tlavideo.com

Stephen wrote on 03/14/2013:

I think the film was awesome! The acting was superb and the direction was very well thought out and purposeful. I have seen some of Matt's earlier work and was very excited to see this film. The characters actually made me care about what was going to happen next. I recommend this film to ANYONE gay or straight who believes that love will always "start again" whenever its ready!

T Koch wrote on 03/09/2013:

Here is why I like Matt Riddlehoover's films: his work is fearless and true. And, in this case, funny and sad and sweet and annoying and all those things that make up real life. The main character, Darren (played by Riddlehoover), doesn't have a life - at least not his own. He careers from being muse to one man and fetish to another, to unwittingly becoming a detective obsessed with figuring out the relationship of a gay couple in his apartment building.

We, in turn, are invited to become detectives trying to figure out Darren. Our first discovery is that Darren is not, as might seem at first glance, shallow and narcissistic; rather, he is brittle and self-protective. Our best ally in tracking Darren as he tracks his upstairs neighbors is Director of Photography Shane Bartlett, whose brilliant and rather sly cinematography plays Watson to the audience's Sherlock, and forges a delightful partnership with us for an hour and a half.

Riddlehoover demonstrates authorial and directorial maturity in trusting the story, the actors, and us. He never resorts to expository dialogues or emotional catharses to force epiphanies about Darren upon us, nor is the comedic ever a substitute for substance. As a result, Darren's own simple transformation from brittle to flexible is enough joy to make this movie worthwhile.

MikeynLA wrote on 03/05/2013:

I'm a relatively new fan of Matt Riddlehoover, but a big fan I am. This latest release from him is my favorite so far, as it offers a great mix of comedy and intrigue. "Scenes from a Gay Marriage" gives us a really delicious look into the life of Darren (Riddlehoover) and his at-times voyeuristic ways. He develops wonderful friendships with Joe (the apartment handyman) and Luce, a woman he meets in the building's gym. The script is so incredibly relatable, and I found myself easily involved in each of the main characters' lives. The cast is fantastic, particularly the performances by Jared Allman (Joe), and Thashana McQuiston (Luce). Finally, I can't stress enough on the talent of Riddlehoover as actor, writer, director and producer; he really shines on all counts. If "Scenes" is a peek into what's to come from Matt & Company, we're definitely in for a treat. I'm absolutely looking forward to enjoying his future films.

Moodywhos wrote on 02/12/2013:

I watched it twice, it was so good! Matt Riddlehoover's best film yet in my book! I can't wait to see what else comes from this man! So many twists and turns leading us back to exactly what we wanted. Loved it!!!

Thierry wrote on 02/10/2013:

Rating: 3 Stars

I wanted to give this movie more stars. Really did. It is well photographed, the acting is good, the storyline is interesting, the comedy lines are great, and it's a well constructed film. More than anything, it feels like a Woody Allen type film, where people all talk like they really do in real life and illustrate how they deal with real life situations. I felt like I was eavesdropping in on the actual lives of the characters while watching the film.

The female lead was "something else". Kind of like a white trailer trash macho male, talking about all manner of things that offend "his ego", and hooked up on trolling for p...y wherever he can find it. Somebody should have washed her mouth out with Lava soap at some point, but then again she would not have been nearly as funny.

I think the title of the film should have been "all the interesting things that come up when you don't have a life". Here we have a protagonist who is out of love, out of work, out of ideas. And then things just start popping up in his life that are interesting. From the neighbors upstairs who he overhears and draws the wrong conclusions, to a new slant on his relationship with his former boyfriend, who has moved away, but helps him to understand what is happening in his new life alone. And then there's the new guy in his life that just pops up in the form of a maintenance man.

What he does about all the new happenings in his life seem really true to form from the perspective of the gay subculture. How relationships begin, develop, continue or end in the culture is accurately portrayed in the film with a happy ending to boot. What could be better?

So, why only the 3 stars. There are two significant flaws in the film that unfortunately diminish what it could have been. The first is a production values issues. It is very difficult to hear what people are saying in the film, especially when you hear them talk through the air duct. There are no subtitles available with the film, so it is very difficult to pick up lots of the dialogue unless you turn up the volume way too high. And then, there is a more serious problem with the music in the film. It is obvious that Mark is trying to imitate Woody Allen with his musical choices. The music is great, BUT it needs serious editing.

The music is so loud and played when people are talking, that it drowns out the dialog. And it comes up at inappropriate times in the film as well. It looks like the director didn't understand that the music should be an accent to the dialog and action, not in place of it. Perhaps the director should watch more Allen movies to see how the master interweaves the dialog and music into the context of the film. That would have really helped here.

None the less, an interesting film that merits even a second viewing.