G.B.F.

G.B.F. (2013) was directed by Darren Stein. The basic idea of the plot is clever. Three extremely popular high school girls realize that in order to be at the top of their game they need a G.B.F.--a Gay Best Friend.

That concept could have led to a strong, funny film. Unfortunately, this isn't that film. The plot moves forward in a chaotic, almost haphazard way. The acting is weak, and stereotypes abound.

I sat there waiting for the film to fulfill its potential, but that never happened. Great concept, bad movie.

We saw this film at the Dryden Theatre as part of Image Out--the Rochester LGBT Film Festival. It won't get any worse on the small screen. Unfortunately, it won't get any better.

The story pretty much, school's three popular girls seek out the latest must have accessory, a GBF, gay best friend. Tanner is outted as gay, and the three girls go head to head for his attention.

This is actually a really really good film. It's light, funny and kind hearted. I think it shows how much things have changed in recent years, and how some things will never change.

A few of the usual clichés, like the token lesbian, and some of the characterisations. The mean girl influences are apparent.

All in all a really good fun film, the trailers did not make it look worth watching, ignore them. 8/10

I watched the trailer last night and saw Sasha Pieterse in it. Since I have always been a huge fan of PLL I decided to watch it.

I must say, i never thought i'd like this movie. Since i never watch a gay movie before, i really don't know what to expect. But it was not that bad. It was a really fun movie to watch. I was surprisingly entertained. It was hilarious that I couldn't stop laughing throughout the movie. It was well-acted. I literally loved every character in the movie even the mean bee and drama queen. The movie was well made. Plus, i love what it stands for.

Gay or not, this is definitely a movie everyone will enjoy.

A new film for the generation of Mean Girl lovers, Darren Stein's G.B.F. is a hilarious and down right touching motion picture. Starring Michael J. Willet as Tanner, a high school student who's recently outed to his school. When the three main clicks in the school try to use Tanner as an accessory as the "Gay Best Friend" to be crowned Prom Queen, things get very interesting. Because of the unique nature of the film, I had to give it a unique review to go with it.

Things I'm Obsessed With:

Xosha Roquemore: the beautiful and memorable actress that was a breath of fresh air during the powerful film Precious by Lee Daniels, is given a role to stretch her legs. I hope this film mainstreams her into more challenging and accessible roles in the future à la Taraji P. Henson. "Mean Girls – The Musical": The film from moment one will have you thinking of the Tina Fey scribed film from 2004 that made Lindsay Lohan a bonafide star. The film doesn't shy from that at all. Writer George Northy embraces the high school dilemma and fuses it with a touch of drama that gives the film massive heart. He even creates a school production of Mean Girls – The Musical. How can you not love that?

Paul Iacono: Much like our Lacey Chabert character, the talented actor plays the flamboyant and hilarious Brent Van Camp in the same manner of brilliance that Sean Hayes portrayed his role of "Jack" on NBC's hit- show "Will & Grace." Taking the opportunities to engage his character with his impressive zeal and candor, Iacono shows promise to lend himself to more dynamic roles if he chooses. Speaking of "Will & Grace," Megan Mullaly is terrific as Ms. Van Camp, a brief but tender-hearted performance.

Gay Mormons and Presumed Homosexuality: Director Darren Stein and George Northy ride the line of stereotypes and presumed character behavior but there's respect and a sense of urgency to entertain the audience and create an experience that still feels unique. They take jabs and poke fun at religion, high school stereotypes, and overindulged parenting but it works. Sasha Pieterse is a second away from becoming the biggest thing that Hollywood has to offer. She's the standout on ABC Family's "Pretty Little Liars" and as the bitchy yet lovable Fawcett, she stands out once again. Our lead Michael J. Willet carries the film quite well but the viewer gets the most connections to what is happening around him rather than with him. No fault of his own, just a simple case of, everyone around me is awesome.

The film does lose steam in the middle but still holds its own quite well. It's a must-see for all movie lovers.

Summary: G.B.F. is highly entertaining, original and likable; even though it doesn't succeed when it tries to be a deeper film. 67/100 (B-)

In G.B.F., social warfare erupts when three high school clique queens battle for supremacy: drama diva Caprice, Mormon princess 'Shley and blonde fashionista Fawcett. When unassuming Tanner is outted, he finds himself cast as the hottest new teen-girl accessory: The Gay Best Friend. The clique queens immediately pounce and makeover Tanner into their ideal arm candy, forcing him to choose between popularity and the true friends - including his own B.F.F. Brent - that he's leaving behind. G.B.F. has an interesting and original premise. I enjoyed it, it was very funny and doesn't deserve an R rating at all. This movie was hilarious and what I really liked about it was the amazing supporting cast, Taylor Frey as "Topher" had the best scenes in the movie, he was great.

G.B.F. has a mostly unknown cast, but there were some famous young actresses such as: Sasha Pieterse (Pretty Little Liars), Molly Tarlov (Awkward) and the actress/singer Joanna "JoJo" Levesque (RV, Aquamarine). They were quite likable, and I'll be honest, I saw this film mainly because I am a huge fan of Joanna's work, and she was good in this movie. G.B.F. is everything but predictable. I liked its execution, the first 15 minutes were laugh-out-loud and straight to the point. The whole first act was kinda of sad, and deep sometimes. The rest of the movie is more about the prom and some funny stuff. The film at the third act tries to go deep again, but it feels forced and ineffective. Some sexual scenes in the film were very awkward to watch, so if you are not familiar with this stuff, just don't see it.

G.B.F. has its funny parts, some of them were very funny. I enjoyed it so much and I was entertained. The movie leverages its uncommon premise and you care for the main character, he's shy and likable. G.B.F. is like a very good T.V. film. You will laugh a lot and is enjoyable. It's just a small, remarkable, indie film, hard to forget. I know that this is a very low-budget film, so don't expect many locations. I recommend it if you like teen comedies. The drama and the deep stuff doesn't work, but the comedy was quite well done. The script is sometimes laughable, but it works, it was amusing and mostly effective. Sometimes in the second act the direction was messy and the relation between the characters was confusing. But overall, I still recommend it. (B-)