. But after four months of tedium, Daniel is cruised by a rich older man who entices him to move into his villa, where he encounters a group of older gays, pretentious in their appreciations of fine art and classical music, who fawn over him.

What to expect

Rosa von Praunheim shot this in 1971 on a threadbare budget, and it shows — the 16mm grain, the flat Berlin light, the way scenes play out in long, unbroken takes that feel closer to a fly-on-the-wall documentary than a drama. Daniel arrives from the provinces, moves in with Clemens, and the two play house until the arrangement curdles into boredom. He then drifts into a villa full of older men who collect antiques and fuss over him. Praunheim is less interested in Daniel as a character than in the structures he keeps walking into, and the movie spends much of its 67 minutes arguing, in voiceover and on-screen text, that the problem is not desire but the roles society hands out. The screening is part of HKLGFF 2026. German dialogue, English and Chinese subtitles. Not for children.

Cast

  • Berryt Bohlen Clemens
  • Bernd Feuerhelm Daniel
  • Ernst Kuchling The rich man
  • Norbert Losch
  • Steven Adamczewski (uncredited)
  • Dietmar Kracht (uncredited)
  • Manfred Salzgeber (uncredited)

Crew

  • Director Rosa von Praunheim
  • Writer Sigurd Wurl
  • Writer Martin Dannecker
  • Writer Rosa von Praunheim
  • Director of Photography Robert van Ackeren
  • Director of Photography Rosa von Praunheim
  • Editor Jean-Claude Piroué
  • Producer Werner Kließ

Common questions

How long is the movie?
67 minutes.
What language is it in, and are there subtitles?
German, with English and Chinese subtitles.
Is it suitable for children?
No, it deals with adult themes and is not rated for children.
Is this a new release?
It is a repertory screening as part of the Hong Kong Lesbian & Gay Film Festival 2026, showing on 20 September 2026.

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