The Sum of Us

I was coming out to myself.. I had this warped image of being gay that I had to develop a lisp and become high camp just to conform with being gay (I repeat I was 13 and living in the sticks.) I saw an ad for this movie TSOU and I just had to see it. With alot of precautions I caught a train for 2 hours to a movie theater that was far enough away so no one that I knew would see me going to a "gay" Film. Any way Sitting in the theater I was presented with an image of a gay man that didn't fall into the stereotypes I had been so used to, I guess the film taught me I could be gay with out being faggy. To simply label this as a gay movie is to miss the entire point its a Romance movie, both father and son looking for a partner of same/different gender. To make a tired point I love this movie Russell Crowe and Jack Thompson are brilliant.. I wish I had a dad like Henry.... or a boyfriend like Jeff :)

This movie took me by surprise, it is personable, sincere and utterly Australian. It explores its themes in a beautiful manner, through the relationships between family, especially father and son. Don't be put off by Russel Crowe. I myself almost didn't watch it because he was in it, but I have to say, he did a brilliant job. He took the character and made it his own, and I feel no one else could have played the part any better. Take into account that this movie was originally a stage play, so there are various monologues and direct engagement with the audience. This at first is a little surprising and perhaps even uncomfortable, as we are so used to being purely observers when watching a movie. After initial surprise however I found the technique refreshing, it gave the film a more personable and intimate quality. I revel in how Australian this film is, the fact that I use the same brands of mustard and soy sauce which at one point appeared at the dinner table, made me unusually delighted and also pulled me into the realism which the film tries and succeeds in conveying. At risk of sounding patriotic, it almost made me proud to be Australian. This is probably one of my favourite movies, in its exploration of love and how it should not be dictated by the limits of our society.

I love this movie because it really adds another face to Russell Crowe's versatility. Everybody remembers him for Gladiator, L.A. Confidential and possibly Romper Stopmer, well, here he's an affectionate gay plumber with an eye for a boy at the bar. Within the first ten minutes you'll also be over run with Aussie-isms such as "two ticks" and "Yonks". When I first thought of the plot, I was thinking, "Gee, this could be jazzed up a bit," but then I figured the simple unpolluted nature of the characters doesn't really require much more of a rollercoaster plot. After seeing this movie, I feel compelled to go to my local australian bar to find hopeless romance in a that boy across the counter. I recommend Breaking Up and Proof, if you liked this.

I LOVE this movie and have watched it countless times. Its funny, sad, touching, hilarious, sweet, and in general a feel good movie. All kids should have the kind of relationship that Jeff (the character played by Russell Crowe) is lucky enough to have with his father. The world would be a far better place for it.

Jeff's father, Harry, is a widow, and is not only Jeff's dad, he's also his best friend. The film focuses on their relationship with each other and with their prospective partners. Jeff is gay, and rather than being the stereotypical "movie father" full of shock at his son's sexuality, Harry is very supportive of his sons lifestyle. As Harry explains in the movie, our kids are after all "the sum of us" .

Jack Thompson and Russell Crowe are a joy to watch as Harry and Jeff, father and son, and best mates, and this is a genuinely wonderful, touching movie which draws as many tears as it does laughs. One to look out for, and well worth a watch. Harry and Jeff will stay with you long after the end credits have finished running.

Saw this again for the first time for almost a decade, on the Sundance Channel during their Pride Festival. The character-to-camera (audience) device seems a lot stagier now than it did when I first saw it, but overall it doesn't mar any of the film's inherent bittersweet attraction.

I've always been a sucker for good father/son relationship movies, and this ranks up there with the best, and not because of the twist: Harry's (Jack Thompson) almost too-willing acceptance of his son's gayness. What makes it ultimately work is the true love, respect and affection that they have for one another, a bond that is sorely tested in the film's third.

Thompson is funny and engaging in a kind of role that he's not usually known for, (for that, see the excellent BREAKER MORANT.) And as for Russell...I saw this for the first time only weeks after seeing ROMPER STOMPER, and not only was it a startling contrast, but a sure-fire sign that this boyo was a talent to watch even in the early stages (now proven a thousand times over.)

And here's another refreshing difference: nobody's in OTT drag, (you can rent TO WONG FOO for that), nobody gets AIDS, OD's, commits suicide or otherwise meets the Grim Reaper most tragically, as gay characters are wont to do in most big-budget Hollyweird "gay-friendly" dramas.

David Stevens writing remains true to the joys of "Australiana" (a new word that I love, thanks to an earlier reviewer here), which means that some less-experienced viewers may find Harry's extremely tolerable demeanor and the turn from comedy to tragedy off-putting. (For other references to similar scenarios, see MURIEL'S WEDDING, SWEETIE and of course, MOULIN ROUGE.)

But for me, it's a rare-look back at the kind of risk-taking that Russell may never again explore in his career. More than worth the cost of a rental or your time, if you can catch it.