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Diferente + Introduction by curator Alex Davidson (15*)

Queer 60s

A young man raises a makeup brush up to his eyebrow as he applies makeup. There are clothes and a mirror hanging in the background of the room.

Made, incredibly, under the repressive regime of Franco’s Spain, Luis María Delgado’s spectacular melodrama stars Alfredo Alaria as a gay rich kid with a great love of dance and showmanship.

Diferente follows Alfredo (played by Argentinian actor Alfredo Alaria), who dreams up lavish dance spectacles while half-heartedly working for his family’s firm. His flamboyance is centre stage from the opening number, in which he stamps out a flamenco number surrounded by men in matador outfits. Although talented, Alfredo is also capable of great jealousy and insecurity – flaws that may lead to disaster.

At a time when LGBTQ+ people were persecuted, Diferente’s brazen portrayal of a gay male protagonist was a rare jewel indeed, with its melodramatic flourishes predicting the cinema of Pedro Almodóvar that would arrive decades later.

Tagged with: Cinema Queer 60s

In Spanish with English subtitles.

Please note this film contains a sequence featuring racist imagery.

Cinema 1

Location
Barbican Cinema 1 is located within the main Barbican building on Level -2. Head to Level G and walk towards the Lakeside Terrace where you’ll find stairs and lifts to take you down to the venue floor.   

Address
Barbican Centre
Silk Street, London
EC2Y 8DS

Public transport
The Barbican is widely accessible by bus, tube, train and by foot or bicycle. Plan your journey and find more route information in ‘Your Visit’ or book your car parking space in advance.