Boystown (2007)

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Far from Perfect, Far from Terrible

A brilliant film that helped define a genre

Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

I remember on a trip to Madrid in 2001 before the World Trade Center Towers were attacked I did visit Madrid and spent a few hours in this Chueca neighborhood. I have to say it was a bit seedy, but charming in its own way. This film will have nothing to do with the classic Father Flanagan film Boystown. The boys here can very bad, but somewhat tempting.This was a strange film in its dividing the LGBT community into haves and have nots. There's a real estate salesmen in Chueca who is obsessed with not only making money, but toning up the Chueca neighborhood. I'm not sure if there's a Spanish equivalent for rent control, but I've seen many an American film with that as a basis. True in real life, many landlords will do whatever to get out old tenants of rent controlled units so they can rent them to upper middle class Yuppie types. Only in the gay world they're called Guppies. We learn right away it's this handsome charming real estate guy doing the evil deeds. When will the authorities and the community know is the crux of the plot.I'm not mentioning any of the players because I doubt most Americans will have a clue as to who they are. The real estate guy reminded me a bit of Christopher Meloni.Who does him in? Just the hardworking working class gay men and lesbians and the mother of one of them. Kind of like Columbo.We Americans might enjoy Boystown.

"Chuecatown" is a rare bird in the contemporary movie making. A dark, violent, almost Hitchcockian comedy. It would be unjust to label this charming, but not very memorable movie, a gay feature. Truth to be told, it has plenty of gay characters,and it is set in a gay part of Madrid, but the main characters are not just the gay clichés,they are actually people who happen to be gay. Of course, it helps the plot- after all it is a story about gentrification of a gay neighborhood. The jokes are sometimes funny, sometimes tired and repetitive. The actors have a good sense of comic timing. All and all, a light, non pretentious romp.

This is my first review, so be patient. What Boystown has in originality, it lacks in creativity. This light hearted black comedy about a psychotic real estate agent killing off the neighborhood's elderly ladies in order to sell their apartments to rich gay couples had a lot of potential, that was unfortunately lost. The movie presents itself as a light and cheerful comedy, when the subject matter is anything but. This ultimately works against it and makes the scenes which were meant to be unsettling or tense, just fall flat. A rewrite (or two) of the final draft and the hands of a more competent and creative director could have turned Boystown into a darker, horror tinged thriller, while still maintaining all of the comedy elements present in the story. Furthermore the third act was a complete mess,with a couple of small plot holes and one huge plot hole the size of a football stadium ruining any potential this film had left. However this movie still has its strengths, even though they are woefully out numbered by its weaknesses. The performances were excellent, especially by all of the leading ladies. The dialog was very sharp and witty and provided some laugh out loud moments, plus all of the main characters (bar the serial killer) actually had some development and depth...particularly the male lead and what could best be described as his 'mother in law' ;-). Also, the three different story strands did not clash with each other and gelled surprisingly well.Overall the film still only manages a 6 out of 10 from me. It could have been a lot better if its was darker and not so infantile.

I must admit to wondering if one of the reviewers here watched the same film as I have just watched.Chuecatown is a light-hearted film about the relationship of two guys interrupted by an overzealous mother and a murdering Estate Agent.With touches of early Almodovar, the dialogue was colourful with clever references to the gay lifestyle.The film shows the love that can exist between two men and how that can be affected by third parties, especially those closest to one side of the relationship.A side plot shows the relationship between a mother (Police Inspector) who is a hypochondriac and her policeman son who gradually comes out through the storyline.Yes, lots of clichés are used through the film, but with great humour and fitting perfectly in place.I sense from one of the other reviews, that some political messages were contained in the film. While these might be a bit of a spoiler for the Madrid market, it is so subtle as to have no effect on other viewers. The irony that a homophobic counsellor was played by a drag queen was well placed.I would encourage people to see this film for themselves and don't let comments put you off. Be your own judge !