Rock Haven
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Movie Reviews of Rock Haven
Movie Review: A regular run of the mill Coming Out, with awful script and acting
Summary: 1 Stars
Rock Haven, while bringing a very real aspect of religion and sexuality, falls short of a good movie. It is about a young religious man whose life is thrown into chaos by a man he sees at the beach. While this young man's fear where it comes to his religion and his religious fanatic mother is decently portrayed; the acting, script, directing and filming of this movie is terrible, although there are a few nice panoramic shots of the beach around "Rock Haven" that is about all that is worth watching in this movie.
I would NOT recommend this movie to anyone. It does have all the elements of a regular run of the mill Coming Out movie... even though everything else is awful!
Movie Review: Flat and Incomplete
Summary: 1 Stars
Could have been a good movie. The first half is good, but the last half hour was strained, incomplete, and unexplainableMovie Review: A great movie
Summary: 4 Stars
I really enjoyed this movie despite its relatively low production quality and standard definition filming. The story is the star of this movie as we see the main character recognize his sexuality and love for another boy and his terrible conflict with his religion and family. It is perhaps the most powerful expression of this age-old conflict I have seen in a movie for a long time. It is definiately to be recommended to anyone who is in the process of this self-discovery, or to remind the rest of us how it was for us once too.Movie Review: "Building Your Love Upon A Rock"........or.....
Summary: 4 Stars
......"Finding The One Who Helps You Find Yourself."
((Here is my approach to obtaining/viewing/reviewing Gay tales in film form. Simply, it's seeking the holy grail of that genre, or looking for the "Addictive Film"---that movie one returns to time and again). Selection/purchase is based mainly on finding new releases by favorite directors/screenwriters and your comments/reviews at various on-line sites. Sometimes I feel correctly steered by you (the "Keepers" filling my DVD shelves), other times mislead, occasionally badly (the "Throwaways"----and I do toss 'em). Rarely, I come across the "Addictive," those watchable every couple of months or so (see below starred *** area for a list......and some of the "near-Addictive" as well). For some movies, I'll share a review with you, as follows below. Thanks for sticking with me so far.))
So, Folks......first off, shall we play a little game of "second-guess the Director?" Uh.....no, no.....wait---just kidding. After all, doin' the "Monday morning Quarterbacxxxx, I mean, Director-ing" thing would be taking too easy a way out.......especially if we're honest and admit that David Lewis did do right the biggest, most "important-est" thing. What is that, you may ask? Well, in the case of a gay romance, be it a comedy or otherwise, doing the right thing is finding and bringing together two male leads who've got "C-H-E-M-I-S-T-R-Y" with one another. And in the case of Sean Hoagland and Owen Alabado, it's undeniably there---it's "cutely" there, I might add (a term which fittingly describes them and what we increasingly see them come across as). While some leads grab you from the very beginning.......others grow on you. These two are of the latter persuasion, but along the way they do hook you nevertheless. Honestly, in the initial scenes I was thinking: these two guys can't act, (particularly Sean's way of expressing himself---it grows on you), but before long they were reeling me in. So, maybe this pair didn't have the acting "chops" to give us what a Cyrille Thouvenin and Stephan Guerin-Tillie gave us in "Just a Question of Love," or even what a Trevor Wright and Brad Rowe happily bestowed upon us in "Shelter," but what they have given us was real enough. Thanks, Boys.
Not to let Director Lewis off the hook completely, while others have already complained of over-numerous surfside and coastline "nature" scenes, as well as the big misstep of thinking he could effectively/believably play the minister role, I won't have to echo those thoughts. BUT.......I do feel I have to add this: in a religious community in which someone like "Brady's mother" would find herself comfortably at home, no way would I expect to find such a gay-understanding "servant of the lord" as Reverend Brown. On the other hand, I also wouldn't expect to find in that "little white-steepled church" community a character such as Katheryn Hecht's "out-there mother" (Angie) either. If any of you reading this think I'm wrong in my view of the "unusual" manner of the Reverend's coming across, please do make a Comment in that section, below.
To me, much of this film pits religious indoctrination (read: interpretation of the bible) vs. learning to be---and accepting---oneself. Brady, finally, epiphanies (please let me make that a verb) that he can be who he is.......and still have his religion. As he, in a closing scene, says to his mother: "I just want you to love me".......then forgives her after she replies she can't change either.
Lastly, for myself and others of you who are observant and find positive meanings in such things, I'd like to ask that you remember the place to which Brady finds his way in the film's final scene is that very same beach-side location at which he first encountered Clifford. We are now sure with whom his thoughts remain. Plus, this realization then reminds me most tellingly of a bit of conversation occurring the morning following their night of love making. Laying in Clifford's embrace, Brady is asked by him: "How're you feeling?" Very significantly, Brady's answer simply is: "Safe." (Can any of you think of a more meaningful response to one's lover in this situation?).
PS--Oh, yeah, and who's to say that there isn't a good prospect of a "reunion" between a more accepting, "reborn" Brady and a Clifford---whose mother, after all, will still be needing a son's visits at her Rock Haven home?
***This film is becoming "Addictive." ***Other such habit formers: "Brokeback Mountain" / "Boy Culture" (Boy Culture) / "All Over The Guy" (All Over the Guy) / "Second Skin" (Second Skin (Unrated Version)) / "The Man I Love" (The Man I Love) / "Latter Days" (Latter Days (Unrated Edition))
****
Movie Review: "Latter Days" for mainstream Christians...almost
Summary: 3 Stars
This is a good movie for the conservative religious to see, in hopes that it might show them the harm their narrow-minded views have, and how unchristian they are, but it's only mediocre at that.
The best part of it is that you really feel the love Clifford feels for Brady, and you really do see how conflicted Brady is over his feelings. Having grown up in rural america, though fortunately not in such a strongly religious household, the fear and denial are *very* real, and the two actors did a good job in their roles.
I also commend the movie for not artificially contriving to hide body parts. When the clothes come off, they come off just like they would for real, so what if you can see what you know is there?
Lastly, though like all the messages this was relatively understated, they did hint at the fact that Brady was basically going through "coming out" as religious, though it would have been pretty obvious. Denial goes both ways, and it's a good thing for those of us non-religious sorts to be reminded to treat those we disagree with with the same respect we expect and deserve.
The main problems with the movie are:
1. It's too painful to watch the train wreck for someone who cares about the couple, and I don't think the message is strong enough to hit home the people who need it.
2. The long drawn out "time passing" scenes feel like they're there to make the movie full length without having to write real dialogue. The short snippets that comprise scenes are marginal enough that this is probably a good thing.
It wants to be "Latter Days" for mainstream Christians, but falls fairly short, unfortunately.