Kiss the Bride

This is an oft-used line, but it really sums up this movie..."If this is the current state of gay cinema, then we're in real trouble". I saw this film at SIFF because of the high IMDb rating (7.6) and if there was ever a case of vote stacking on IMDb, then this is it. Just watch the number fall over the release weeks of the film.

Easy plot...Boy finds out his high school ex (boyfriend) is getting married to a female friend of theirs so he goes back to his old hometown (still carrying a 10 year old torch) to see what happened.

First off, I liked "Latter Days", the director's last feature, despite its cookie cutter characters and plot contrivances, but you're supposed to become a better director with each subsequent release. I don't know how you get horrible supporting performances out of so many TV veterans (Robert Foxworth, Joanna Cassidy, Tori Spelling), but somehow he managed to. The writing was Lifetime Network quality (way back when they were REALLY bad) and the situations were unbelievable AND uncomfortably hard to watch. I kept reaching for a non-existent remote control to fast forward, but ultimately made myself stay to the end, hoping for a decent ending. Ugh...no. Even the gratuitous male nudity that popped up during the movie was so blatantly gratuitous that it seemed to be there to keep people in their seats.

To be fair...the 2 leads, especially in the gratuitous nude scenes, were gorgeous. There was also a real sweetness between them during their rekindling friendship as they uncovered how they went separate ways. And the film looked great...good quality and color saturation for an independent film.

How is it that network TV can give week after week of great, entertaining weekly episodes (Like "Ugly Betty", "Desp. Housewives", etc.), but so many feature releases in similar genres can be as bad as this?

Wow, Kiss the Bride wasn't that bad, but it wasn't that good either. It sure was no "Later Day Saints." The movie sags in the center...perhaps cutting out about 30 minutes would have made a more enjoyable film. But the film gets bogged down again and again by annoying subplots and throw away scenes - the whole gold outing sequence comes to mind.

Even though "Kiss" was made for theatrical release, it looks and sounds more like a made for TV movie. Every scene is lighted like a department store. So many characters are so throw away.

And dear Tori is actually a pleasant surprise. She steals every scene she appears in.

One scene really annoyed me. It was the rehearsal dinner in this larger room with scores of tables - all decorated. But only 5 or 6 people in a room for 250! Where did everyone go.

Gay cinema has sunk to a new low...but not as low as the horrible films being produced and shown on the Here! Channel.

Not a very convincing movie and not one with an ending that would generally please either a Gay or Straight audience. Acting is OK, but characterization bordered on caricature at points. I wish that I hadn't watched it. You can get some really great LGBT themed movies on Youtube , (free to watch) like "Shelter" or "Apart From High" or "Juste une question d'amour", but "Kiss The Bride" is not notable in my opinion... Another user here - who reviewed this movie a while ago - wrote words to the effect that if this if the state of modern Gay cinema, then we are in trouble. And I agree 100%.

What can I say? This was one awful movie to watch. I am normally not very critical of gay cinema in general, due to the fact that most are usually low-budget, but this really pushed me up the wall. I mean, is this was has happened to gay cinema? Haven't gay producers and directors learned anything from Gus Van Saints and Ang Lee's films?. Just having to sit through the entire movie was like being in a dentist's chair and having my wisdom teeth extracted. I kept on praying for moments where I would feel any sort of connection with any of the characters, but that never happened. Most of the characters performances were just not very convincing. It was like watching one of those badly produced made-for-TV movie specials on a local access TV stations. I cannot tell u how greatly disappointed It was seeing this film after being a big fan of Tori Spellings other works and the directors last work on "Latter day saints." It was definitely not worth the wait. Definitely, a few hours of my life I will never get back and will certainly not be purchasing it on DVD.

'Kiss the Bride' is without doubt one of the worst, bottom of the barrel pictures that ever came down the pike. It centers around two Cali knuckleheads, Matt and Ryan, who were former lovers. Fast forward a number of years and one is getting married having found, or so he believes, the love of his life played by Tori Spelling. The other character, uninvited, decides to attend the wedding, uninvited , in hopes of recapturing his former partner who he still loves. In a moment of heterosexualization, a terrible homophobic ploy, in my opinion, he tries to bed down his former lover's intended bride, making him now curious about his own sexuality. The writer, Ty Lieberman, needs a crash course or ten in creative writing. And LGBTQ+ sensitivity. The acting is a bit over the top as well, but given the awful script, you can't blame them. C. Jay Cox's direction does nothing to lift up this Cali mess.

The ending is also ridiculous and far fetched. Don't waste one minute of your life watching this because you'll never get that time back.