You know, I have to admit that while there are gay-themed movies that are so awful, so badly executed and so clichéd there is no other way to approach it that doesn't involve a sense of apprehension and at least three glasses of wine to soften the blow, there comes a movie that is so unassuming, so tiny, so much a blink-or-miss event that you would dismiss it because it doesn't have known actors and has been made on a personal level -- really, a labor of love.
Such is the case with this little movie. Its poster does little to attract the right kind of attention because of its flagrant depiction of Harlequin-esquire bodies entwined in a loving embrace. As a matter of fact I won't deny that much of my initial attention was focused on its poster and I thought to myself, "Eh, what the hell -- another gay-lite movie featuring perfectly chiseled bodies, little to zero acting, and a flimsy story that would make ETHAN GREEN look like an exercise in expert plotting."
I will be the first to admit, I was partly wrong. True, the story is pure Harlequin -- change the gender of one of the two leads and you have yourself a quintessential Hollywood weeper starring two of the days brightest leads paired together for sparks and an emotional ride. But there's a stark honesty, something else that is crucial to this movie's enjoyment, that I couldn't -- despite some occasional cheesiness -- take in like I'd never seen a love story before.
For two actors who have little to no credits to their name -- because perish the thought of seeing A-list actors condescend to playing gay men without losing their masculinity; only a handful do that, and even then it's not without some eyebrows being raised, yes, even now -- their interaction together was fraught with enormous sexual and emotional tension, and it's also a tale that takes it time to get to where it needs to get. Matthew Montgomery plays his part with a cheeky realism -- at times it seems like he's in on the fact this is a role, at times he's clearly inside his role. Aaron Orr also comes across very sympathetic as a man who's found the person he's been waiting for and is unmindful that it may cost him everything. And the actress who plays the woman in between Montgomery and Orr, Ariadne Shaeffer, has one intense scene reminiscent of Beatrice Straight in NETWORK that is frankly, chilling.
So, GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN is romance, pure and simple, but done with care to its characters, to its story, and comes out looking much better than if it had been made with a budget of 20 million and power-actors. I loved it and recommend it.
Such is the case with this little movie. Its poster does little to attract the right kind of attention because of its flagrant depiction of Harlequin-esquire bodies entwined in a loving embrace. As a matter of fact I won't deny that much of my initial attention was focused on its poster and I thought to myself, "Eh, what the hell -- another gay-lite movie featuring perfectly chiseled bodies, little to zero acting, and a flimsy story that would make ETHAN GREEN look like an exercise in expert plotting."
I will be the first to admit, I was partly wrong. True, the story is pure Harlequin -- change the gender of one of the two leads and you have yourself a quintessential Hollywood weeper starring two of the days brightest leads paired together for sparks and an emotional ride. But there's a stark honesty, something else that is crucial to this movie's enjoyment, that I couldn't -- despite some occasional cheesiness -- take in like I'd never seen a love story before.
For two actors who have little to no credits to their name -- because perish the thought of seeing A-list actors condescend to playing gay men without losing their masculinity; only a handful do that, and even then it's not without some eyebrows being raised, yes, even now -- their interaction together was fraught with enormous sexual and emotional tension, and it's also a tale that takes it time to get to where it needs to get. Matthew Montgomery plays his part with a cheeky realism -- at times it seems like he's in on the fact this is a role, at times he's clearly inside his role. Aaron Orr also comes across very sympathetic as a man who's found the person he's been waiting for and is unmindful that it may cost him everything. And the actress who plays the woman in between Montgomery and Orr, Ariadne Shaeffer, has one intense scene reminiscent of Beatrice Straight in NETWORK that is frankly, chilling.
So, GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN is romance, pure and simple, but done with care to its characters, to its story, and comes out looking much better than if it had been made with a budget of 20 million and power-actors. I loved it and recommend it.