Boyfriends and Boy Friends Co-writers/directors Tom Hunsinger and Neil Hunter conjured this little Indie film in 1996, an examination of relationships among seven gay men that not only impresses as a non-exploitive, honest sociologic study of life in the 90s in England, it also is a film that is a healthy mix of humor and tenderness that stands up well more than ten years later.
Three couples of varying endurance gather for a weekend holiday to celebrate a birthday: Paul (James Dreyfus, remembered as Hugh Grant's ditsy travel book shop worker in NOTTING HILL) has been with Ben (Mark Sands) for five years but their relationship is rocky because of Paul's wandering eye for a lad he met at the funeral of his brother Mark; Matt (Michael Urwin) is celebrating his three month steady relationship with Owen (Andrew Abelson) though Owen already has the itch to move on; Will (David Coffey) brings his latest one-night stand twinkie Adam (Darren Petrucci), knowing that his chances of retaining the youth's interest are less than favorable. Into the mix comes James (Michael McGrath), the ex-lover of the recently departed Mark whose arrival and introduction to the group occurs in the form of a tryst in the woods with Owen.
Each of the paired men face confrontations and face honesty about their pasts - recent and distant - and it is through the weekend of bed swapping that each man finds his own real needs. And the results vary from happy reunions to factual realities of choices made.
The cast is a mixture of seasoned professional actors and newcomers who have not made subsequent films. There is a ring of honesty in the portrayals and the creators have opted to study compatibilities based on personality traits and needs as opposed to filling the story with the requisite soap opera subplots that tend to dampen the effect of these studies of groups and their lives. It is not a great film, but is an honest little quiet movie with particularly good performances from James Dreyfus and Andrew Abelson. Worth watching, even in 2007! Grady Harp, January 07
relationships 101 Though there is no real plot here; Boyfriends deserves a decent review. It's about the dynamics of three couples getting together for a weekend at a friends cottage in the woods; and the enteraction of the cast. It was interesting to see how each delt with their own problems. I didn't find it to be a comedy. The acting was good but those who like a plot are not going to enjoy this movie. It's very laid back. Drama, but no crisis
stay away my god I paid twenty bucks for this movie...I couldnt watch more than five minutes of it... it stinks.
An Examination of Gay Relationships This film is about gay relationships, but refreshingly, it's not about being gay. A group of friends gather at a remote house in the English countryside for the weekend to celebrate Paul's birthday. Paul (James Dreyfus) and Ben (Mark Sands) have been together for five years, but Matt has become bored with Ben and this couple is on the verge of breaking up. Owen (Andrew Ableson) has been dating Matt (Michael Urwin) for three months and thinks he's finally found Mr. Right. Owen brings Matt to the party to introduce him to his friends, but Matt is not as committed to Owen as Owen is to him. Will (David Coffey), the oldest and most alienated member of the group of friends brings along a one night stand, Adam (Darren Petrucci), the youngest of the party attendees. Will longs for a man who will want him. Adam is more interested in having as much fun as he can. Along the way, each of them must confront themselves, each other, and what they want from relationships.
In terms of content, there isn't anything that breaks new ground here, but the cast and the script are appealing enough to hold one's attention. The movie does suffer from British sound (something I remember Richard Carpenter, creator of "Robin of Sherwood" that ran on Showtime in the U.S. in the mid-80s, complaining about in terms of British TV and film production) where things become difficult to hear at times. People unfamiliar with British accents and slang may be at a double disadvantage trying to understand that which they can not hear.
I've watched the DVD a few times and I still enjoy it. It has a non-exploitative approach to its characters and their sex lives. And fortunately, we are saved from the "I hate to be gay, why am I like this?" that characterizes too many gay films prior to the mid-90s. I do wish there was a directors' commentary track as I enjoy knowing why creators make the choices that they do.
As an additional feature, the DVD also includes an animated version of the story of Achilles. This short film is shot in beautifully rendered stop motion animation and narrated by Derek Jacobi.
As a whole, I think this is a decent addition to any collection of gay DVDs. People who enjoy this movie are also likely to enjoy "Like It Is", "My Beautiful Laundrette", "Queer As Folk" (BBC--Series One), "Get Real", "Lilies", and "The Broken Hearts Club."
Insightful film Many of the other reviewers have called this film boring, but I really, really liked this movie. You have the three couples: Ben and Paul (who have been together for 5 years and have just broken up), Matt and Owen (who have been together for 3 months and it is obvious that Matt loves Owen much more than Owen loves Matt), and Will and Adam who have just had a one night stand but Will wants it to be more and Adam does not. These three couples meet in a country house for Paul's birthday--six months after his brother has died. Paul, Matt, and Will are long time friends and their interactions are quite interesting. It is pretty obvious that Paul finds Matt to be insufferable and kind of naive/stupid. Will and Paul have a pretty good friendship, although they are a little defensive about their relationship problems with each other. Matt and Will come off as pretty pathetic in this movie, because they are so desperate for relationships but they have obviously picked partners that are all wrong for them. Adam is one of Will's old cases as he is a social worker. Adam is a very promiscuous young man who has sex with Ben the day after Ben and Paul have broken up. Adam is basically the king of the one night stand-he has had 29 by the end of the movie. Owen comes off as a complete jerk because he cheats on Matt with this guy-James-he meets during the weekend. It turns out that James is Mark's old boyfriend, who has just semi-gotten over his lover's death and is ready to move on. James is older than all the other guys and he plays a counselor type role for Matt and Ben who are obviously having relationship problems. Ben and Paul do work out their relationship problems and Matt and Owen and Will and Adam all seem to go their separate ways at the end, although one gets the feeling that Will and Adam will at least be able to be friends after this weekend.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Tailipoe
Trevor
