Queen Tut
| Queen Tut | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Reem Morsi |
| Written by | Bryan Mark Abdul Malik Kaveh Mohebbi |
| Produced by | Lindsay Blair Goeldner Shant Joshi |
| Starring | Ryan Ali Dani Jazzar Alexandra Billings |
| Cinematography | Issa Shah |
| Edited by | Ben Lee Allan |
| Music by | Suad Bushnaq |
Production companies | Fae Pictures Hawkeye Pictures |
| Distributed by | Cinephobia Releasing Vortex Media |
Release date |
|
Running time | 91 minutes |
| Country | Canada |
| Languages | English Arabic |
Queen Tut is a 2023 Canadian coming-of-age drama film, directed by Reem Morsi.[1]
The film centres on Nabil (Ryan Ali), a closeted Coptic gay teenager from Egypt who silently grieves the recent death of his mother, a prolific seamstress and gown maker. Relocating to Toronto to live with his estranged father Iskander (Dani Jazzar), a financially successful but emotionally rigid property developer, Nabil finds a new queer sense of belonging and alternative home when he meets Malibu (Alexandra Billings), a longtime transgender bar owner and drag performer in the Church and Wellesley gay village whose historic queer nightclub faces the imminent threat of demolition and displacement by Iskander's development firm. Grappling with the tensions between his blood family and emerging chosen family, Nabil joins forces with Malibu's grassroots campaign to save the life of her bar and in the process, he not only cultivates his unique drag queen persona, but integrates the loss of his mother by embodying her memory and resurrecting her presence through his art.[2]
The cast also includes Kiriana Stanton, Selena Vyle and Thom Allison, as well as Ben Sanders, Darrin Baker, Matt Willis, Danielle Bourgon, Cru Levey Cru Levey, Kendall Savage, Mostafa Shaker, Kaz Morgan, Khalid Karim, Minh Ly, Asil Moussa and Darren Stewart-Jones in supporting roles.
Production and distribution
[edit]The film entered production in Toronto in 2022, with shooting locations including Nathan Phillips Square, the Church and Wellesley village, and Cinespace Film Studios.[3] In addition to appearing in the film, Billings was also an executive producer, alongside Sonya Di Rienzo and Aeschylus Poulos.[4]
The film was screened at the Cannes Film Market in May 2023.[5] It premiered at Reeling: The Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival in September,[6] before going into commercial release in February 2024.[2]
It is slated to air on Crave in June 2024 for Pride Month.[1]
Critical response
[edit]Barry Hertz of The Globe and Mail wrote that while the film had good intentions, it did not execute them as successfully as the contemporaneous drag-themed film Solo.[2]
Awards
[edit]| Award | Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Screen Awards | 2024 | Best Lead Performance in a Comedy Film | Alexandra Billings | Nominated | [7] |
| Best Original Score | Suad Bushnaq | Nominated | |||
| Best Original Song | Kamel Bushnaq, Ashley Jane, Suad Bushnaq "I Won't Break" | Nominated | |||
| Suad Bushnaq, Omar El-Deeb "Chez Habibi (Kul illi Batmannah)" | Nominated |
References
[edit]- ^ a b Alex Cooper, "Watch Alexandra Billings shine in the trailer for the queer coming-of-age film 'Queen Tut'". The Advocate, February 8, 2024.
- ^ a b c Barry Hertz, "Canadian drag-scene drama Queen Tut has passion, but no rhythm: New Canadian drama Queen Tut is a case of good intentions marred by slipshod execution". The Globe and Mail, February 20, 2024.
- ^ Angelica Babiera, "Fae Pictures’ Queen Tut set for action in Toronto". Playback, July 26, 2022.
- ^ Valerie Complex, "‘Transparent’ Actress Alexandra Billings To Star And Executive Produce Trans Revolutionary Indie Feature ‘Queen Tut’". Deadline Hollywood, May 17, 2022.
- ^ Jeremy Kay, "Sphere Films Cannes-bound with new sales titles ‘Queen Tut’, ‘Red Rooms’". Screen Daily, May 3, 2023.
- ^ "Reeling: 41st Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival schedule". Reel Chicago, September 22, 2023.
- ^ "BlackBerry Leads CSA Nominations". Northernstars.ca. March 6, 2024.