Kirsten Anderson takes on Beautiful Something.
During one night in Philadelphia, four gay men are on the
search for sex, love, and art. The film starts off introducing each character
in their own chapter, then over time they all cross paths, each looking for
something different. Brian (Brian Sheppard) seemingly common, yet probably the
most complex is a hopeless romantic poet. Jim (Zach Ryan) is a model, and the
muse of famous sculptor Drew (Colman Domingo). Last but not least, Bob (John
Lescault) is an old talent agent cruising around town in hopes of finding a
"beautiful something". It was written and directed by Joseph Graham.
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| Do you find me sexy? If so, smell my armpit. |
It's not a spoiler to tell you that there is sex involved in
this film. It's in the description of the movie. However, going blindly into
watching this, the amount of it was a little surprising, and it took up more
time for the plot to get laid instead (pun intended). One might be a little
confused as to what they got themselves into, until the story starts to unfold
a bit. In retrospect, it's nice to see a little more realistic sex than most
movies show currently, and this movie does show quite a bit, earning its Mature
rating. The year in which it takes place is uncertain; the film mixes objects
and ways of communication from both the present and the outdated past, such as
the poet using a typewriter as his medium. Unless intended to be trendy – which
is not the vibe given from his character. The object does not fit in present time. It
feels as though the film could be set a little in the past, as there is no
mention or sight of Grindr or other apps used today to connect to strangers.
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| But I thought you said facial hair was still in. |
The acting is very uneven, some lines delivered as if from a
porno. To make things worse, the voiceover is really bad. It can be passable,
but this movie doesn't even try to hide a few voiced-over lines, with actors’
mouths not even synced when the vocals start. The score is forgettable, except for
one song, and that is because the characters put emphasis on it. The lighting
was mediocre, nothing spectacular; director Graham mentioned in an interview he
wished he had fixed some of the shots which he thought looked overexposed.
The one thing that stood out the most was the scene wherein
the character Bob opens up about his personal story, and mentions how he feels
about the current growing public acceptance of queer love compared to how it
was back in his youth. It was the magical story and touch that the film was
missing, feeling like just a breezed over plot – Bob's story would have made a
far more interesting one.
Score
-Kirsten Anderson