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In-House Review - Feb 24 2004
Like It Is Set amidst the disparate worlds of the London pop music scene and the bare knuckles boxing clubs of working-class Blackpool, Like It Is is a sexy, and at times, caustically funny tale of one youth's coming out and his first, tumultuous gay...
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Like It Is Set amidst the disparate worlds of the London pop music scene and the bare knuckles boxing clubs of working-class Blackpool, Like It Is is a sexy, and at times, caustically funny tale of one youth's coming out and his first, tumultuous gay love affair. Craig (real-life boxing champ Steve Bell) is a 21-year-old Blackpooler who makes his living by fighting in illegal bare-knuckle fights. But the tough youth is also a closeted gay. He meets by chance Matt (Ian Rose), a cocky London music producer who takes Craig under his wing. The affair brings wide-eyed Steve down to the swinging gay Soho scene and into the duplicitous clutches of Matt's friends, which include Paula (Dani Behr), Matt's flatmate and an up-and-coming singer threatened by the arrival of the youth; and Kelvin (The Who's Roger Daltrey), Matt's gay and decidedly wolfish boss. Will Craig find happiness in Britain's gay Mecca or be back to his sordid former world? Some of the film's best moments are when it shows the tensions of being gay in a tough, macho environment; the biting indictment of shallow gay men; and the hilarious camp performance by Daltrey who sinks his toothy grin into his role with lecherous gusto. Boyfriends This insightful and vastly entertaining comedy-drama, depicting three troubled gay male couples, is both knowingly funny and unflinchingly on-target. The story revolves around an Easter weekend country retreat arranged for six young gay friends and bed-mates. But what begins as a relaxing time soon unravels into a series of bed-hopping, ego-bruising emotional turmoil to rival the grand-daddy of gay male angst films, The Boys in the Band! A hilariously painful dissection of gay men's relationships -- almost required viewing before calling U-Haul. The Wolves of Kromer
The Wolves of Kromer is a dark, funny fairy tale of darkly sexy gay werewolves, murderous old ladies and an old English town bent on getting rid of those not like themselves. The story centers around the goings-on of two couples: Seth and Gabriel, a pair of werewolves who live outside the quaint village of Kromer and two tottering old women who share a secret. Young Seth, thrown out of his house after coming out as wolf, meets up with the worldlier Gabriel who, attracted to his fair face and bushy tail, takes him under his wing. They spend their nights foraging for food by the lake outside the village of Kromer, hanging out with other wolves, playfully terrorizing the townsfolk and eventually falling in love with each other. All the while in the town, the seemingly harmless old house servants - the scheming Fanny and her daffy accomplice Doreen - plot to knock off their mistress Mrs. Drax and direct blame on the wolves. Tensions between the nocturnal animals and the hypocritical townsfolk come to a head as the town's fire-and-brimstone preacher riles everyone up against the ostracized wolves. The tale is narrated by the fabulous Boy George! Filled with tender romanticism, social satire and laugh-out-loud comedy, this modern-day gay parable is a delight from beginning to end.