I found myself wondering whether Maspalomas might have been better titled Bye Bye Maspalomas.

And not just for the reasons you might think.

But we'll come back to that. It would be a shame to spoil the ending before you've even decided to watch the film.

With a name like Maspalomas, you can almost feel the Canary Islands sunshine already. The dunes, the beaches, the tanned bodies, and a few nights promising to be considerably more eventful than the days.

In short, everything that has made this destination such a favourite among gay men.

And, to be fair, the film gets off to a promising start on that front.

But don't pack your sunscreen just yet.

Because directors José Mari Goenaga and Aitor Arregi have something rather different in store.

After a handful of scenes that immerse us in this gloriously uninhibited world, the scenery changes dramatically. We're off to the Basque Country, where Vicente, 76, is about to discover that some journeys are best avoided.

And that going back into the closet doesn't always require a plane ticket.

The Closet, with Full Board

Vicente had managed to escape it once.

After leaving his family and his former life behind, he settled in Maspalomas, where he could finally live openly as a gay man without having to explain himself to anyone.

But a serious health crisis turns that hard-won freedom upside down. He finds himself back in the Basque Country, living in a care home.

Gone are the beaches, the encounters and the carefree days. In their place: schedules, communal routines and the close quarters of a life he never chose.

And, above all, a question he thought he had settled long ago: can he still be himself?

Because Vicente, who had learned to live freely, starts hiding his sexuality again.

Not necessarily because anyone orders him to. But because the fear of being judged, unlike the rest of us, hasn't aged a day.

And that may be the most unsettling thing Maspalomas has to say.

You can spend years coming out of the closet, only to discover at 76 that a change of surroundings is sometimes all it takes for the door to swing shut again.

And this time, it's no longer just a question of courage. It's also a question of dependence.

When you rely on other people for your everyday needs, what they think of you can suddenly carry a great deal more weight.

Gay Men Get Old Too. Who Knew?

The film deserves credit for one thing: it turns its attention to people cinema sometimes seems determined to forget.

Because judging by certain portrayals, gay life apparently comes to an end somewhere between your last music festival and your first anti-wrinkle cream.

After that? Your guess is as good as mine.

And yet gay men do grow older. They still love, desire, regret, laugh and worry. Some even fall in love again, which should reassure anyone who believes passion comes with a use-by date.

Maspalomas is right to remind us that being gay doesn't disappear when your hair turns grey.

But is this really a film about growing old as a gay man?

That's where I'm less convinced.

Because beyond the question of going back into the closet, Vicente is also a man confronting his past, his choices and the family ties he left behind.

In many respects, it could be the story of a heterosexual man who had cut himself off from his family.

Of course, Vicente's homosexuality fundamentally changes the circumstances of his journey. And that is precisely what makes his story distinctive.

But I sometimes wished the filmmakers had explored that difference more deeply.

What does it really mean to grow old when you've built your life outside conventional expectations? What about past loves, enduring friendships, desires that refuse to disappear, and that question we all end up asking ourselves sooner or later: what have I done with my life?

The film opens several doors. I wasn't convinced that all of them led quite as far as they promised.

Dad Left. The Questions Didn't.

Then there's Vicente's relationship with his daughter.

And this is where things get complicated.

Because when Vicente left his family to live freely, he didn't just walk away from a life that was suffocating him. He also left a child behind.

We can understand why he needed to leave. Imagine what the possibility of finally living openly as a gay man must have meant to someone of his generation.

But we can just as easily understand the pain of the daughter who was left behind.

And this is where the film becomes more interesting than a simple clash between personal freedom and social convention.

Because two truths can exist at once.

A father may have needed to leave in order to save himself. And a daughter may have experienced that departure as abandonment.

Neither truth cancels out the other.

And years of silence don't necessarily make explanations any easier. Quite the opposite. Put certain conversations off for long enough, and eventually you may no longer know how to begin them.

Maspalomas finds some of its most affecting moments in this relationship.

Even if, once again, I sometimes wished it had taken a little more time to explore what it allows us to glimpse.

What If Vicente Had Had No One?

It's a question I found myself asking while watching the film.

What if Vicente hadn't had a daughter? No family to return to? Nobody with whom to pick up the threads of a story interrupted years earlier?

Imagine a man who had spent his life moving from one encounter to another, through love affairs and breakups. A rich life, perhaps. Certainly a happy one at times. Just built differently.

Then one day, illness. Loneliness. And the need to look back.

What would he feel? Nostalgia? Regret? Gratitude? Or simply the desire to carry on living exactly as he always had?

I'm not suggesting that film would have been better. It would have been different.

But it's a story I would have liked to see, perhaps because it would have confronted a question we often prefer to postpone: what happens to our freedom when we can no longer exercise it entirely on our own?

And, more importantly, who will be there to help us hold on to it?

Bye Bye Maspalomas… Really?

Let's return to where we started.

Why Bye Bye Maspalomas?

First, because Vicente is forced to leave the place where he had found a kind of happiness and freedom. Somewhere he could simply be himself, without explanations, without precautions, without constantly watching his every move.

But there's another reason.

A little twist of fate tucked into the film's final minutes gives my imaginary title a rather unexpected meaning.

I could tell you more, of course.

But for once, I'll keep my mouth shut. It would be a shame to rob you of that final surprise.

Because despite my reservations, Maspalomas is worth watching.

Not because it's flawless. It didn't always convince me, and at times I felt its many narrative threads were competing a little too hard for our attention.

But because it raises a question that really is worth asking.

Can you spend part of your life fighting for the right to be yourself, only to find yourself fighting the same battle all over again at 76?

We'd like to think the answer is no.

The film reminds us that life isn't always so straightforward.

And that freedom, unlike holiday memories, should never come with an expiry date.

And After the Credits Roll?

Of course, we could close the book on this story and tell ourselves that these things only happen to other people.

Film characters, for instance.

Except that stories of coming out later in life, fractured families, rediscovered freedom and lives that sometimes have to be rebuilt aren't the exclusive property of screenwriters.

At HappyGayTV, we give a voice to the people who have actually lived them. No fictional characters, no scripted dialogue. Just real lives, with their surprises, their scars and sometimes some remarkable lessons along the way.

So, what did you think of Maspalomas?

Did Vicente move you? Did the film ring true in its portrayal of growing older as a gay man? Or would you, too, have liked it to explore a different side of the story?

That's what the HappyGayTV Hot-Line is for. You can leave us an audio or video message through the site's menu. No need to prepare an Oscar-worthy acceptance speech: your opinion, your questions, even your disagreements are welcome. And who knows? Your contribution might inspire a future episode.

And since the best conversations don't end when the credits roll, why not join the HappyGayTV Club for free? You'll be able to discover messages from our community, enjoy exclusive content and take part in what's coming next.

Ultimately, perhaps the most important question isn't whether we'll ever return to Maspalomas.

It's whether we can carry on living our lives without having to hide who we are.

Even at 76.

And why not at 96?

Marco DRION

Illustration: HappyGayTV - All rights reserved

© HappyGayTV - October 2026