Gray Matters

On the surface this may seem frivolous, a light, somewhat implausible comedy with affable characters. A girl lives with her brother. She finds herself attracted to his fiancé,and irony ensues. It is, in that respect, a bit formulaic. However, Graham gives a very moving, underrated performance here. I considered myself liberal enough. I favored civil unions, but that was all. I succumbed to the generalization that it was a reasonable compromise. But, I watched a girl crying in an elevator, relating to her brother that she couldn't be GAY because she could never have a normal life. She could never marry. It changed my mind. That is a performance worthy of note.

Sure, there are a lot of things in "Gray Matters" that don't make sense. Some of the casting is slightly off, sometimes the characters slip into dialogue that seems to be cribbed from an after school special, sometimes the characters conveniently forget things just for the sake of moving the plot along. However, despite the obvious missteps, "Gray Matters", in the end, remains watchable and entertaining.

The film begins the way a lot of romantic comedies begin - with dancing. Sam and Gray waltz around a New York City loft, easily imitating scenes from their shared love of 1940's musicals. They seem the perfect couple - if only they weren't related... and therein lies the, yes, I'll admit - thin and silly premise upon which the film is based. You see, Sam and Gray are best friends and siblings. They grew up together, they live together, they speak in dialogue reminiscent of screwball comedies (or Lorelai and Rory from "Gilmore Girls", if that's the reference you prefer). Enter Bridget Moynahan as Charlie, the love interest they are about to share, to shake up their entire relationship and Gray's entire world. A wacky love triangle ensues, as do many, many romantic comedy clichés, made all the more clear by Molly Shannon as Gray's kooky best friend.

Misunderstandings and secrets abound as Gray starts to figure out who she really is, Charlie doesn't have a clue about anything, and Sam grows increasingly nervous. Despite all the silliness and illogical plot transitions, though, "Gray Matters" is, at its heart, a sweet, positive coming out movie. If you can suspend disbelief long enough to believe Heather Graham as a woman questioning her sexuality, it's easy to relate to her realization and subsequent meltdown, and the film takes just the right tone. The film has just enough exuberance to help you get over the illogical ending, too.

Granted, "Kissing Jessica Stein" does what this film attempts to do so much better, but nonetheless, "Gray Matters" is entertaining and fun.

I went to the Hampton's Film Festival in East Hampton this past weekend and saw a wonderful romantic comedy called Gray Matters. The film's overall look and message had a tone similar to one of my favorite directors, Nora Ephron. There was a delightful air of Harry Met Sally combined with You've Got Mail. The references throughout the movie to the 40's were superb. One of my favorite scenes was the opening shot where the two main characters Gray and Sam (brother and sister) ballroom dance to the tune of Cheek to Cheek, sung by actress Jane Krakowski. The footage of Manattan with Cheek to Cheek playing in the background had a feeling of a Woody Allen film. I thought the dialogue was not only funny but witty and timely. Molly Shannon delivers one of the funniest scenes in the movie referring to Oprah Winfrey and how she would surrogate a baby for Oprah and Steadman because she loves Oprah so much. It had the audience in hysterics. Heather Graham gives the performance of her career as a quirky, can't make up her mind, ad executive who struggles with her sexuality after meeting and falling in love with her brother's fiancée. Miss Graham was born to play to this role. At times she reminded me of a young Goldie Hawn. I stayed for the Q and A after the movie and was amazed to find out that the budget on this film was a 10th of what it appeared to be. If this was Sue Kramer's directorial debut, bravo, I look forward to seeing her next attempt at taking the helm. I would like to recommend this film for audiences of all ages. As I walked out of the theatre in East Hampton, I over heard an elderly woman around the age of 80 say " What a lovely film, I hope my granddaughters get a chance to see it".

Saw this with my brother, whom I hang out with often, too, so you can say that we could sort of relate with the movie (except the part where Gray is gay, though ;o))!

Gray (Heather Graham of The Guru, Boogie Nights) and Sam (Tom Cavanagh of Ed) are siblings who are so close that people think they are an item. They meet a beautiful zoologist Charlie (Bridget Moynahan) in a dog park and the three of them hit it off. Sam and Charlie's whirlwind romance gets them hitched, but matters get complicated when Gray and Charlie share a passionate kiss.

Graham still looks cute as a button despite being in her mid-thirties, but she looks like she's trying too hard in the acting department. It's as if she's trying to be a Cameron Diaz/Sandra Bullock but it's just not translating well on screen. But it is not all her fault; the editing could've been so much tighter, with the dialogue delivery less stilted.

While it is also unbelievable that thirtysomethings in this day and age still memorize the forties' dance routines of Fred and Ginger Astaire, it was nice to see the dance sequences of Gray and Sam, and of Gray and Charlie. Amazing how graceful the girls could be!

Alan Cumming as the Scottish cabbie was incredibly weird. I kept expecting him to turn into the X-Men's creepy Nightcrawler (was I the only one who thought this??). But he was funny dressed in drag, nonetheless.

All in all, this film felt like a long sitcom episode. Only Molly Shannon, ever the comic pro, who plays Gray's crazy officemate, delivered all the punchlines effortlessly and efficiently.

Greetings again from the darkness. First time writer/director Sue Kramer certainly tackles an interesting and unique topic with her initial outing.

A quick synopsis: Brother (Tom Cavanaugh) and sister (Heather Graham) live together and are so close and spend so much time together that people naturally assume they are a couple (Ick!). Sister sets brother up with gorgeous, friendly, smart newcomer to the city (Bridget Moynahan) whom they meet at the dog park. Brother and newcomer immediately fall in love and set a wedding date for the next weekend. Sister and bride to be share a long, wet kiss before bride to be passes out drunk. This incident threatens to ruin brother - sister relationship while "outing" sister as the reluctant lesbian she is.

I rarely struggle over a rating or comments for a film. Normally the rating just hits me and the words flow. This one has me almost as confused as Heather Graham's character (Gray). I very much admire the soft-shoe approach that Kramer brings to this most delicate topic. No, I don't consider the theme "coming out" ... I consider the theme self-discovery of identity. Learning to accept one's self and not "pretend" to be what is expected. This topic is explored through some humorous moments, but in a strange way we actually go through the awakening with Ms. Graham.

The key actors all do a nice job. Graham and Cavanagh have a nice chemistry, Moynahan in lingerie is always a good call, Sissy Spacek as the world's worst therapist and Rachel Shelly in an extension from "The L Word" are all solid. Even Molly Shannon is finally cast in a role that suits her just fine. The best and most entertaining character is the Scottish cab driver played charmingly well by Alan Cumming. He is such a likable guy ... except for the whole gay bar scene.

What really prevents this one from reaching another level is strictly the number of unbelievable events. Two smart people zipping off to Vegas to get married after 6 days and having someone 30 years old first entertain thoughts of gaydom are just two large examples of stretches that ask the viewer for a bit too much latitude. Still, there are some funny moments, funny lines and a thought provoking identity theme that make it worthwhile.