Tan Lines

It seems everyone in the movie is attempting to escape from where and who they are. Some actually leave. Some escape through fantasy, others with drugs or drink, still others by taking a holiday at the lake. The mother of the central character, Midget, seems to spend the entire movie escaping life through sleep, covered with a blanket and only reaching out for cash that Midget leaves for her next to the bed … a bed that he and his mother share. Even the money Midget provides his mother is "earned" from an old lady who escapes from her reality by watching Midget and her niece acting out a sexual charade.

Midget, who seems to be one of the few genuinely lovable, essentially "normal" people in the movie, keeps trying to figure out who he really is and what he really wants. Sadly he seems to be continually used and rejected by everyone … gay friends, straight friends, older people, young people, his mother.In the end Midget abandons his quest for love, gives up his hope of escape from his hopeless environment and attempts to resolve his loneliness in the only way left open to him.

You really have to love Midget. It's quite sad that love is in such short supply in his life.

If you wonder how one might find a fresh perspective on the old issues of coming-of-age and coming out, then check out this smart quirky movie, set in a small-town surfing community. The main characters are a self-questioning protagonist, and two brothers who are his surfing buddies. The older brother is a confident but alienated gay man who returns to his family after being driven away some years before following an affair with his high school teacher. The movie takes a number of surprising turns, and the relationships are complex and ambiguous (especially the relationship between the brothers, and the relationship between the older brother and his teacher). One Net-blurb inaccurately describes this movie as a "charming romp." Parts of it are quite funny, but it's a serious look at the stresses of a gay adolescence. The geeky-charming young protagonist, Midget, learns how to be callous, and to face disappointment, even as he learns about love and sex. Don't expect a romantic fade-out. The next-to-last scene has a brief, silent shot that provides a thought-provoking plot twist. The young cast were largely non-professional actors and they are fresh, fun, believable, sexy, and blessedly un-Hollywood in appearance. If you see this movie and like it, do not miss the terrific director commentary. The director is articulate, very smart about both movies and life, and funny. It's one of the best commentaries I've heard in some time.

With a taste of Larry Clark's teen angst and desperation but without the moral emptiness of Clark's "kids", the teens in this Aussie film do care for each other and for the most part "do the right thing." The surreal scenes: a geriatric drunken game of strip poker, a chorus of Christian wall images occasionally commenting on the action, a Gothic setting where the "hero" Midget "works" (too bizarre to describe and ruin it for you), all these make it interesting. That Midget is struggling (but not too much) with working out his gay desires along with a try for a girl doesn't compete with the dreariness of every day life and the hope to leave this dismal town.

If a modest goal is to make the viewer care about the people and the plot, this movie achieved that goal and more. The photography was effective with snappy cuts from one scene to another.

This film knocked my socks off! The eroticism is one for the books - unlike anything I have ever seen in a film. Kudos to the director who understands that being subtle is much more interesting than blatant sex. Everything about the film is first rate. The two leads are knock-out hunks and when they get together, brother look out - your glasses will be steaming as mine were. In its own way, however, the film breaks very new ground by meandering from one surreal scene to another so that you never know where it's going and this is a good thing, because the erotic scenes pop up so unexpectedly that you can hardly catch your breath. The photography is spellbinding, some shots looking like paintings they are so abstract. But more than anything else it's the naturalness of the acting that grabs you so that before you know it you are caught up in the story like nothing else.

A contemporary masterpiece of the Arthouse genre, featuring impressive performances by adolescent lead actors and a more mature supporting one (Christian Willis). Atmosphere and emotion without neglecting the plot. The incorporation of elderly amateur actors and surreal elements doesn't really fit in, but could be explained as an exercise in style, done by the director to make his long-film debut more diverse. - Absolute recommendation for all gay and straight audiences interested in coming-out related stories, and that - in my opinion - from the age of 12, unlike the actual certifications.