High Tide

"Director, you did an incredible job! A friend from Brazil recommended this film, and when I saw the trailer, I felt an instant connection - it was like my life was right there. With ADHD, it's hard for me to focus on movies, but this one completely captivated me. The authenticity and emotion you brought to the screen are impressive.

Marco Pigossi's performance in "High Tide" was widely praised! He's a talented actor who brought depth and nuance to the character of Lourenço. His portrayal of the complexities of love, identity, and vulnerability must have been compelling to watch. Congratulations!

High Tide, written and directed by Marco Calvani and starring his husband Marco Pigossi, isn't just a film-it's a mirror. A soft, brutal one. The kind that doesn't flatter but tells the truth, gently, and then walks away before you can argue.

At 49, gay, and newly divorced, I didn't expect to be seen-really seen-by a film that moves this quietly. Pigossi's character floats through his life like a ghost haunting his own body, and I felt every second of it. I've been there. Frankly, I might still be there.

Calvani's script cuts with a poet's precision, carving out themes of shame, isolation, and the quiet cruelty of gay loneliness with zero melodrama and zero apologies. Pigossi, for his part, delivers a performance so naked and unguarded, it feels almost obscene that the Academy will likely ignore it.

This film doesn't beg for attention. It trusts you'll lean in. And if you do, you'll find something rare: a gay story told without polish or pretension, but with the kind of emotional architecture that stays with you for days.

We need films like High Tide. Not louder ones-truer ones.

Relishing the freedom to openly be oneself can be a fulfilling and liberating experience, especially for those who have lived most of their lives hiding from disapproving family members and a close-minded society. So it is for Lourenço (Marco Pigossi), a Brazilian transplant seeking to resettle permanently in Provincetown, MA, a goal dependent on him acquiring a work visa to replace a tourist visa that's about to expire. He has an added incentive to fulfill that objective when he meets and falls for Maurice (James Bland), a vacationer from New York who's visiting the oceanside resort town before embarking on an ambitious, long-term nursing residency in the wilds of Angola. But can the two would-be lovers make this relationship work in light of the impending changes in their respective lives, geography and careers? What's more, as this budding romance begins to blossom, Lourenço also wrestles with leftover baggage from an old relationship, unwanted advances from opportunistic lecherous would-be suitors and never-ending pressure from his mother back in Brazil, who is unaware of his closeted sexuality and routinely prods him to settle down and find a wife. While writer-director Marco Calvani capably and sensitively presents a tender, authentic, same-sex love story, the picture nevertheless tells a somewhat familiar tale whose narrative is not particularly original in the annals of LGBTQ+ cinema. It also struggles to blend its own brands of comedy and drama, both of which are handled well in their own right but whose inherent natures frequently come across as too extremely opposed to one another to harmonize in a believable, coherent whole. On top of that, the film also tries to cover too much ground at times, with a number of subplots that could have been easily trimmed or eliminated entirely without causing any undue harm to the picture overall. To its credit, though, this offering sincerely has its heart in the right place, despite the aforementioned shortcomings, backed up by an array of fine supporting performances and gorgeous cinematography showcasing the beauty and character of this charming Cape Cod resort town. Unfortunately, however, "High Tide" is yet another recent release that could have used some significant retooling to help it fully live up to its potential, especially given its predominantly conventional premise. Gay cinema has increasingly been moving forward in new and innovative directions in recent years, so, if filmmakers in this genre attempt to tackle new expressions of tried-and-true formulas like this, they had better have a good grasp of what they're doing if they ultimately hope to succeed in the end.

I saw this at the IFC Center during its opening week in NYC, and I was charmed by it. The intercut scenes did a great job of establishing the setting, and the relationships between the characters were nicely layered. The sex scenes were artfully done and evocative. The story of a Brazilian immigrant in P-town is not high drama, but it is human, and on that level, it did a great job of throwing the spotlight on gay culture and the theme of wanting to escape one's life, through dancing, swimming, drugs, or relief work in Angola. The casting was interesting, the performances very realistic, the cinematography beautiful, and the montages worked well. My husband missed much of the show because he lost his ticket and had to get up to use the bathroom, and he felt the plot was predictable. I however could not have predicted what happened at the end, I don't think he could have either.

This one really is a masterful film! The beautiful mix of pain, grief, love and hope reminds me of films like Moonlight, God's Own Country, Past Lives and Manchester By The Sea. I saw it in Boston and I had the opportunity of thanking the filmmakers in person for creating this gift. The love making scenes are some of the best I've seen in movies. And the cast is incredible... such a beautiful work of art. I hope everyone gets to see this once it gets to streaming. It's a poem, it's a love song, it's everything one can wish for. I've never been to Provincetown but now I'm dying to go! Congrats to everyone involved!