Review by Scott Cranin
By: Scott Cranin
In-House Review - Jun 14 2011
Filmmaker Eldar Rapaport's short films Steam (a highly controversial, surreal thriller which you can find on the compilation Fest Selects: Best Gay Shorts) and Postmortem were both film festival hits. His feature debut August is a truly creative appr...
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Filmmaker Eldar Rapaport's short films Steam (a highly controversial, surreal thriller which you can find on the compilation Fest Selects: Best Gay Shorts) and Postmortem were both film festival hits. His feature debut August is a truly creative approach to the classic love triangle.
At the start of the film, Jonathan (Daniel Dugan) and Raul (Adrian Gonzalez) form what appears to be a happy couple in L.A. However, Jonathan retains his own apartment and has an air of the unresolved adolescence about him. Raul, an Argentine immigrant in a green card marriage, is the more grounded of the pair and holds a job as a bartender as he awaits his final work papers. Troy, after spending a few years in Spain, forms the third corner of the triangle when he returns to the City of Angels. Troy is trouble: he's the man who broke Jonathan's heart and, we soon learn, is still in Jonathan's .
Using time jumps, creative editing and a lack of black and white answers, the filmmaker represents the story as life itself really is: full of difficult decisions, broken hearts, memories that flash into our consciousness, and the knowledge that true love is out there somewhere.
Review by chromo man
By: chromo man
This film is far, far better than your typical gay indie flick. The production values are high, and the actors fully bring to life these interesting characters, who, while physically attractive, are not all necessarily likeable. I have read the ot...
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This film is far, far better than your typical gay indie flick. The production values are high, and the actors fully bring to life these interesting characters, who, while physically attractive, are not all necessarily likeable. I have read the other reviews, some of which complain that the film does depict some gay characters who behave badly, selfishly. So be it; that makes for a more interesting story, providing the necessary conflict and uncertainty which is the crux of the plot. You won't want to take your eyes off of any of the characters, even as you may cringe at some of their actions. While some may question the writer/director's choices, including some slip-sliding in the narrative stream, there is much to appeal to every viewer. I urge you to crank up the air conditioner, sit back and enjoy this film.
Review by Marty
By: Marty
Hot man dumps BF and moves to Spain. BF finds even hotter BF. Hot man moves back to town and tries to take back BF. Well acted and filmed but pacing was much too slow for my tastes. Too much introspective gazing... Adrian Gonzalez can take off his...
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Hot man dumps BF and moves to Spain. BF finds even hotter BF. Hot man moves back to town and tries to take back BF. Well acted and filmed but pacing was much too slow for my tastes. Too much introspective gazing... Adrian Gonzalez can take off his shirt any time!!
Review by BostonReview
By: BostonReview
Overall, not a very well acted film. Stereotypical, nd not at all factual, portrayal of gay relationships. Not original at all. Screenplay could have been better well written to include more in depth look at why the character's made the choices they ...
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Overall, not a very well acted film. Stereotypical, nd not at all factual, portrayal of gay relationships. Not original at all. Screenplay could have been better well written to include more in depth look at why the character's made the choices they did in the film. I did not understand how a person in a relatioship would risk evrything to have a fling wqith someone who dumped them in the past. I would like to see a more constructive story that had more of a moral undertone.
Review by Doug
By: Doug
Saturday movie night: The 2011 release "August." My verdict? A *** 1/2 of ****. I wanted to like this film more than I did.
Here's why. Of the three main characters, Raul comes across as the most interesting, and sadly the most sympatheti...
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Saturday movie night: The 2011 release "August." My verdict? A *** 1/2 of ****. I wanted to like this film more than I did.
Here's why. Of the three main characters, Raul comes across as the most interesting, and sadly the most sympathetic--and the one with the most to lose. Jonathan is torn between a love of the past and his current love and by film's end, we the audience, are not entirely certain if his indecision doesn't destroy everything. Granted, as is pointed out in the film, five years earlier, Jonathan was left heartbroken and his healing process long-lived. And then there is the film's protagonist, Troy. There is no other way to describe him as anything but a self-absorbed, indulgent home wrecker who thinks of little else but his own needs.
One things that struck me about this film was its use of silence. There are a number of scenes with little dialogue that illustrates the director's mastery of this film's subject-matter. At those times of silence, the film's characters--especially Raul, speak volumes.
The film's attractive cast is easy on the eye, almost impossibly so. The film's script is nicely written, the cinematography is top-notch, as is the acting, direction and soundtrack, but the fly in the ointment is this: The film takes a bit too long to arrive at its somewhat inevitable but uncertain conclusion. And it is hard to watch characters make foolish decisions and put themselves in uncomfortable situations that they should have known would only cause grief and heartbreak, but then don't we all sometimes make decisions that puts the heart and the head in conflict?
This is that kind of film. Honest, yet painful to watch. I recommend it.
Review by Grady Harp
By: Grady Harp
Now and then along comes a film that is far more adventuresome than the PR suggests and such is the case of the very well constructed AUGUST. Written and directed by Eldar Rapaport (with Brian Sloan) this is a hard look at love relationships and how ...
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Now and then along comes a film that is far more adventuresome than the PR suggests and such is the case of the very well constructed AUGUST. Written and directed by Eldar Rapaport (with Brian Sloan) this is a hard look at love relationships and how the test of time influences the success or failure of commitment. The choice of title reflects the generated heat of contentious relationships and just happens to be set in the time of the infamous Station Fire in Southern California in 2009, the largest and deadliest of the multiple wildfires, burning 160,577 acres (or 251 square miles), destroying countless homes, and killing two firefighters - a time when the Los Angeles basin was without electricity, full of smoke and ashes, and all nerves were on edge regarding the carnage.
Jonathan (Daniel Dugan) and Raul (Adrian Gonzalez) are a contented couple: though they live separately (Raul has married Jonathan's best friend Nina - Hilary Banks - for immigration purposes so they must maintain separate homes) they are devoted to each other and Raul is in the process of planning Jonathan's 30th birthday party. As an unexpected development Troy (Murray Bartlett), Jonathan's ex-boyfriend who has been living in Spain for several years after a painful breakup, arrives in Los Angeles at the height of the heat wave and moves in with his married brother Sean (Bernhard Forcher) and family. Troy calls Jonathan, arranges a meeting for coffee but is sure that Raul will enter the coffee shop to demonstrate the Jonathan is in a committed relationship. But old flames simmer and soon Troy is convincing the not Jonathan to rekindle their old passion, a liaison that becomes apparent to Raul. At Jonathan's 30th birthday party Nina and her chef boyfriend Nick (Mike Vaughn) invite Troy and Troy's good friend Devon (Brad Standley), and by the end of the evening the group hits the bars to smoke pot and drink. Raul then invites Troy to their home to join Jonathan and him in a physical liaison that results in Troy's `wakeup call' about commitment as he sees the degree of passion between Raul and Jonathan: Troy as an outsider steps away and eventually returns to Spain - but we never know what will occur next.
AUGUST is blessed with a very fine cast of excellent actors who are able to pull off the intimacy of the story with decorum. There are some problems with the film: the director loses the audience with what feels like inadvertent non-linear storyline that disrupts the flow of the story, and the editor of the film David Au has cut and spliced the film in a disturbing and distracting manner. The musical score by Yuval Ron is heated Middle Eastern in flavor and at times covers the dialogue. But the story works in large part because of the exceptional acting and appeal of Murray Bartlett, Daniel Dugan, and Adrian Gonzalez. As the PR states, ` It is an irresistible gay romantic drama!
Grady Harp
Review by Amos Lassen
By: Amos Lassen
I have decided to return to have another look at Eldar Rapoport's "August" mainly because I have learned more about and I really want people to be aware of this very special movie, "August" grew out of a short film, "Postmortem" with the same charact...
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I have decided to return to have another look at Eldar Rapoport's "August" mainly because I have learned more about and I really want people to be aware of this very special movie, "August" grew out of a short film, "Postmortem" with the same characters but here it is more finely developed. (There is a short review of "Postmortem: here at my site). I suppose that one o the things that brought me back to the film is realizing that the director is Israeli and since I spend much of my life in Israel, anything that comes from there is interesting to me.
"August" is the story of two men who once were lovers who went through a long and painful breakup. Troy (Murray Bartlett) has been is Spain for several years and has now returned to Los Angeles and calls Jonathan (Daniel Dugan), his ex, and invites him to meet for coffee. What began as a simple and innocent meeting becomes an attempt to revive what was. It is not so easy though. Jonathan has a new partner, Raul (Adrian Gonzalez) and he tries to do the right thing. Jonathan and Raul have been very happy and even though Jonathan has his own apartment, they practically live together. The situation is a bit complicated in that Raul married Jonathan's best friend so that he can stay in this country. With Troy's return to America, things begin to change, Jonathan loved Troy but when his heart was broken by him, he moved on and Troy left for Spain. It was not easy for Jonathan to get over the affair and we see as we look in that Troy is trouble but he wants Jonathan back and he knows that Jonathan is still not over him. For some reason after they have coffee, Jonathan goes home with Troy and when they met for a second they had sex. Raul is a bit suspicious but says nothing because he trusts and respects Jonathan but it seems that Jonathan does not really know what he is doing or what he wants. It is obvious that Troy wants him back. Raul encourages the three of them to come together to celebrate Jonathan's birthday and they get a little too and into a ménage a trios. Troy finally sees what is happening and he decides to go back to Spain and leave Jonathan and Raul to each other.
What is it about this film that has hooked me so? I certainly have not had a similar experience so I am not sure. The character development is fascinating and the three characters are each interesting in his own way. Raul is, of course, the most complicated because he is the third wheel and he does not know how to react to what Jonathan is doing. Most of his feelings were reflected in his eyes which said more than any line of dialogue. Jonathan had a certain charm that obviously both Raul and Troy felt and he was in a position that he had to make a decision which could not have been easy for him.
Certainly the idea for the story is not new. All of us have felt something for an ex. Is it perhaps the sex that is missed? Troy is a playboy and seems like he would have no trouble finding a man when he wants one so it is hard for us to see what the attraction of Jonathan is. Could it perhaps be that Troy is hurt to see Jonathan in a relationship? While the scenes seem disconnected, we realize at the end that everything was connected. The dialogue between the characters was also strange in that some of them just ended or wound down. I found that there is a certain sensuality and sensitivity in the film which makes the sexual tension very real.
The film is a visual feast with beautiful cinematography that sweeps the viewer into the film and the actors portray their characters realistically. This is a movie of the senses that relies upon nonverbal communication to give us sexual tension. There are many different layers to the film which allow for as many different ways of understanding what we see. We know the characters only superficially and in reference to what is happening at present and we do not need to know more than that.
Review by just a reviewer
By: just a reviewer
2.5 STARS are awarded
(( BACKGROUND FOR VIEWERS: This Feature Length film is a reworking of Director Eldar Rapaport's 2005, well received Short, "Postmortem" ))
"August"....whatever is meant by that, you might ask? Well, ...
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2.5 STARS are awarded
(( BACKGROUND FOR VIEWERS: This Feature Length film is a reworking of Director Eldar Rapaport's 2005, well received Short, "Postmortem" ))
"August"....whatever is meant by that, you might ask? Well, rather than looking at the title as being merely a play on words, let's just assume what's meant is the "simmering"..."sweat-drenched"..."torridness"...of that particular time in the yearly weather cycle. In fact, this is what becomes visually and audibly obvious to us, as our actors/characters experience sometimes uncomfortably high temperatures---a condition reinforced by repeated soundtrack use of Los Angeles area weathercasts. So, indeed, this film does have "Heat"! But, it's not just that sort of "Hotness" which involves us....because "Lovemaking Action" makes up a significant part of what's being shown in this film.
Still and all, IF a film director is going to expand an earlier released 16 minute Short into a 100 minute, Feature Length work....and essentially retain the same storyline and same 2 lead characters (tho now 6 years older)....there has GOT to be more provided than "Heat"....more than "Hotness". Admittedly, a much lessor role in the short film's "triangle of 3 guys" has notably (and most SIZZLINGLY) been expanded in this 2011 production. For now we see the character of "Raul" being torridly played by relative newcomer, Adrian Gonzalez (giving us something not weather-related which IS HOT). Oh, and we also have added a female role in the form of B(Girl)FF (and Green Card facilitator) "Nina", played by Hillary Banks.
Now, allow this Reviewer to give just a few closing thoughts involving the "old and new" productions, as coming from someone who's lived with the former for years...and with the latter for a couple of viewings:
- In the Short's early scene...involving former lovers meeting up again at an outdoor coffee house...there was an intimacy, a "Heat" between the 2, which burned off the screen and into the viewer. That is pretty much missing in today's re-tread scene and, for me, is due to one actor in particular.
- Adding several extraneous scenery and street-related shots may add minutes to a feature's length....but it does not add interest.
- I was sometimes left wondering which way writing and direction were heading with the sex shots. There is an anal sex scene, with virtually a full length, nude shot of the 2 going at it. Yet, at another point we're given an after-sex scene---our leads still together in bed---BUT wearing underwear (even tho the camera is, obviously, avoiding any "crotch shots"). Are we advertising boxer briefs? Is this CBS or NBC network TV, or what? Does our director expect this is ever going to be shown as a K-Thru-12 afternoon school special?
- What I would consider a production glitch involves occasional sound problems, with music and background conversations drowning out conversation between lead characters (this is even with earphone listening). There is no captioning provided...at least in my Region 2 DVD release.
FINALLY -- Perhaps the best thing I can draw from this comparison of Short vs. Feature Length film, is that the feature definitely gives us a FINAL Ending...one which cannot be misconstrued or that is left up in the air. And even better than that....everyone gets what they deserve.
PS -- Writer/Director Rapaport strikes me as being particularly capable of developing intense and interesting storylines; he should stick to doing that...in all-new works. (I do acknowledge it is not easy for anyone to expand a short story into an acclaimed full-length novel...let alone achieve fully successful refilming.)