The 15th annual Portland Lesbian & Gay Film Festival starts on a poignant note this weekend—the fest's best films are about the awful impermanence of romantic connection.

We Were Here
81
Milk
7:30 pm Friday, Sept. 30.
Kink Crusaders
62
Kink Crusaders
9:30 pm Saturday, Oct. 1.

Romeos
75 Adolescence is difficult enough without adding gender confusion to the mix. Twenty-year-old Lukas (Rick Okon) is going through male puberty, medically triggered, as he was initially a she. Daily occurrences are awkward and confusing as Lukas tries to navigate a world not fit for him yet. Luckily, his best friend has stuck by him through his transformation; she comforts him when things are difficult—things become very difficult when Lukas falls for another young man. Sabine Bernardi's German film Romeos tackles a difficult subject with grace. It can be tortuous to watch Lukas walk the line between male and female, but he knows who he is, and he feels so certain of it that he's willing to do anything to become that person. (MS) 5 pm Sunday, Oct. 2.

Weekend
90 Weekend details one of the most authentic and intimate beginnings of a relationship I’ve ever seen. Two men meet at a gay club in Nottingham, England, at the beginning of the weekend and find themselves completely engrossed in each other’s company, laughing back and forth at what the other one has to say. Over the weekend, they drink, smoke, snort, talk, make love, and try to make the most of their sole weekend together (one is relocating to our very own Portland at the end of the weekend). Tom Cullen and Chris New are exceptional as the main characters. Their chemistry is astounding. The film is beautifully shot by director Andrew Haigh, leaving the audience aghast at life’s inexplicable bad timing but dynamized at the chance of connecting with someone who shakes your very core in just a couple of days. (MS) 7 pm Sunday, Oct. 2.

SEE IT: The Portland Lesbian & Gay Film Festival screens at Cinema 21 Friday-Saturday, Sept. 30-Oct. 8. Find a full schedule at plgff.org.