The Mostly Unfabulous Social Life of Ethan Green

We went last night to by far the funniest new film of the year so far, THE MOSTLY UNFABULOUS SOCIAL LIFE OF ETHAN GREEN, an R rated (a few decades ago it would have been considered an X) release drawn rather brilliantly from a not-so-brilliant but long running comic strip in a number of "alternate" publications.

I was never a big fan of the strip which was crudely drawn and heavy handed in conception - or so it seemed in the papers and the several compilation books published - but on screen at New York's Quad Cinema, the characters are almost *perfectly* cast to resemble more attractive versions of the cartoon characters and screen writer David Vernon has been given latitude to smooth out and improve on the hilarious conundrums in Generation-X Ethan's self destructive social life (finding an intriguing blend of lots of sex but all too little satisfaction).

In some ways, this is a gay-male version of SEX AND THE CITY: whenever Ethan finds an almost perfect mate, you KNOW he will somehow screw it up (no pun intended). Right now, it's being marketed to a largely gay audience, but it's so well written and directed (feel-good date movie, "independent" variety), it should cross over to a much wider audience and deserves to do for the actor playing Ethan (Daniel Letterle from CAMP!) what BILLY'S Hollywood SCREEN KISS did for "Will & Grace's" Sean Hayes.

The movie is as episodic as Voltaire's Candide, but just as perceptive, and the very episodic nature gives the entire supporting cast (ranging from Meridith Baxter's all too supportive mother to Joel Brooks & Richard Riehle's "Hat Sisters" to Dean Shelton's oversexed teen entrepreneur, "Punch," to Rebecca Lowman's Ann Coulter look-alike/psychotically depressed real estate agent, "Sunny Deals") equal chances to shine, and shine they do.

The grand farce scene where ALL the romantic threads (including, in addition to the above, an ex-football pro, a landlord ex-lover, a Log Cabin Republican fiancé and Ethan's lesbian roommate) come together in the house where Ethan is trying to carve out a coherent love life tops one great laugh with another as if Feydeau-plotted and will have you howling.

Silly, sunny summer fun, and *highly* recommended to straight and gay alike open minded enough to laugh at a very funny but true look at how the other half (or at least a goodly younger part of 10%) loves. Stick around after the fine double ending for the playing cards from the plot significant "Dream Date" board game scattered through the credit "crawl." Its a device that hasn't been used as well since FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF.

A funny line from a funny song, but somehow it captures the mood of this light little comedy, made with enough wit and ingenuity to keep our attention, rehashing some tired gay stereotypes with a fresh approach, and in the end just offering a pastiche that should find an appreciative audience. George Bamber takes on his first directing role and uses a comic strip (Eric Orner) translated for the screen by David Vernon and populates his movie with an attractive cast of men (and women) and ably manages to make the individual frames of a comic strip almost become a smooth storyline.

Ethan Green (the talented Daniel Letterle) has problems with relationships: he has been in many from Juarez (Ramon De Ocampo) who still lives with Ethan's gay boy loving mother Harper (Meredith Baxter), to previously closeted baseball player Leo (Diego Serrano), to Kyle (David Monahan) to the very young Punch (Dean Shelton). The crux of the story revolves around the difficulty of selling Leo's house and the ways in which the various ex-lovers interact provides the somewhat frustrating line of dialogue.

Comic relief is supplied by two elderly gentlemen known as the Hat Sisters (Joel Brooks and Richard Riehle) as well as the shenanigans of the real estate people. Of course we know from the beginning who will end up with whom, but the getting there is fairly fun. The cast obviously has such a good time with the film that they forget to enunciate and so much of the dialogue is swallowed. But they are all fun to watch so it matters little that the superficial aspects of the story remain sub rosa. Grady Harp, October 06

This film is about the love life of Ethan Green, an attractive young man who repeatedly fails to find the love of his life.

"The Mostly Unfabulous Social Life of Ethan Green" is a surprisingly good film. Acting is great, the cast is persistently good throughout. I really felt connected with the characters and the events! The portrayal of Ethan, Leo and Sunny stands out, they provide the most laughs.

If it was a low budget film, it certainly does not show. All the sets and costumes are nice and eye catching, enhancing the uplifting feel of the film. I think "The Mostly Unfabulous Social Life of Ethan Green" is a cheerful and upbeat comedy and deserves to be seen by more people.

I just wanted to give a quick review and say that I really enjoyed this movie. I saw it at a gay film festival in Austin, and the audience was in a constant laughing uproar. I don't know what film festival the other review went to, but I think it was in D.C.

I didn't notice any bad acting. I quite enjoyed it. The dates he went on and the people he met were all too real. It very-much resembles the gay scene in a humorous way. One of the last scenes was very American Pie style, and it was a riot! Loved every minute of this movie.

As a gay guy, previously straight, I enjoyed this movie and hope it sees a DVD soon.

In THE MOSTLY UNFABULOUS SOCIAL LIFE OF ETHAN GREEN, there is one great laugh: As two of the characters argue with each other in a bookstore, all the shelves are packed tight, except the one marked "Lesbian Humor," which only has one volume. Okay, it's not a great laugh, but it is a nice little chuckle. And the viewers should be grateful for that, because otherwise as a romantic comedy ETHAN GREEN is pretty skimpy with both the romance and the comedy.

Based on a cult gay comic strip of the same name, ETHAN GREEN seems to be trying to say something socially relevant about contemporary gay relationships. And while the film isn't wanting in imagination or even inspiration, it regrettably reflects its comic strip source by being strangely flat and two dimensional. The jokes are there, but like Eric Orner's artwork in the original comics, they are drawn with little style or depth or skill.

Ethan is an unlucky-in-love, self-proclaimed "serial monogamist." At 26, an age when most men -- whether gay or straight -- are searching for anything other than a lifetime romantic/sexual commitment, Ethan is going through a mid-life crisis worrying about his biological clock and a fear of dying an old maid. Despite his almost desperate desire to find his soulmate, the has an equally desperate need to find something wrong with every potential Mr. Right. Both things seem to preoccupy his every waking thought, but then again, Ethan doesn't seem to have anything else going on his life, such as a job. And even his strangely anonymous suburban home is devoid of evidence of his existence, without so much as a MOULIN ROUGE! movie poster or a Streisand album in sight to indicate a gay man is on the premises.

As played by Daniel Letterle with an almost-campy almost-swishiness, Ethan is clearly a gay stereotype, yet he remains curiously devoid of a personality. Surrounded by non-stereotypical characters, who nonetheless have obvious personality quirks that define them, Ethan is arguably the least interesting character in the story. His lovers, past and present, include a hot Latino boytoy (to whom Ethan's mother plays fag hag); a nerdy bookstore owner; a fresh-out-of-the-closet professional jock; and a 19-year-old sexually adventurous twink, all of whom are hung up on Ethan to some degree -- though God knows why. There is also a gay Republican, which the story treats as a perpetual joke, (and the less said about The Hat Sisters, a pair of burly aging transvestites, the better). We are supposed to wonder which of these guys Ethan will ultimately pick, though we also might rightly wonder which one will ultimately get stuck with Ethan. Ethan's focus seems to be on avoiding the wrong choice and not making the right one, a subtle, but telling difference.

The strangest thing about the film is that Ethan is this unfunny dead weight at the center of everything. Virtually everybody else is almost joyously upbeat; like Meredith Baxter as Ethan's mom, whose acceptance of her son's homosexuality has inspired her to be a wedding planner for civil unions. Even Rebecca Lowman as Sunny Deal, a chronically depressed lesbian real estate agent, manages to make her character's suicidal depression amusing. And an especially bright light in the film is Dean Shelton as Punch Epstein, the twink who is still high on being out and sees gay sex as a game with few rules and endless possibilities. If someone in the film has to be deemed "fabulous," Shelton's performance earns him the right. (It's just a pity the film isn't THE MOSTLY FABULOUS SEXUAL LIFE OF PUNCH EPSTEIN.)

It is not just that Ethan is such a sadsack -- the whole point being that his pessimism is an island in a sea of optimism. But Letterle, who made such a winning impression in CAMP, brings no charisma to Ethan and thus, no focus. And I don't think it is entirely Letterle's fault, since he seems to be playing the part as written. For instance, when Ethan decides at the last minute to break up a wedding, he stops midpoint to browse a catalogue and place a phone order. Funny? Yeah, sorta. But at what cost to the story? Despite a few discreetly suggestive sex scenes, there is no passion, let alone urgency, to the story or between any of the characters. For a movie filmed in less than two weeks, ETHAN GREEN is surprisingly well made technically, but first-time director George Bamber can't conjure up any eagerness to please. Likewise, in the end Ethan doesn't seem to find Mr. Right so much as Mr. Alright. If neither Ethan nor the film are fabulous, it is because neither have made the effort.