Adam & Steve (2005) User Reviews

Somewhat of a valiant effort...

[Banquo13 · 5/10 · 11 September 2006]

Okay, so this movie had some funny moments, but most of it just left me cold--like it was trying too hard and somehow ended up being too artificial and too phony. I thought the love story was cute, for what it was worth, but some of the subplots left me scratching my head. For example, I find it hard to believe that there are a great many red-Becky Jersey boys (and hillbillies, apparently) in the Village who are going to throw beer bottles at gay men who express affection towards one another. I've been to the Village before and think the bottle throwers would definitely be bashed back. Not to mention the harassment from the window...omg....is this a lame attempt at humor or seriousness towards the fact that hate still exists? Either way, it felt very out of place.

And Adam's family (ba ha ha--just got that one...!) seemed nothing but a one line lame joke. Did we have to cross over into 3rd rate physical comedy to make some point about a curse? The movie did have its highlights--Parker Posey and Chris Kattan had their moments, the dance off was funny and it did make some interesting points about the human condition and relationships: I liked it when Adam asked Steve what he wanted, and he blurts out: "I don't know!!" Not an easy thing to admit.

All in all, "Adam and Steve" has given me a little bit of hope that someone out there might make a gay-themed movie that won't insult my intelligence.

In a word..."eh"

[dathaler · 5/10 · 14 May 2006]

***spoilers ahead*** Frankly, I don't see what the big deal is about this movie. It's a gay romantic comedy grounded in a moment of toilet humor (literally)--how touching. It's also supplemented by cheap gags and slapstick that are so over-the-top you can't help but laugh (both sets of parents, the barrage of beer bottles, the C&W dance-off, etc.) so it wasn't a total waste of money. Still, I didn't walk outta the theater wanting to fall in love--or eagerly anticipating the DVD release. All in all, I found it an overrated somewhat forgettable film--worth a matinée price or DVD rental on a rainy Sunday afternoon, but not exactly a date movie.

Oh...and what a HUGE waste of Parker Posey's talent. For her, this film may very well be what "The Brown Bunny" was for Chloe Sevigny--a career death knell.

Gay Romantic Comedy Meets "Airplane"

[filmguyCI · 5/10 · 2 April 2006]

The premise is this: Two gay men, Adam and Steve, meet in the 80's and have a disastrous encounter. Fast forward to the present. Adam and Steve's paths cross again and they begin to date, neither remembering their history together. Until one does. How will the past affect the future? Somewhat interesting premise, however, writer and director Craig Chester doesn't have much faith in it and decides to fill the film with a barrage of gross out humor, slapstick, and silly over the top moments. While some of these are very very funny, others don't work at all. The end result is a movie that seems to sell out for cheap laughs rather than go for something real.

Craig Chester (who also wrote and directed) and Malcolm Gets are likable as Adam and Steve but don't generate much chemistry. Parker Posey is always good for a few laughs. Chris Kattan is basically wasted in a supporting role as the best friend.

If you are looking for a few laughs and don't have expectations too high, I would recommend this film. If you are seeking an authentic contemporary film about gay relationships, pass over this one and rent "All Over the Guy."

Disappointing

[dinopass · 15 May 2005]

Nothing more here than a standard, cliché, romantic comedy that you would find in a dozen Adam Sandler films or poorly written African American comedies except for that it focuses on a homoesexual relationship. None of the characters are believable, the tone is mostly a farce but there is not a lot of intelligence behind it.

I believe this film is getting a decent buzz, primarily because the two leads are actually gay and rarely do we see supposed "real-life" portrayal of gays in romantic comedies.

The filmmakers intent was to show what it is really like to be in a homosexual relationship and that they have the same feelings, concerns, desires, etc as heterosexual couples. The main problem is that the tone is so absurd and light and none of it seems like real life at all, you don't believe or engage in the characters at all so the message is lost. I am not gay and did not leave the film feeling any more informed about the difficulties of gay relationships or anything even close.

There are some funny scenes and lines but also many awkward moments and irrelevant scenes just thrown in, and dialouge that just doesn't work. Many parts tried to be over the top and absurd just for the sake of doing so, nothing real or organic about them. The acting and pacing also needed work. I just didn't engage or become interested in the characters at any level.

It didn't need to be as heavy or shocking as Queer as Folk or other gay films but moving the tone more toward Kissing Jessica Stein would have served it much better. Beleiving in the characters as actual people instead of over the to characatures would have let me empathize and allowed me to learn a lot more than I did

The 9-11 references were empty and useless. I lived in NY at the time and if your're going to try to capture it at least give it some time, attention, and drama.

Any I don't mean to focus on the gay aspect, it fails as a film period, straight, gay or other, but the producers/filmmakers are promoting it this way so that will inevitably be the focus.

I'd be interested in hearing any opinions from anyone gay who saw the film to see if they felt it represented their struggles properly or if they were maybe just happy to see a light comedy focused on gay life.

Will be interesting to see what happens if/when it is released

Debating Whether to See It? Oh, Go Ahead. . .

[ekeby · 7/10 · 11 August 2006]

So you're gay and you're thinking of seeing this movie, and, knowing that it's a gay movie, your expectations are already lowered. Maybe rightly, judging from most of what's out there.

Interestingly, this gay movie has both the best and the worst of the genre. What's bad? Oh, some of the acting, some direction, some dialog, some of everything, really. What's good? Some of the acting, some direction, some dialog--again, some of everything. Which is to say, when it gets it right, it gets it Really Right. Laugh out loud right. When it gets it wrong, well, you can't fix it so you gotta stand it.

So yes, if you're debating, see it. Especially if you're gay and especially if you like to laugh. Just seeing Craig Chester in his goth get up made me laugh. That's something that anybody could laugh at, but some of the humor is gay-specific and might sail over the heads of straight people. Mostly, though, it skewers contemporary life in a way that both gay and straight will understand and appreciate.

What makes this worthwhile is the dialog, some of which is razor sharp and very, very funny. Any big budget Hollywood comedy could be improved one thousand percent by stealing just a few of these wickedly funny lines that are tossed off so casually. Parker Posey has the lion's share of them and her delivery is fast and furious; she hits the bulls-eye every time.

The players are all competent and likable. Chris Kattan is good as an envious, maybe even jealous, straight roommate. Julie Hagerty plays Chester's mom; she's another one that just makes me smile when I see her slightly ditsy persona on screen.

Bottom line: if you're looking for art, keep looking. Want a few yuks? Adam and Steve will deliver.

When was this written?!

[s-sylvatica · 2/10 · 25 August 2009]

Though this movie takes place post-2001, it plays as if it takes place in the early 90s - the montage of the two men dating has repeated scenes of anti-gay (minor) violence, parents taking their kids away from seeing two men kiss, etc. As well, Steve's roommate talks about the gay scene as if it were still entirely defined by anonymous sex and bathhouses. While I suppose that the gay community is entitled to its outdated and belittling movies just like the straight community, this movie is not heartwarming or a good portrayal of the modern gay community. I was hoping for a happy-go-lucky and sweet movie, and just got annoyed and offended.

Ah, those embarrassing bodily functions!

[moonspinner55 · 5/10 · 15 February 2007]

Craig Chester wrote, directed and stars in this comic love story between two men: a New York City shrink and a klutzy Jewish tour guide who meet and fall in love--but will the recollection of a disastrous date 17 years ago ultimately come between them? Chester is brash and brave and goes out on a limb here, resulting in a gay-comedy better than most. The movie has fun being outré, with ballsy, bitchy humor and an occasional moment of seriousness (a good balance), yet its imagination is stunted, with a fantasy hoedown bit right out of "Jeffrey" and far too many lapses of taste and judgment. Chester's slapstick scenes needed to be reined in, particularly a hopeless sequence with his "cursed" Jewish family and also the poorly-staged gross-out scene 10-minutes in. The film has funny elements and performances (by a most curious cast) and some of it is very sweet. ** from ****

If you don't like romantic comedies, why do you review them?

[eslgr8 · 10/10 · 19 August 2006]

I'm getting really tired of people who don't like a particular film genre giving bad reviews of movies belonging to that genre. I don't like gory horror films, so I wouldn't review (or see) something like Hostel or Saw. But somehow people (and reviewers) delight in putting down romcoms, not because there's anything wrong with the films, but because it would have to be something absolutely extraordinary to even merit a "satisfactory" from them.

That's why it pisses me off that Adam and Steve hasn't gotten the critical acclaim that it deserves. I honestly feel that most of the bad reviews were of people predisposed to dislike it just as they'd be predisposed to dislike any new romantic comedy, gay or straight. (That's not to say that it hasn't gotten its fair share of good reviews, and deservedly so!)

Yes, the romantic comedy genre has been done and done again, and not always well, but I can count the number of GAY romantic comedies on the fingers of one hand. All Over the Guy, and Adam and Steve, and...? How many others follow the formula of two people who meet cute, fall in love, face some kind of crisis, and then overcome it in a tear and laughter filled climactic scene? Yes, I'll admit it. I'm a sucker for a good romcom. I can see While You Were Sleeping any day of the week. But as a gay man I've been cheated of this genre, always having to superimpose my own boy/boy couple over the boy/girl couple in the film.

Adam and Steve is the film I (and others I'm sure) have been waiting for. One of the funniest (admittedly crude at times, Thank you Farrely bros) and at the same time most gloriously romantic romcoms ever, and this time it's a boy meets boy, boy loses boy, boy gets boy back story! The chemistry between Craig Chester and Malcolm Gets is palpable, and thank you openly gay hero Chester for casting another gay man to play opposite. As Chester says in the film commentary, he and Gets don't have to worry about "playing gay" but can simply play the characters, and when they are in bed together or sharing a romantic moment (lots of kissing in this film), you don't have to wonder if they felt odd or uncomfortable. It's obvious that they didn't and don't.

Parker Posey and Chris Kattan are along for the ride, Ms. Posey giving yet another lovable quirky performance that's made her the indie queen, and Mr. Kattan showing himself a real actor and real person, something that his usual over the top roles don't allow him to do.

If you don't like romantic comedies, don't see this movie. But if you're like me, someone who loves the genre but has felt cheated out of his own romcom, by all means BUY the DVD because this is a movie you'll be watching again and again.

Tepid Charm

[Franco-LA · 4/10 · 1 September 2007]

Sometimes the problem with movies from a writer or director (in this case both) with few (if any) produced credits is that they takes all these bits and pieces from all these ideas they have in unproduced or partially finished or contemplated scripts and stuff them into one movie. That is the big flaw in this movie: there are far too many and far too severe tonal shifts. While quirky (particularly in the romantic comedy genre) is the new flavor of the month, there is a limit to how much of it you need. While a largely G/L audience (and frankly, who else was going to -- or has -- watch this, Chris Kattan and Parker Posey notwithstanding?) can certainly laugh as something like the hair product scene in Something About Mary or at Borat, the ex-law scene was not the way to introduce that here.

Also, if you are going to do a scene with your leads at well more than a decade younger that they are currently playing (or are in real life), find some younger actors -- no matter what your budget is! In addition to not being particularly convincing, as played and written, as the romantic leads, Chester and Gets should not have played there far younger self, even in Chester's case, with his Robert Smithish goth makeup. Unfortunately, under all that makeup, you could still easily see the lines in his face and around his eyes, which he certainly didn't have in Swoon.

In addition to these inconsistencies in tone and genre, and the weakness of the chemistry between the leads (think Anne Heche and Harrison Ford, only both at the same age), the film also suffered from predictability in both the gags and the serious notes of the script.

Worth a rental, at most - not worthing adding to your collection and certainly not worth theater admission.

Very good and realistic

[preppy-3 · 8/10 · 21 June 2005]

Adam (Craig Chester) and Steve (Malcolm Gets) have an embarrassing one night stand in the late 80s. Then the movie fast forwards to 2005. They meet again but have no recollection of their earlier encounter. They fall madly in love...but then Steve remembers. Can they survive this? Also Adam's best friend (Parker Posey) falls in love with Steve's best friend (Chris Kattan).

This is no masterpiece. It has its dead moments and there are some painfully unfunny moments--and where the hell did that two-stepping sequence at the end come from? Still it works more often than it doesn't and is easily one of the best movies I've ever seen dealing with a gay couple. When it's funny it's hysterical and some of the observations Adam and Steve make about being gay and in love are VERY accurate (Chester and Gets are gay in real life so it adds more to the lines--they speak from experience). Also Chester wrote the script AND directed it as well as starring in it--this guy is very talented.

Acting is good all around. Gets and Chester are just great and perfectly believable. It's always great to see Parker Posey and she's just wonderful (catch her outfit at the two-stepping). Even Kattan is good--he annoyed me totally in SNL. And the supporting cast includes Julie Hagerty, Sally Kirkland and Melinda Dillon--all are just great.

I saw this at a sold out viewing at the Provincetown Film Festival. The demand for this was so great they had to ADD an extra showing! This is the most truthful movie I've seen so far about gay life and love. Not perfect but damn close. A must-see for gay men.

Puppy Don't Look

[pkzeewiz · 4/10 · 5 May 2010]

A man rushes his dog to a hospital instead of a vet after he accidentally stabs it. A nice doctor there helps him out and fixes the dog up. Sometime later they run across each other again and fall for each other. The adventure then begins of them falling in love, dealing with homophobia from a crazy neighbor as well as Jersey bottle throwers. They have to deal with each others crazy best friends, weird parents and soon they must deal with the fact they had met years before under very embarrassing conditions.

The first time I watched this movie it made me laugh, but didn't do much for me, but here on my second viewing I laughed harder and seemed to accept it greatly. It has some very funny parts and is downright charming. I loved the clichés and the characters here. From the embarrassing "hershey squirts" to the OCD shower scene where the man washes the young boy before having sex with. Gay line dancing with a drag queen singing 'sh*t happens' and the very unlucky family of the guy that seem to have disaster follow them everywhere they go. It was funny and well worth a watch, gay or straight.

Tripple the talent here for Craig Chester who wrote a beautiful story, directed it nicely and stars here in perhaps his best role. Other major players were Parker Posey and Julie Haggarty. Chris Kattan had a big part here, and he was one of my few faults as he is a tad annoying.

Funny enough and charming enough for 4/10 stars. I liked it and could gladly watch it again.

It is refreshing to watch a film that has emphasis on love instead of on sex

[Gordon-11 · 25 November 2006]

This film is a romantic comedy between two men in New York City. They by chance meet each other, get along very well, until things start to fall apart.

It is great that throughout the film, the emphasis is on love, instead of sex. It is so easy to fall into the temptation to make scenes depicting gay sex in order to entice gay viewers to watch the film. However, in this film, there are no sex scenes at all. The thing that keeps the viewers watching is the real love that keeps Adam and Steve together. Coupled with the excellent character development, the love between Adam and Steve becomes convincing and touching.

The dance sequences of this film are very well rehearsed and delightful to watch. The plot is straightforward and predictable, but that's the whole idea for romantic comedies.

I hope gay romantic comedies get made more often!

Nearly unwatchable "romantic" "comedy"

[FargoUT · 2/10 · 19 December 2006]

It seems exceptionally difficult to make a gay romance (or any gay-themed film, it seems) without delving into cheap stereotypes. There have been a few diamonds in the rough, but Adam & Steve is a painfully unfunny and extremely dull film that is neither romantic nor comedic. Aside from the throwaway sight gags, the poor directing, the mediocre acting, the spectacularly awful writing, Adam & Steve's real problem is its tonal shifts. The mish-mash of genres here keeps adding barrier after barrier to push the audience out of the picture. The film begins with an odd introduction of the main characters, complete with Parker Posey in a fat suit. Next up, we get two visual sight gags of poop and vomit in one scene (one of which is so poorly done, I laughed in spite of how unfunny it was).

There are scenes of drama, there are scenes of comedy, there are scenes of musical numbers and a choreographed dance sequence. It only takes about 15 minutes to realize how bad this picture really is. Parker Posey and Chris Kattan, along with a handful of supporting character actors, upstage the two main leads who are about as charismatic as two rocks. There are scenes where Posey and Kattan both seem to be rolling their eyes, maybe wondering how they got roped into this production.

Adam & Steve has no direction and flounders in search of one. It jumps all over the place, going from a completely screwball gross-out comedy (attempting a pale imitation of the Farrelly Brothers) to a tender love story (admittedly neither tender nor particularly loving... not even really a story for that matter). It almost seems as if the screenplay were written in segments and then spliced together. There are a handful of humorous moments, most of which come courtesy of Posey and Kattan, that prevent the movie from becoming a complete waste of time. And the final climactic moments are nicely handled, a welcome break from the maddening confusion that has preceded it all. The only reason to see this one is if you are a fan of either Posey or Kattan. And, really, if you are, both have done far superior work.

Miscast, Poorly Acted, Unfunny Comedy

[philip-1 · 3/10 · 29 September 2006]

My summary pretty much says it all. I hate to ponder all the glowing reviews of this travesty at IMDb which would lead me to believe that my fellow gay audience must be so starved for entertainment, that they would praise a mess like this.

Let's go through the list of what's wrong with this movie.

Firstly, it has a terrible script. The jokes fall flat everywhere, the characters are cardboard, and there isn't a single sympathetic character to be found in the whole movie. I love that some people have found it "realistic". Believe me, there aren't any people that resemble the idiots and misfits in this film; gay people, straight people, parents; you name it. They are mostly all unattractive, hapless people that you don't want to spend 90 minutes with.

Secondly, the movie is horribly miscast. Craig Chester is not a good director regardless of the budget. He shouldn't have cast himself in the lead; he hasn't a wit of charm. Why Steve would want this guy is a complete mystery. George Bush has more personality. I always worry how much of an ego trip is really involved in someone writing, directing and staring in a movie. With results like this, it should be a criminal offense. The other actors are equally bad. Mr. Chester and Mr. Gets are so bad in the movie's first scenes, you know they won't get any better later on. Parker Posey looks bored with the whole project. Adam's parents and sister can't act; neither can Steve's; his mother looks the same age as he does. The straight room mate of Steve is a miserable actor. Where did they find these people and how did they survive Chester's direction???

Thirdly, the movie is badly edited. At least half of it should have gone on the cutting room floor. Some of the scenes are so bad I was talking back to my TV screen in a sarcastic manner. Why does the dog have to get stabbed??? Why does Parker Posy have to do three or four really annoying stand up routines??? The two step scene at the end would have worked in a more clever movie, but in this one it just seems like an appendage.

I was glad to send this one back to Netflix never to be seen by me again. What is truly appalling is how many people enjoyed this misguided attempt at comedy. It really tells me that we are really getting stupid in this country.

delicious little date movie

[thelastjunglist · 9/10 · 3 April 2006]

Romantic comedies are formulaic and predictable. Still, there's such a thing as a "superior" genre film, and Adam & Steve is one of the lamentably few that rate that description. Although it's a gay romance, there's nothing that made me as a straight guy remotely uncomfortable. I do think the fact that gay actors played gay characters made things a bit more fluid- much better than, say, "Jeffrey," which featured straight actors overacting gay.

I laughed a lot more than I remember doing at any Rom-com in recent memory. Parker Posey really stole the show for me, but I've always been a fan of hers. The romantic aspect of the film is campy and farcical to the point of absurdity, and hence didn't bother me too much- and the jokes are constant and quality.

If I were to register any criticism, it would be of the generic plot devices- hidden identity, comical misunderstandings, the obligatory Rom-com chase-across-town-before-it's-too-late. But as I said, it's a genre film, and well done for what it is.

Wanted to love it, but...

[royalhassel-1 · 2/10 · 21 August 2006]

I hate to say it, but in this case, the old adage is true: No actor should write and direct himself and throw stones in a glasshouse with the last laugh...eh...whatever.

What I'm trying to say is, that as funny as I can sense Craig being naturally at times, as little funny it is when he tries so hard to get his 'cute' lines across.

Either Adam or Steve was miscast. Their attraction to each other didn't work, and that is essentially what the entire movie hinges upon. Craig Chester should have cast Steve as a lesser physically attractive man, someone with a big personality, to match Adam more evenly. OR cast Adam with a more attractive actor to match Steve. Craig/Adam's charms didn't compensate enough for the difference...OUCH, I know, but hey, I'm critical of myself too(its just this review is not, alas, about me).

I love the idea of acting, producing, writing, directing oneself, but it rarely works (read: Ed Burns). So big kudos to Craig Chester for getting his film made, just a shame it was unwatchable.

A good change of pace for gay cinema

[mediatym · 10/10 · 26 April 2005]

I was recently at the world premier of Adam and Steve at the Tribecca Film Festival this April. I didn't quite know what to expect walking into the theater but I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with what I saw on screen. Most gay themed films over the past several years have bored me and depressed me to the point of a much-needed visit to my analyst. I know that there are important issues dealing with the gay community, but it is nice to see a film that looks past all of the usual topics points and moves on to very funny comedy. The writer director Craig Chester did a superb job at ramping up the humor and staying dedicated to keeping the story funny. When you think, that was funny; he turns it up and takes it even farther. The sell out crowd of about 1500 at Tribeca was incredible entertained by this film. There were very few dull moments and the audience kept pace with the humor. The guys at Funnyboy Films made a good choice making Adam and Steve. This film along with their first success of LATTERDAYS shows the potential for this company to be a strong force in the future of the film-making community.

Wow....So Bad!!

[jaxla · 2/10 · 11 April 2006]

This gay comedy has been advertised as a combination of Farrelly Brothers grossness with "When Harry met Sally" deftness, a tall order that writer/director Craig Chester is simply unable to deliver. For starters, he doesn't really have a plot, just a situation (two guys who had a bad date hook up 17 yrs later and don't know it.) So the movie just sort of lays there and Chester tries to throw in funny bits, i.e, a female comic (Parker Posey, looking great) who is not funny (THIS is supposed to be funny???), wacky parents, etc. These bits are as uninspired as the non-existent plot.

As for the grossness (a stream of diarrhea, for example), it's just gross, not funny. AND there are some awful original songs, the worst being a country western number, "Shit Happens." Kinda makes you yearn for Patty Duke crooning "It's Impossible" in "Valley of the Dolls." Anything good? Yes. Noah Segan is very funny as a pretentious young actor, there is a very hot dancer in a red T shirt and you get to hear John Lennon's lovely "Love Is" in the final scene. Otherwise, this is a wash that never could have gotten produced, save for whatever contacts Craig Chester must have. He's a good actor (though not in this, where he is clearly too old for his role) and should stick to that.

Skip "Adam and Steve" and rent "Kissing Jessic Stein" or "Trick" instead. Life's too short.

Its soo bad that its good again

[markusmarkman · 1/10 · 1 April 2006]

Just came out of Adam And Steve which started in DC tonight. It ran before at the Reel Affimation Festival where i missed it, but back then it got really bad reviews. What can i say , they were right! Its a stinker! But a good one!! Its sooooo bad that its good again! Sort of Ed Wood directing a gay comedy ! You can't call it a B Movie anymore (Yes its that bad) I laughed tears , mostly at the places were there weren't any intentional jokes! Can't believe how many people really think that this a good movie! But anyway, leave your taste and brain at home and you will have fun! Enjoy P.S. at the End they are trying to get a few serious messages across , that's where the movie gets boring!

Horrible Mess

[Ripshin · 1 September 2006]

Why some the the better-known actors were willing to attach their names to this "so-bad- it's-awful" flick, I do not know. Cartoonish script, over-acted roles, under-directed scenes, ridiculously lame costumes...you name it, this inept attempt at a comedy possesses it times ten.

Even the "1987" opening of the film is off-base, with music and wardrobe missing the mark by about three years. The two lead characters presented during this segment bear no resemblance to their 17-years-later counterparts.

Randomly mixing "Airplane"-style slapstick with standard sitcom fare results in an awkwardly unfunny "farce."

The gay-bashing "joke" running throughout the film isn't funny - getting hit in the head with a full beer bottle can do some serious damage. Is the intended gay audience happy with a film that appears intent on making them look like morons? Yes, it's a freshman flick by one of the two leads, but being that he's been in several gay-themed films, you'd think some of the earlier, more professional experiences would have "rubbed off."

Gives new meaning to the phrase "this is bad"

[Coralknight · 3/10 · 14 November 2017]

When will unknown writer-directors learn that they should NOT play the leads in their own films? This was Craig Chester's "brass ring", meaning SOMEHOW he got a studio, backing and named actors to take part in this production, and he had the option to show the world what a great director he was by casting an age-appropriate actor for the lead or by showing he is a narcissist by believing a a 40-year-old man he could play a teen-age goth kid. Guess what direction he went in. Predictable/campy "jokes", miscast roles, unbelievable performances and a "dance-off" ending that somehow takes the place of a plot resolution are what characterize this mess. 3 stars purely for the production values. Gee, wasn't 2005 the same year Brokeback mountain came out? Wait to set gay cinema back...

Well-done date movie

[gregv2k · 8/10 · 28 May 2005]

What a fun, funny, sharp-witted, incisive film about the rocky road to romance. And how brilliant that it's about a gay couple-- a committed, monogamous gay couple who look very much like real gay human beings (as opposed to the broad caricatures usually seen in film and television). Is it possible that this will be the first "gay" date movie that straight couples will go to and laugh with?

Maybe that's hoping for an America more open-minded than it is, but certainly the open minded heterosexual partners are in for a good time.

Kudos to writer/directer Chester for creating what is an impressive mosaic of styles. In lesser hands the film, with everything from emotional honesty to slapstick comedy to over-the-top (and I do mean WAAYYYY over-the-top) camp, should be a mess. But somehow scenes of first love are actually made sweeter all the more by the slapstick running gag that accompanies them (sorry, no spoilers here!).

The leads are extremely appealing, the dialog is well-realized, and the realities of dating are sharply realized in a film that walks the fine line between maudlin and frank but rarely feels dishonest. That's going to sound ridiculous in the context of a film that includes a choreographed dance-off featuring a drag queen, but the movie is wise to use broad strokes of humor to help otherwise clichéd movie devices go down easier. Additional kudos to Parker Posey, who becomes the heterosexual equivalent of the "Jack" character on "Will & Grace." Her comic contributions are note-perfect.

Chester has commented that the use of comedy has a role in helping straight audiences better accept a budding romance between men. I hope that's true, because this film deserves better than the "cult" or "gay/lesbian" dungeon in your local video store.

The gay low self esteem room?

[mark.waltz · 3/10 · 29 November 2021]

If you go into this with a Family Guy sense of humor, you may actually laugh, but those episodes are less than half an hour each and you can move on. This is over 90 minutes, and it becomes truly absurd the moment is that much repeated Brian and Stewie gag is seen 10 minutes into the film that did has me laugh but out of memory of "Family Guy" not as how it is dealt with here. It's 1987 and punk rocker goth Adam shows up as a most ridiculous dance performance is going onstage, and he falls instantly in love (or at least in lust) with Steve, the lead dancer, and their encounter leads to a most crappy reference. Seventeen years go by and then meet by chance but don't remember each other. In fact, we're supposed to know that they are the same person simply because they share their first names.

Malcolm Gets is Steve, now a therapist (who most conveniently studied to be a vet), and Cary Curran as Adam is a neurotic pet owner who accidentally stabbed his own dog. They meet in the park by chance, begin dating, deal with a bunch of annoying, self-absorbed friends, and attempt true love which is hard because they have absolutely no chemistry. The humor is extremely awkward, and the sex scenes weird and passionless. Attempts at homophobic humor fall extremely flat, but the presence of a few well-known Broadway personalities and character actors (Oscar nominees Sally Kirkland and Melinda Dillon) are nice distractions. The fact that they keep having cups thrown at them every time they kiss in public is an overused gag that isn't even funny the first time.

Parker Posey as a very unfunny stand up comic who also works at Marie's Crisis tries her best to make a quirky character like Tori Spelling's in "Trick" but the writing for her is just not even worth a awkward smile let alone a laugh. If this was actually written by gay men, they really should be ashamed of a lot of things in this. Most obvious, they needed to erase a lot of the cliches and get rid of a lot of the characters who just appear to be mean spirited and one dimensional, like the worst elements of "Queer as Folk". Having lived in gay mecca's most of my adult life, I did not relate to anyone of these characters although there are a few clever moments, particularly a scene at Sheridan Square between Curran and Posey unknowingly posting like the lesbian statue next to them. Worth a one time viewing, that is if you can suffer through a lot of the embarrassingly bad scenes. I managed to do that, but I don't intend to recommend this let alone watch it again.

A pleasant surprise

[esqnomore · 8/10 · 29 April 2005]

I was fortunate enough to see this film earlier this week at the Tribeca Film Festival. I was expecting something mildly amusing at best, but was pleasantly surprised to find that the movie is a real scream -- wildly funny, and while some of the humor is raunchy (in particular, an early scene that depicts a one-night stand that ends in embarrassment), the film overall is also rather sweet and sentimental. In addition to a witty script, the film features quite a bit of slapstick, visual humor, and even a big musical production number. Writer/director Craig Chester is Adam, and Malcolm Gets (probably best-known from Caroline in the City) is Steve; both are excellent. Parker Posey is quirky (but then isn't she always?) as Adam's fag hag, and Chris Kattan is annoying (but then isn't he always?) as Steve's straight roommate.

Great potential, but...

[buiger · 4/10 · 28 April 2007]

As far as Hollywood movies go, this was one brave motion picture. You don't see gay relationships portrayed with such nonchalance in a Hollywood film very easily. The Director and the Producers of Adam & Steve can say that much for themselves.

Having said that, I totally agree with Ebert on this one: this movie is a mix of scenes that are well done and scenes that would have been better left out. The film definitely has potential, but unfortunately much of it has been left unexploited by the filmmakers. It starts off very well, continues with mixed results, only to completely implode in the last 15 minutes or so. What a pity...