Reviews

Somehow this wonderful film emerged unscathed from the book adapation. Born as a best seller, this romantic comedy makes it to the screen as a major success. Loved the book and very happy with the film. What is key here is the chemistry between the young leads as a British prince and the son of the US President. Is not far fetched. Suspension of disbelief works thanks to the great job of the principals. The royal is a "spare" and hasn't much to do and the American "prince" is a bit of an outlaw. Cultures collide. So do hearts. Both young men are openly gay and proudly so. One of the best romance films ever, gay or straight. As a gay man of some seniority, this is the film I have been waiting for. The love scenes are beautifully done and very sweet. There is a wonderful segment with Stephen Fry as the disapproving King. He gets to chew a bit of scenery in the process. All good. See it. I have seen it several times and I am guess I will be watching many more.

This is a lovely Italian romantic comedy about a "kept" young gay man who quits a relationship and gains a whole new career and lease on life. Very handsome actors and a sex/love positive message, it is a gay valentine. You will have to see the film to know what mascarpone is. Well, I didn't know. I have watched it three times. A keeper. The anglicized name is Mascarpone in case you have trouble finding it.

This is a short and sweet series of short shorts about a new gay couple. Meant to be a hook up, there turns out to be more to their relationship than sex. Slowly but surely they explore this new "thing" for both of them. Funny and quirky and truly a feat of packing a lot in small packages, each episode advances their stories as well as sweeping up the ongoing stories of their friends. I see that it is made in New Zealand....that alone is worth looking into. I started looking at this when I thought it was just a short season of six episodes. Now, it goes on with no end in sight, nor do I want there to be.

This is a gay coming of age film. As a gay man who took a long time to do his coming out, it is a pleasure to see such a well done story with, well, some angst, but not all sad and gloomy. The sex scenes are very good, realistic, not idealized except when it is clear that someone is remembering what they want to. These are young men without much experience and they are given time to explore their uncertainties. I sense that it could be a tad autobiographical...Ozon is a favorite director and he has his themes. One of the best realizations for me is that this was filmed in Tre'port, Normandy where one of my favorite films was done...My Life With James Dean. It was a bit of a charge to see that some of the scenes from this film were done in familiar locations. There is some suspense to the outcomes...good. New ground is covered. I enjoyed the acting of all participants and the beauty of the Normandy coast is front and center. Am I repeating myself? Take a look for yourself.

I got the idea as I was watching this film unfold that it was like a symphony in that there are sections, parts within sections and a building to a finale. Don't make me work too hard on this analogy. It helps that I have seen everything Dolan has created several times each and am quite familiar with his film vocabulary but.....a big but....this one combines many of his previous hallmarks and remixes them with a beautiful flourish. Yak yak yak. I was very pleased to see Dolan answer questions himself at the end of the film. I wish that happened more often. So. There will be many more viewings for me to see what I missed...it is very rich. And about the cast...ensemble. Perfecto. So good with one another. Fine work all around. OK. Get out of here. Rent or buy this film for yourself. It is a little pricey but well worth the investment because it is not a one shot experience.

I love this movie.....and have watched it several times. More in the future. One guy goes on a road trip to mourn the loss of his grandmother. The other is a backpacker, full time tourist. They meet on the boat from Greece to Italy and....there is the rest of the film. Outstanding young actors. Beautiful scenery, interesting side characters. Very good. When a good gay film comes along I want to boost it all I can. Here is another boost. It is my fifth time. And counting. Sixth and seventh.....:>)

I have watched this wonderful film several times. Just far apart in time to make it new and fresh. But the depth of the story, the acting and the cinematography is such that new things are discovered each time. This takes place in a wet place, lots of rain. Cold. I can feel it as I watch. And so on. This is not just another gay man love story although heaven knows we can use as many as we can get. There are many kinds of relationships shown and once again we find the difference between they that stay and they that go. As one who left I feel the pain of both sides.

This is, as some have complained, a slow burn film. Several new couples, gay and straight, find their way through the complexities of new attractions. It requires patience as most french films do. I liked it. Saw it two times. A few of the characters are annoying but I think it is meant to be that way. There is young and old. Casual and committed. So, the attraction is not immediately obvious. I liked the film, I liked the people and as an admirer of French cinema, I am not put off by a bit of indirection and wandering along the plot line.

This is a sweet one hour film about two young men who start out as friends and later become more than that. It is also another examination of the differences between those who stay at home and those who go away. Here and there. I thought it was well balanced and well played and so I bought it. The photography is luscious and is cleverly compared to post cards that we see from time to time.

Gaydar is a tough thing to define. This small film packs a lot of practical lessons about it. A student returns home for the summer to find that his room is occupied by a hired hand on the family ranch. At first there is some tension between the two for obvious reasons. It is the student's bed after all. They become room mates. Slowly but not too slowly, the attraction between the two young men evolves and without any explicit words between them they solve the code of recognition that all gay men must master. It only takes a little spark to set the stage for.....well, no spoilers. This is a very nice little film with a big story to tell.

I really liked this film. It has suspense. Honor. Brotherly love. Action. Suspense. The actors are all young and giving their best. I am not going to go into the plot because it would have a lot of spoilers in it. Do not let the Marine connection turn you off. If you are like that. It is not about that. It is more like a band of brothers who were and are Marines. Once a Marine, always a Marine. From there on it is about buddies who hang together and are loyal to one another. And so on. I really really liked this. And I would go searching for other films that have these young actors in them, male and female. OK. I will quiet down now.

A gay student falls for the new teaching assistant at his school. The student, so introverted, lives life through his video camera, tapes all he can. His Dad sees all this, finally sees some of the video. left out "accidentally". Questions are answered. Changes are made. Good things happen. So much packed into this 25 minute film. I have watched it several times. Always brings the feels up strong.

Or maybe the tenth. I have watched this movie over and over. It is the teen idyll that I did not have as a gay boy. The two young men are perfect for their place in a small town. There is even a train going through. The pace is languid. It is summer. They spend lots of time together. It is very nice. Each time I see a new element or if not, just rest in the sweet times I am watching and feeling.

This is a 30 minute film which shows the meeting and dating of two young men. Different guys in many ways, they feel a strong attraction. There are several "arcs" in this story. A gymnast/nerd tale. An HIV pos and neg tale. A safe sex instruction manual. This latter is quite a nice surprise and it took me a while to get this aspect. The young men "invent" a wide variety of moves with and on each other which are safe and loving and, fortunately for us, very hot. I have watched this several times and, incidentally, not in a porny way. There are several other sweet young men that come in and out of the story. All funny, friendly and angst free. Wow. Maybe a 10?

I really enjoyed this film; saw it twice in two days. It takes place in a mideastern war zone and concerns a search by a young civilian man for his missing military boyfriend. In the search he encounters various familiar characters just off the news page. A US government agent provokes and uses the young man for both propoganda and to stir up trouble with the locals. A tour guide with whom he forms a strong bond helps him find his friend. An official of the country seeks to make use of the situation for both personal and bureaucratic gain. Another undercover agent from another agency stalks the others to find out secrets and, if possible, to commit a terrorist act....maybe. This makes the pot boil considerably and requires some close watching to keep track. I was more than happy to watch it again to absorb all the pieces and they do, indeed, fit into a rather complex puzzle. There is plenty of scenic grandeur with desert locations and an old roman ruin, a coluseum, where crucial action between the principals occurs, The symbolism of gladiators is not lost but heightened by the careful photography from the seats and side corridors of the ruins. Man, the more I write this, the more I appreciate the work that went into it. The young man who is searching is very good looking and clean cut which emphasizes his relative purity and innocence in facing a bunch of dishonest and evil characters. I am a gay man and found the depiction of gay characters to be way more than acceptable, even heroic. Thank you. I get that the distribution of this film has a checkered history and right here on this site it refers to a French subtitled version. I saw this on Dekko where it sits happily with many other fine gay features. *** A new viewing...knowing the plot did not detract. Some of this film is on the "handheld" side but it adds to the flavor of danger and suspicion of the plot. The hero is hot. There is no other way to describe him. A lot of shirtless time always a plus.

This wonderful film unwinds backward and forward to tell about a relationship between two men and the people around them. Time twists and turns as what seemed real at the time fades from memory then re-emerges in present time. A little hard to write about. You have to see it to take it all in. I have seen it more than a few times and did not get tired of watching. The cast is wonderful and the chemisty between the men is right at ever turn. Hot or cool or in between. The photography is part of the cast and plays an important role. Barcelona. Gorgeous. OK. Go see it. Write your own review.

Randolph Scott stars in this horse opera with great charm and grit. Lee Marvin displays his oily villainy with that snakey charm that was always his trademark. The plot is secondary except to say that it is a good guy bad guy contest and, well, I cannot put in a spoiler but do you really think Scott is a loser? I enjoyed this very much. It took me back to the Saturday matinees that I used to attend regularly at a real (reel?) theater. I could watch it again but I think I will find a few more oldies like this to rev up my nostalgia motors.

First you fall in love. Then you try to figure out what happened and what will happen next. When the early bloom is over, there is some work to do. Depending on that first flash, the compulsions and the strange feeling of happiness with another person, comes the work. To make something out of those initial fireworks. This film explores this period of construction, or reconstruction. Sometimes there is a good foundation to build on, sometimes not. This film explores that second building phase from a gay perspective but it could happen with any couple. The actors are charming, even the one who resists happiness. I had the feeling of completion by the end. Work was done, a result was achieved. Helped by able handsome actors as the couple and a very good supporting cast, this is well worth a few viewings. This was my second or third and I still hung on to my seat.

This is a rather old fashioned romance about two gay men who had a relationship in school then parted to different countries. Honk Kong and Australia. When the emigre returns and the friendship renewed, old sparks begin to fly. This is a rather old fashioned but very pleasing story without the pains of being just another gay love story. Most of the acting is low key as one of the young men has been diagnosed with depression....I only caught on to this later in the film. It is a sub theme and somehow did not matter. Will these guys find a way to get back on track? That is the whole film's subject. Lovely low key and quite engaging acting. A new twist on an old them done very well.

OK. I came for the eye candy and was not disappointed. What I did not expect was some good comedy and a twist at the end. The young men are not boys but genuinely good actors doing a good job at comedy while wearing a towel. Try that to see how challenging this act is. I know how quickly our tribe can dismiss our own work and feel sad that the standards set for this kind of film are set so high or ...... well you know what I mean. Let's not take ourselves so seriously. This funny little film would be a good start. And yes, romance enters the picture as well. Thanks to the people who made this.