A Stormy Night

source: A Stormy Night

I found this film a really interesting proposal. It touches many points of LGBT relationships from both the Spanish and the American side and I believe it is really well characterized. Both actors, represent what an average gay person from that geography looks or thinks like. It exposes their ideas, personal struggles, expectations and visions (of course not everyone, but my point is I think it is really well studied and represents a sector of the gay person of those societies.). It also reflects on different visions regarding work, day to day habits and life goals from American and European cultures in general. And then regarding the sexual tension between both characters, I loved how it is explored in the film, I could feel the sexual tension all the way and both characters have their way of showing it. I wish even the film could have gone deeper and explore more this romantic dimension. Would like to see more like this in the future.

A threatening storm is playing havoc with flights from New York and causes "Marcos" (David Moragas) to seek shelter at his friend's apartment. She has gone alway to avoid the weather, but her friend "Alan" (Jacob Perkins) is there and the remainder of this film depicts the twenty-four hours (or so) as these two gay men learn a little about each other. It is quite intimately filmed, this - but the whole story is contrived and over-scripted. Perkins brings an intensity to his performance, but the underlying themes of love, happiness, frustration etc... are depressingly familiar. Despite the odd quip and some fairly predictable attempts at humour, this really just comes across as a rather unfulfilling story that left me indifferent to both characters and rather bored with a will they/won't they dynamic that really fails to get off the ground - and never looks like it should either. The audio of the thunder and lightening around them, along with some frequently rather dingy lighting, does lend a little to the atmosphere of the scenario, but in the end Perkins just has way, way too many lines to deliver and, well, eighty minutes seemed to take much longer.

A terrible case of trying too hard. It's black & white. Fine. It has more unnaturally-crafted awkward/uncomfortable moments than Borat. The riveting Wi-Fi password writing & creepy sleep-watching scenes were reeeeal steering wheel-jerkers. And... we get it. Alan has anxiety. WE. GET. IT. Seems somewhat agoraphobic as well but with the insistent dialogue, one can't even gain an ounce of empathy for the character. The only kudos I could give this "What Ever Happened to Auntie Mame" was the scene where Marcos talks Alan down from a panic attack. The verbal queues mimicking intimate "dirty talk" WERE a smart metaphor for any sex scenes usually in one of these films. For that, credit due!