2024 Entry #47 06-07-24 “Chris & Don: A Love Story” is a 2007 documentary film that chronicles the lifelong relationship between author Christopher Isherwood (“A Single Man”, “Christopher and His Kind”, “Cabaret”) and his much younger lover, artist Don Bachardy. Chris & Don combines present-day interviews, archival footage shot by the couple from the 1950s, excerpts from Isherwood’s diaries, and playful animations to recount their romance. It was directed by Guido Santi and Tina Mascara, and was the centerpiece film at NewFest, the New York LGBTQ Film Festival, in 2008.
Watching this documentary, which focuses on one of the first openly gay couples in Hollywood, I was at first shocked at the 20 year age difference between the two men and worried that it might have been predatory, but the more I saw and then read, it felt much more like there were so few options for love between men at that time, that the age difference didn’t matter. Indeed, Isherwood’s experiences and how they brought him to Bachardy were quite compelling. Both participants were aware and accepting of the other, with much of the story being told by Don Bachardy, the surviving half of the couple as he clearly continues to mourn the loss of his partner. The shades of love that are expressed in the stories he chooses to share are often surprising, sexy, graphic and innocent. With other contributors including the likes of Liza Minelli and John Boorman. Sweet.