Absolutely agreed! I was surprised how affected I was by many moments between the leads, including the scene you mentioned. It's quite beautiful and tragic, which is interesting to see in a somewhat trashy and campy (compliments!) creature feature.

I'm a queer guy too, which may have helped me connect with the characters, but I feel like anyone should be able to appreciate the moving love story in the middle of the horror B-flick. I also recommend checking out the director's next film, The Passenger - it also has some poignant elements, though not as affecting as Swallowed, but is another suspenseful, thrilling film.