I haven't seen these movies on anybody's list here in BetterMost, so I thought I would bring them to your attention.
The Donald Strachey Mysteries:
THIRD MAN OUT (Here! 2005)
SHOCK TO THE SYSTEM (Here! 2006)
ICE BLUES (Here! 2008)
ON THE OTHER HAND DEATH (Here 2008)
These are the films that made me aware that the genre of gay movies even existed. Before, I had thought gay movie meant porn movie, and I had gotten enough of that in Amsterdam in the 70's. The films follow the career of Donald Strachey, a street-smart, tough private detective in Albany, NY, and his spouse Timothy. The films are patterned after the film noir mysteries of the 1940's, particularly the Thin Man series with Nick and Nora Charles, now Donald and Timothy. These two men play off of each other so well that people ask them if they are lovers in real life.
Chad Allen (Donald) is the boy character from Dr Quinn Medicine Woman, now grown up. He is openly gay, and does a lot of work with LGBT agencies and causes. Sebastian Spence is straight, but makes a great gay man, and says he enjoys the part very much.
The 1st, 2nd, and 4th films have specifically gay themes in their plot-lines; the 3rd is more a regular detective story with lots of gay characters. On the Commentary in Bonus Features on each film, we hear from the Director, Ron Oliver, who is very funny, very Out, and makes a lot of campy remarks about the actors. Some of the series have been released for general distribution, and occasionally show up on TV. The acting is very professional, the cinematography great--especially the lighting--capturing the film noir quality. They have lots of humour, very Chandleresque snappy dialogue, and the guys look wonderful. Oliver makes a point of trying to find male actors with great faces and bodies. After all, he says, they are gay movies.
I highly recommend all four films, but the first two are probably the best. Each film stands on its own, but the characters do develop from one film to the next, so it is better to watch them in order, especially for the first two.
BTW, when you check out Shock To The System, make sure it is the Donald Strachey Mystery. There is another movie, a 1990 film with Michael Caine called A Shock to the System.