The Men Next Door

If you're looking for gritty reality, social significance or thought-provoking dialogue, this movie definitely should be avoided.

The story is improbable and ridiculous, but I'd say the first 80% of the movie is mildly amusing ... not because of the situations, but because the actors are fairly engaging at the amateur level. The central character grimaces a little too often and the supposed romantic attractions are definitely credulity stretchers, but it is just a fluff sitcom and decidedly low budget so you'll have to be in the mood to be mildly amused and/or slightly inebriated.

Unfortunately towards the end of the movie the ménage à trois disintegrates and we are expected to feel some sympathy for the predicament our hero faces and to be concerned about how it will be eventually resolved. That's when the disturbing realization hits you that the writer and director are actually laboring under the impression that anyone takes the story seriously or cares how it ends. When the cute, somewhat amusing repartee stops and everyone starts waxing philosophic, you'll start hitting the fast forward button ... if not sooner.

Rob Williams is to film as Jeffrey Dahmer was to cuisine. In nearly EVERY film of his, the dialogue is completely campy, contrived and BORING. Regardless of the actors and delivery the "jokes" just fall flat. In fact every character's lines sound like they were written for the drunk, clueless guest at a gay party that believes he is the witty center of attention, when in reality no one even knows who invited him and gives him courtesy smiles in sympathy. Well, no courtesy smile for this garbage heap.

This is the type of comedy that might appeal to Will and Grace fans. It also is very much like a gazillion of youtube videos out there, where groups of bad amateur actors put together little comical gay themed vignettes. As in those, in this film they have literally copied the mildly bitchy West Hollywood repartee straight from their dinner parties, bar chat, office banter and pasted it into this story about a professional Quadragenarious gay man and his professional gay friends, an annoying fag hag, and two lovers: "the men next door."

The main actor seems to think that his every acting effort should be followed by curving his lips in an pouting way (no sweetie, it's just not cute, you're not a 13 year old teenage girl). He has zero charisma and no sex appeal. Every joke cracked, I couldn't as much as raise a smile, it merely instilled irritation. And believe me, I do know how to appreciate a well delivered camp performance; this simply is not. The other actors carry no humour with them, except for the "straight" brother character.

I could only bear watching this for about 20 minutes before I gave up. The best thing about the film is the HD quality. But perhaps that would have been of better use if the interiors were less Ikea showroom, and a bit more more lush. I prefer to go to a gay bar on Santa Monica Boulevard myself, and eavesdrop into people's conversations; that will provide me with a whole lot more entertainment than this not so terribly funny flick.

Ok, you shouldn't watch this movie an critic as it is think to be a masterpiece, just don't. The idea is to watch and relax.

The basic idea it is what would happend if a guy dates two men at the same time, one ten years older, the other one 10 years younger.

I was hoping maybe this movie was going to be watchable, but noooooooh. The insipid dialog was written with no inkling of what truly funny repartee is. This pretentious bar babble made me cringe. Within the first ten minutes I started fast forwarding through most of it. I stopped only to find the later scenes did not improve. The actors were almost passable in the looks department, but the absence of physical chemistry and credibility strained the imagination. Stereotypes were too present, or maybe it was the sight of gay actors playing gay so poorly that upset me. These kind of "cute" comedies have always aggravated me. I hated Will and Grace and I hate this pathetic attempt at a Gay Romantic Comedy. Lets hope someone can eventually make a gay romantic comedy with the quality of a You've Got Mail or a classic like Charade. Is it asking too much? Films like Plan B, Patrik 1.5 or the fantasy Bad Boy Street seem to point the way.