Adam & Steve

Romantic comedies are formulaic and predictable. Still, there's such a thing as a "superior" genre film, and Adam & Steve is one of the lamentably few that rate that description. Although it's a gay romance, there's nothing that made me as a straight guy remotely uncomfortable. I do think the fact that gay actors played gay characters made things a bit more fluid- much better than, say, "Jeffrey," which featured straight actors overacting gay.

I laughed a lot more than I remember doing at any Rom-com in recent memory. Parker Posey really stole the show for me, but I've always been a fan of hers. The romantic aspect of the film is campy and farcical to the point of absurdity, and hence didn't bother me too much- and the jokes are constant and quality.

If I were to register any criticism, it would be of the generic plot devices- hidden identity, comical misunderstandings, the obligatory Rom-com chase-across-town-before-it's-too-late. But as I said, it's a genre film, and well done for what it is.

I'm getting really tired of people who don't like a particular film genre giving bad reviews of movies belonging to that genre. I don't like gory horror films, so I wouldn't review (or see) something like Hostel or Saw. But somehow people (and reviewers) delight in putting down romcoms, not because there's anything wrong with the films, but because it would have to be something absolutely extraordinary to even merit a "satisfactory" from them.

That's why it pisses me off that Adam and Steve hasn't gotten the critical acclaim that it deserves. I honestly feel that most of the bad reviews were of people predisposed to dislike it just as they'd be predisposed to dislike any new romantic comedy, gay or straight. (That's not to say that it hasn't gotten its fair share of good reviews, and deservedly so!)

Yes, the romantic comedy genre has been done and done again, and not always well, but I can count the number of GAY romantic comedies on the fingers of one hand. All Over the Guy, and Adam and Steve, and...? How many others follow the formula of two people who meet cute, fall in love, face some kind of crisis, and then overcome it in a tear and laughter filled climactic scene? Yes, I'll admit it. I'm a sucker for a good romcom. I can see While You Were Sleeping any day of the week. But as a gay man I've been cheated of this genre, always having to superimpose my own boy/boy couple over the boy/girl couple in the film.

Adam and Steve is the film I (and others I'm sure) have been waiting for. One of the funniest (admittedly crude at times, Thank you Farrely bros) and at the same time most gloriously romantic romcoms ever, and this time it's a boy meets boy, boy loses boy, boy gets boy back story! The chemistry between Craig Chester and Malcolm Gets is palpable, and thank you openly gay hero Chester for casting another gay man to play opposite. As Chester says in the film commentary, he and Gets don't have to worry about "playing gay" but can simply play the characters, and when they are in bed together or sharing a romantic moment (lots of kissing in this film), you don't have to wonder if they felt odd or uncomfortable. It's obvious that they didn't and don't.

Parker Posey and Chris Kattan are along for the ride, Ms. Posey giving yet another lovable quirky performance that's made her the indie queen, and Mr. Kattan showing himself a real actor and real person, something that his usual over the top roles don't allow him to do.

If you don't like romantic comedies, don't see this movie. But if you're like me, someone who loves the genre but has felt cheated out of his own romcom, by all means BUY the DVD because this is a movie you'll be watching again and again.

Craig Chester wrote, directed and stars in this comic love story between two men: a New York City shrink and a klutzy Jewish tour guide who meet and fall in love--but will the recollection of a disastrous date 17 years ago ultimately come between them? Chester is brash and brave and goes out on a limb here, resulting in a gay-comedy better than most. The movie has fun being outré, with ballsy, bitchy humor and an occasional moment of seriousness (a good balance), yet its imagination is stunted, with a fantasy hoedown bit right out of "Jeffrey" and far too many lapses of taste and judgment. Chester's slapstick scenes needed to be reined in, particularly a hopeless sequence with his "cursed" Jewish family and also the poorly-staged gross-out scene 10-minutes in. The film has funny elements and performances (by a most curious cast) and some of it is very sweet. ** from ****

Nothing more here than a standard, cliché, romantic comedy that you would find in a dozen Adam Sandler films or poorly written African American comedies except for that it focuses on a homoesexual relationship. None of the characters are believable, the tone is mostly a farce but there is not a lot of intelligence behind it.

I believe this film is getting a decent buzz, primarily because the two leads are actually gay and rarely do we see supposed "real-life" portrayal of gays in romantic comedies.

The filmmakers intent was to show what it is really like to be in a homosexual relationship and that they have the same feelings, concerns, desires, etc as heterosexual couples. The main problem is that the tone is so absurd and light and none of it seems like real life at all, you don't believe or engage in the characters at all so the message is lost. I am not gay and did not leave the film feeling any more informed about the difficulties of gay relationships or anything even close.

There are some funny scenes and lines but also many awkward moments and irrelevant scenes just thrown in, and dialouge that just doesn't work. Many parts tried to be over the top and absurd just for the sake of doing so, nothing real or organic about them. The acting and pacing also needed work. I just didn't engage or become interested in the characters at any level.

It didn't need to be as heavy or shocking as Queer as Folk or other gay films but moving the tone more toward Kissing Jessica Stein would have served it much better. Beleiving in the characters as actual people instead of over the to characatures would have let me empathize and allowed me to learn a lot more than I did

The 9-11 references were empty and useless. I lived in NY at the time and if your're going to try to capture it at least give it some time, attention, and drama.

Any I don't mean to focus on the gay aspect, it fails as a film period, straight, gay or other, but the producers/filmmakers are promoting it this way so that will inevitably be the focus.

I'd be interested in hearing any opinions from anyone gay who saw the film to see if they felt it represented their struggles properly or if they were maybe just happy to see a light comedy focused on gay life.

Will be interesting to see what happens if/when it is released

What a fun, funny, sharp-witted, incisive film about the rocky road to romance. And how brilliant that it's about a gay couple-- a committed, monogamous gay couple who look very much like real gay human beings (as opposed to the broad caricatures usually seen in film and television). Is it possible that this will be the first "gay" date movie that straight couples will go to and laugh with?

Maybe that's hoping for an America more open-minded than it is, but certainly the open minded heterosexual partners are in for a good time.

Kudos to writer/directer Chester for creating what is an impressive mosaic of styles. In lesser hands the film, with everything from emotional honesty to slapstick comedy to over-the-top (and I do mean WAAYYYY over-the-top) camp, should be a mess. But somehow scenes of first love are actually made sweeter all the more by the slapstick running gag that accompanies them (sorry, no spoilers here!).

The leads are extremely appealing, the dialog is well-realized, and the realities of dating are sharply realized in a film that walks the fine line between maudlin and frank but rarely feels dishonest. That's going to sound ridiculous in the context of a film that includes a choreographed dance-off featuring a drag queen, but the movie is wise to use broad strokes of humor to help otherwise clichéd movie devices go down easier. Additional kudos to Parker Posey, who becomes the heterosexual equivalent of the "Jack" character on "Will & Grace." Her comic contributions are note-perfect.

Chester has commented that the use of comedy has a role in helping straight audiences better accept a budding romance between men. I hope that's true, because this film deserves better than the "cult" or "gay/lesbian" dungeon in your local video store.