Believe me, there are far worse movies in the gay canon. But this one is pretty bad. It's got good intentions--I think--but, sorry, that's not enough anymore.
The movie's structure is awkward, and for me, unclear. It's mostly a flashback. I think. The lack of clarity would be a real problem in a movie that was interesting, with interesting characters and truthful dialog. But this movie is populated with cardboard cutouts reciting greeting card dialog. So not exactly understanding the time line didn't really matter. I couldn't have cared less.
The acting is passable, with some notable exceptions. The "eccentric" obituary writer, for example. A good actress might have been able to make something of the forced, phony dialog, but this one just compounded the problem. Midway through it occurred to me that if they'd played the "comic" bits straight, they might actually have attained a little humor. But everything is forced and exaggerated to the extent that nothing rings true, nothing seems plausible.
Petty department: the lead's tweezered eyebrows really bothered me. In fact his whole face looks like it's been pushed and pulled and tweaked to give him leading man status. I got the distinct feeling that in his natural state, he's strictly character actor material. Yeah, I know. Way harsh. But the idea that this guy would snag the hunk that he does only added to the sense of unreality.
Trust me. Skip this one.
