rbrome Reviews

California Dreamin' (2007)

Long and aimless

[5/10 · 9 April 2008]

This movie is entirely too long. I kept checking the time while watching it. There is - at most - 100 minutes of entertainment in this movie, but the running time is much longer than that.

The movie also suffers from multiple-personality disorder. It's a lazy comedy one minute, then a love story, then a touching small-town story the next... then a shocking, violent war drama at other times. Not that these elements can't be combined in one movie, but it needs to fit together and feel like one story, (or be deliberately presented as separate stories.) Instead, everything is just mashed together in weird way where it felt like each scene had a different director in charge. It didn't flow well at all.

Half the time I wasn't sure what the "point" of the movie was. At the very end, there is definitely a "point", but then I wasn't really sure how everything led up to that. Perhaps half of the scenes in the movie helped build up to the ending, but the other half didn't seem to fit with that story line at all.

There was some good acting, though most of it was not top caliber.

At the film festival where I saw it, they billed it as a comedy. It is not. There's a small amount of humor, but it is not a "comedy". Either that, or it's just not very funny. I laughed twice, I think.

The story has a lot of potential. It has its moments, but this is just not a great film.

Queens (2005)

Great!

[10/10 · 20 July 2006]

I loved this movie.

The production values, acting, and directing are all first-rate. Unlike too many gay-themed movies, this was clearly expertly made.

The pace is fast and the mood light. The humor is absolutely hilarious. I don't think I stopped smiling, and there were a few times I laughed so hard I almost fell out of my seat. It was an absolute riot.

This is a great movie for gay and straight audiences alike. It's an even better film for families to see. The movie is all about guys getting married and their crazy (but believable) mothers. No matter what your mom was like, one of these mothers will probably remind you of yours. There's just so much great family humor that everyone would anyone would enjoy.

Highly recommended.

East Side Story (I) (2006)

A delight

[9/10 · 17 July 2006]

This is a wonderfully fun and well-made film. For a low-budget film, this is about as good as it gets. You can tell the people involved are headed for great things. The direction was flawless. The drama was touching and the humor absolutely hilarious; the pace: perfect. The acting: engaging.

While technically a coming-out story, it doesn't feel like one. The story avoids the clichés with a refreshingly modern angle. The over-arching themes are there loud and clear, without overshadowing the personal story of the lead character.

I saw this film at Philly's gay film festival. So many of the other films either have gorgeous eye candy or good acting, not both. That was not the case with this movie. The lead actors are all incredibly hot - and you see plenty of them - yet they were great actors as well. The director was generous with the eye candy without being gratuitous. It seemed directed to appeal to a gay audience, but tastefully, in a way that won't be a turn-off to straight audiences.

Fun. Entertaining. Touching. Hilarious. Highly recommended.

Guys and Balls (2004)

Delightfully Entertaining

[9/10 · 19 July 2005]

I thoroughly enjoyed this film. It's a well-made and entertaining comedy. It was my favorite film at the festival (out of 10 that I saw).

Yes... as others have noted, a lot of the comedy stems from a group of major characters fitting a checklist of the most common gay stereotypes. But it's all done in a way that's non-offensive, lighthearted, well-written, well-acted, and just funny as heck. I think you have to want to be offended to have a problem with it. And the main character (Ecki) is about as "normal" as can be. (...not to mention adorable and lovable.) Anyway, the film-making was excellent. The pace was perfect, and the plot struck a good balance of levity; it was serious enough that I cared about the characters, but stayed upbeat and fun as well.

Highly recommended.