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‘Drunken Noodles’ Debuts at IFC: Sex-Fueled NYC Tale

6/26/2026

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Summary

Drunken Noodles Opens

Drunken Noodles opens on June 26 at the IFC Center in the United States.
Laith Khalifeh, a Bard graduate student interning at a New York gallery, cruises for sex.
Joél Isaac’s food-delivery cyclist Yariel later has sex with Khalifeh.
Ezriel Kornel’s artist Sal, whose needlepoint tableaux are shown at the gallery, appears later.
Lucio Castro directs the 1-hour 23-minute unrated film, which Barton Cortright shoots and Strand Releasing distributes it.

Summary

Castro Celebrates Intimacy

Director Lucio Castro says the film portrays gay intimacy as thriving, subverting straight-world expectations of queer suffering.
It incorporates embroidery artist Sal Salandra’s pieces as visual motifs and merges four short stories into two summer arcs.
Cinematographer Barton Cortright used a green-tinged night palette and indoor plants for a lush atmosphere.
Actor Ezriel Kornel says male nudity is shown as a celebratory gaze, not exploitation.

History

Historical Context

Ang Lee’s 2005 film Brokeback Mountain, produced by Focus Features and winning the Venice Golden Lion, earned $178 million on a $14 million budget and secured Best Director at the 78th Academy Awards. Its mainstream acclaim opened festival doors for queer stories, a path followed by the 2024 release Drunken Noodles, which now screens at major venues.

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Drunken Noodles Opens

Drunken Noodles opens on June 26 at the IFC Center in the United States.
Laith Khalifeh, a Bard graduate student interning at a New York gallery, cruises for sex.
Joél Isaac’s food-delivery cyclist Yariel later has sex with Khalifeh.
Ezriel Kornel’s artist Sal, whose needlepoint tableaux are shown at the gallery, appears later.
Lucio Castro directs the 1-hour 23-minute unrated film, which Barton Cortright shoots and Strand Releasing distributes it.

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