In the initial roster release for the OUTshine Film Festival, two LGBTQ-themed films were tagged “Not Yet Confirmed:” No Dogs Allowed and Kill the Jockey. The latter had premiered at the Venice Film Festival and was Argentina’s International Feature Oscar selection. It was also one of 4 (out of 85) films I could not get access to while doing my extensive International Feature analysis. I didn’t even know the film had queer themes. No one would allow me a link.
In the end, neither film made the OUTshine final cut.
This is in no way unusual. Many factors go into programming films into a Festival and, often, films are still under consideration and even omitted at the last minute for varying reasons.
But it was the second entry, No Dogs Allowed, from Germany, that truly intrigued me after reading the logline: “15-year-old Gabo struggles to control and hide his pedophilic urges, confiding only in online forums where he encounters the manipulative older Dave. When Dave is arrested for suspected abuse of minors, Gabo must make a choice.”
So, I queried the film’s sales team and was given access. This is a powerful piece of cinema that deserves consideration. Here is my review:
German director Steve Bache’s feature debut, No Dogs Allowed, is a bold, ambitious and disturbing film that takes on difficult subject matter and proceeds to explore taboo themes in the most impressive, non-exploitative manner.
Based on a true story the film, written with compassion and depth by Stephan Kämpf, centers on a 15-year-old boy, Gabo (Carlo Krammling in an astonishing film debut), who starts up a friendship with fortysomething Dave (Robin Sondermann). We soon learn that Gabo has sexual feeling for a much younger boy (the brother of his bestie) and confides in Dave, an admitted ephebophile, who is married with children. While Gabo’s motives are to get advice on understanding and controlling his own tendencies, Dave manipulates Gabo into having sex with him. Dave is soon arrested for sex with a minor (another boy he seduced) and Gabo is brought in for questioning when his contact info is discovered on Dave’s phone by the police.
The film almost switches gears into thriller territory before finding its dramatic balance where everyone’s actions and motives come into question including the school admin, his parents as well as the authorities. And the filmmakers provide no easy answers but they do ask a lot of difficult questions.
No Dogs Allowed is not an easy sit because it never plays it safe or tries to make the story easy to digest. And that’s one of the films many positive attributes.
Kämpf’s dialogue always sounds authentic and is, often, disquietingly graphic. And Bache has cast the movie incredibly well eliciting affecting performances. He also knows exactly where to end the film.
I sincerely doubt an American filmmaker would have the balls to tackle such an issue with this degree of humanity, honesty and empathy. I’d love to be proven wrong.
When I queried OUTshine about the film’s exclusion they sent this response:
“While our staff and screening committee felt the film had merit, we ultimately chose to include other features that better complemented our program roster.” – Allen Martello, Executive Director, OUTshine LGBTQ+ Film Festival
I wholly understand this. But I do want to say that it’s a shame because the film is startling in its frankness and would have made a fine, if controversial, addition to the Fest. In fact, it’s better and certainly more significant than most of the OUTshine features I sampled.
No Dogs Allowed is understandably a film that will scare many a festival programmer and distributor. And while I’m in no way suggesting that was the case with OUTshine, I hope other festivals here in the U.S. will give audiences a chance to see it.
To date the film won the Best First Feature Award at the 2024PÖFF – Tallinn Black Nights International Film Festival, the Best Film Award at Filmschau Baden-Württemberg and is selected for the Riviera International Film Festival in May.
The only thing I disliked about the film…is the title.
