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Reviews
Gone, But Not Forgotten (2003)
What's wrong with nice?
OK, so I've watched the maybe five good English speaking gay themed movies released over the last five years. My internet rental queue has about 70 titles for which I remain ever hopeful. One after another, they rate anywhere from simple horrible to pointless, depressing, tedious, condescending, or French horrible. Hope has not completely vanished, but expectations are no longer exceedingly high.
Maybe low expectation was why I liked this movie. I certainly think way too high expectation is why some others did not. The best of film makers would be hard pressed to do better with a budget that wouldn't pay for food service on most movie sets and undoubtedly filmed in less time than a big budget director spends picking his nose. Come on, this little guy deserves a break. The story is feasible and interesting situationally. The characters are believable and their interactions seem real without stereotype. The storyline is laid out in a logical fashion. There is a point. The acting is at least up to soap opera standards. Problems that hound gay relationships are addressed honestly. The video format seems very fitting for the simple, small town, natural surroundings in which it was filmed. The guys are aesthetically decent enough. And it has one of the best choreographed romantic love scenes of any gay movie, big budget or not. As far as pace, this is indeed not an action packed, ADHD storyline, but the pace does thankfully allow the characters to develop. It's just a nice story to let you know the big bad world is not going to always eat you alive.
"Gone but not Forgotten" is more like a granola bar grabbed at the checkout counter rather than say, "Foie Gras en Terrine", at the French Laundry. Simple, momentarily satisfying, and basically healthy. I hope it gets judged accordingly.
Man of the Year (1995)
It's all in the expectations
Like a pleasant walk on a beautiful beach, this movie gives the viewer an entertaining look inside the year-long adventure of a very pretty Playgirl model. Dirk Shafer, as "man of the year" and all that implies, must juggle the merits of this honor against the personal angst of being a gay man wearing a straight jacket. This is an interesting story, based on factual events, and re-enacted in a documentary style.
Most of the disappointed newsgroup reviews seemed to have been fostered by expectations that were unrealistic or overly lofty. There are no epiphanies here folks. Do not, I repeat, do not rent this movie to change your life. Some reviewers were apparently bothered that Dirk Shafer's year did not achieve deep social meaning to rival Mother Teresa's or that his virgin directing efforts did not unseat Stanley Kubrick. Several reviewers were annoyed that Dirk Shafer was too interested in himself. Well, duh, you don't have to attend 100 movies a week to realize early on that the movie is about Dirk Shafer, beginning, middle, end!
The naked truth of this movie is a simple story of an ordinary guy in a well tended package who finds himself romanced by an extraordinary situation. Fraught with heady seduction, personal dilemma, trauma, and confusion, I felt for Dirk's quandary, and was impressed that he could relate his tale with humor. Ultimately, Dirk's epiphany is one to which we could all subscribe. When shadow and makeup no longer hide the truth, and beauty moves beyond the skin, the value that remains is how much you are loved and how much you love others. And there you have it. Enjoy the walk and the beautiful scenery, your life will likely not change, but you will smile in the end.
The Blair Witch Project (1999)
More like Formica than real wood
Whatever you do, do not see this movie alone! Not because it is scary, but so you will have another perspective. While my movie partner was screaming in fear, I was screaming let me out of here! I was excited when it started, and ecstatic when it was over. This rates as one of the most tedious and boring movies I have seen in years. The effect,to me, was more like Formica, than real wood. It was pretending to be something real, but I was never able to believe it.
Three film students get lost in the woods on a quest for any truth behind local myths of witch evils, and ritual slayings. You know the ending from the very beginning, so how the story takes us there is the meat of the movie. Events start out fairly enough, introducing the players and effectively sharing their enthusiasm and naivete'. The filming process can be dizzying but is part of the premise. The first half of the movie lost my attention and was never strong enough to recapture it. As a result, I never felt their fear, or cared about their plight, but instead my mind wandered during the terror-like scenes to visions of the real film crew skipping happily through the woods gathering bundles of twigs and rocks, while others strung them into funky voodoo ornaments to hang in the trees. Lapses in logic became more noticeable due to my lost interest and the seriousness of the documentary pretense. If you find yourself in that position during this movie, you might wonder where they found the super-batteries to power their cameras?..why would someone waste flashlight power to sew in the dark when you might really need it to find the boogie-bitch later...why, if you are scared witless, hallucinating about mashed potatoes, inhumanly fatigued, and eating tree leaves, could you even consider hauling around a 70 pound back pack, much less, remain focused on filming??? While the script's depiction of bickering and likely conversations may have been one of the more accurate aspects of the movie, that too, became annoying due to its excessive reliance on the characters "f**king" limited vocabulary.
Many moviegoers will love this effort simply because it is different, not because it is good. That alone, reflects the sad state of big budget offerings. Hooray for the true indies and I'm happy for this group and their success. Maybe they can make the movie business better now.
There certainly seems to be no middle ground for personal or professional passions regarding this movie. You love it or you hate it. With that in mind, wait for the discount showing or video. It will be a bargain love fest, and not much lost for the other scenario (take a flashlight and a knitting project, just in case). But please, if you choose to see this move, bring a friend and plan for lively discussion afterward.