Nighthawks (1978 film)

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Nighthawks is a 1978 narrative film written by Ron Peck and Paul Hallam and directed by Peck. It follows the day-to-day life of a gay man in London.

Contents

Plot

The film realistically portrays day-to-day gay life in London at the time. It shows a gay man, played by Ken Robertson, teaching geography during the day and going to gay pubs at night. His students ultimately challenge him with questions as to whether he is bent/queer. He responds that he is and answers their questions about his homosexuality calmly. [1]

Cast

Release

The film was screened during the 1978 London Film Festival and was released at the Gate Cinema in Notting Hill Gate in London. [2]

Reception

In 1979, Janet Maslin of the New York Times found the (fictional) film documentary-realistic. She found it a "vivid" picture of an "intriguing and well-played" character, and qualified that by finding parts of the film "overlong and aimless." [3]

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References

  1. Gilbey, Ryan; Revisiting "Nighthawks", a film with the most extraordinary coming-out scene; New Statesman
  2. Wlaschin, Ken (1978). 22nd London Film Festival programme. p. 41.
  3. Maslin, Janet; "Nighthawks":Documentary Tone; New York Times; July 27, 1979