Skip to main content

The Men Next Door

I had no idea what to expect from this film but boy, was I surprised or what. Falling in the rom-com genre (which usually is done in a very bad way) among gay films, this film was pleasantly refreshing. A novel concept, dialogues where you could not stop laughing and chemistry between the actors which was exquisite.

Doug is celebrating his 40th birthday when 3 of his closest friends come up with excuses to not attend his birthday party. Enter his next door neighbor Colton, whom DOug mistakes to be a stripper (planned by his brother). When confusion is cleared, the 2 men are instantly attracted and spend the night together. We also find out that Doug has also recently started seeing an older 50 yr old gentleman Jacob, whom he likes very much. So where is the complication? Doug is for a shock when he finds that Jacob is Colton's father. The comedy of errors begin and soon enough the truth is out to everyone. Unable to decide who does he want to chose, DOug suggests they all continue to see each other. Father and son try to woo DOug in their own possible way but it gets worse. When things go out of hand, the father-son duo decide to stop seeing Doug, so as to not spoil their relationship. Ultimately with the help of his brother, Doug figures out which one of the 2 men make him content and not just happy.

The basic idea behind the film is amazing. I never thought of it and the way it has been played out on the screen is also worth mentioning. DIrector Rob Williams has done a fantastic job extracting out very natural performances from all 3 actors but Doug deserves special mention. He not only has the boy next door charm but is sexy in a different way. His 3 friends also add an interesting dimension to people around him. They were all very funny. The girl was a little OTT but I am ready to forgive. Keeping the comic theme going, the film maker very subtly raises issues about age and cross generational dating specific to the gay community. It was also very heartening to see Doug's straight brother being always there for Doug and when he needs help.

Enjoy this movie. ENough eye candy, good story and acting. What else do you want? (7.5/10)

Comments

GC from France said…
A movie featuring Benjamin Lutz will never disappoint you ! I had a very good time watching this one tonight.I agree the girl seemed pretty messed up in her head but whatever, one of the best comedies I've seen in weeks. Thanks for your reviews.
Golu said…
and thank you for your comments. It feels nice
ILHiker said…
This was the next one on my rewatch spree. I agree with the review, but for me for whatever reason is a drama moreso than a comedy. I'm not entirely sure why. I find it well-written, well-structure, and well-paced. I liked the phone conversations wit the twin brother a lot.I've liked all of Rob Williams' movies that I've seen, with the exception of Pornography: A Thriller. I couldn't quite follow what was going on. I may try it again one of these days and it will make sense to me--that happens sometimes.
Golu said…
I think a lot of that depends on your mood at the time you are watching a film and it reflects on whether you end up liking it or not. Given that there is so much new material, why rewatch :p

Popular posts from this blog

The Shortest Distance is Round 3: Fallen Flowers

Continuing with the weird trilogy of "The Shortest Distance", I am so glad that finally I am done with part 3 and won't have to deal with this again in future. Thankfully, as of now the makers have not announced any further parts; which will save all of us on this earth from the embarrassment of watching this in near future. After the first 10 minutes are used in sort of recapping bits of first two parts, the story moves forward. Haruto is now starting to have feelings for Ruka, the mysterious pole dancer from second part. In a fit of rage, Ruka ends up killing the goat man and to save him and Haruto, Shibahara asks them to go underground. Meanwhile Shibahara continues the search for Seiya (the guy who had cut off Haruto's penis). It turns out Seiya is now also taking care of the original club owner from part 1. Both of them were released after they had informed Shibahara of Aoyama's secret location. Shibahara tortures Seiya's boyfriend leading to Seiya killin

One Summer Night (Korean)

I really wanted to like this film but for non native speakers, these movie leaves a lot to be understood and the way scenes were unfolding in front of me, I wasn't sure many times what was really going on. The story had potential button getting any back story on any of the characters limited my ability to empathize with any of these actors. Film starts with two North Korea military guys Yong Joon and Jae Sung having sex and they are caught red handed and they run. Three years later we see Yong Joon in Seoul leading a very mundane and poor life. He has a boyfriend Tae-Kyu, who is a weird guy. He is carefree, doesn't do any work and is completely emotional and financially dependent on Young Joon. In fact, even Yong Joon will go to any lengths to protect him , fend for him and taking care of him to the extent of even taking up prostitution. Suddenly one day Jae Sung appears in their life again. His motivation is not clear but it is obvious he wants Yong Joon back in his life, who

Ultimate masturbation: Shigoki no yama (Japanese) [The Ultimate Masturbation]

I would never know what was the point behind making this film. Was it supposed to be a comedy, cos it wasn't. It wasn't even porn. It was just a silly attempt at making something absolutely senseless and ridiculous. The story, as well as direction is equally shoddy. You could laugh for having seen something so bad, but I wouldn't call that comedy. An old man runs a camp about gay masturbation. The explanation given is that gays masturbate for pleasure unlike straight men, for whom the act is seen as shame or because they can't find a woman. One day a straight man shows up and wants to join the camp for his thesis. After discussion, he is allowed in. Rules include that you can masturbate together, you can masturbate one another, but there is no fellatio or anal sex. Some students of course breaks rule. The teacher then talks about 2 forms of masturbation which gives ultimate pleasure. He shows one without touching and then refuses to talk of the other. Somehow suddenly,