The One (2011)

Simply Perfect

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

Got to chime in with everything scootmandutoo said. I don't think I can remember a single moment in this whole movie that I found emotionally convincing, or even plausible. Was it the hackneyed writing, the extremely far-fetched situation (yeah, I guess there may be guys out there from the Ivy League-Choate-Amherst-Wall Street law firm set that actually stay deep in the closet at this late date, if only to clinch their places in Daddy's country club and will, but I just don't travel in those exalted circles), or the unbelievably _earnest_ efforts made by all the actors other than the male leads? No, they all tried so damn hard it wore me out to watch them. And then you have Tommy and Daniel, whose scenes together were like a torrid (or torrid one minute, chilly the next) love affair between two planks of lumber. Did sparks fly? No, but sawdust must have piled up in the corners. Lawd have mercy, chillun, at least try to pretend you're feeling SOMETHING, not just standing around waiting for your next dividend check!Very rarely do I regret time spent watching any movie whatever which claims to speak the Life of the Gay Male. This time I did. Folks, really don't waste your time when there are pictures like "Big Eden" and "Parting Glances" and (the hilarious) "Sordid Lives" waiting to be seen and re-seen. Listen to me. I'm your mothah. I know about these things.

This is Jon Prescott's film. And he is perfect. His Daniel is the ultimate WASP living a totally closeted life. He is a total emotional fraud, living in constant fear of being exposed. He reunites with former classmate Tommy and they have s torrid affair. Are they in love? Yes. But Tommy is as big a fake as Daniel and their love, while genuine, can not last.Real love is built on truth and honesty and these two have neither. Daniel's wife Jen is clueless. She is totally oblivious to the fact that not only is her husband gay, but he's having a torrid and ongoing affair with Tommy. It all seems to hit her at once near the end of the film. It's as if someone finally hit her over the head.The character of Tommy's mother is poorly cast and totally unnecessary. Daniel's father is played as a country club Yoda. And I have no idea why someone named Michael Billy is in this picture at all.The ending is true to form. Liars and frauds do not win in love. Sometimes there are no happy endings. Watch it for the interplay between the two men.

There is some really good acting here. But the best acting is is done by secondary players, because they have the more plausible story lines. The worst acting is by the two lead actors, but the fault may mostly be due to the implausible storyline given to them. It was insane to think that a deep and thoughtful philosophy major would be so clueless about himself after so much experience in school, grad school, and life in the city. But even more insane to think he'd fall in love with a selfish, egotistical liar who borders on the criminally obsessed. The story has too many scenes and actions for which you cannot know what the character's motivation is. At one moment the closeted man is completely afraid of man man sex , the next second he's all comfortable and cuddly, and then wham he's nervous again. No continuity of character from scene A to scene B, so no chance for eventual character development from Beginning to End.

I just watched this at a monthly gay film fest and I have to admit, I haven't turned away from the screen this much since the brutal scenes in "Hostel." I spent much of the movie watching through my spread fingers. I didn't feel too out of place, because my partner was with me and he actually thought it was worse than I did. Not quite as bad as some glbt-themed movies can be, like, say, the entire 'Eating Out' series. At least, in those cases, the films oozed so much superficiality you never expected much. This film actually has higher production values. Some of the performances are even borderline decent. The problem is with the script and all the clichés and the fact that these characters are so creepy that they are entirely unlikable...and then the film leaves you with an ending that makes you feel you just gave up 90 minutes of your life...for what?This one was a cross between the "Eating Out" movies and "Making Love," so we dubbed it "Making Out," which certainly sounds better than "Eating Love." I guess I don't understand why one of the protagonists that we are supposed to sympathize with is a creepy stalker/pathological liar, who preaches true love and then just uses someone he cares nothing about to propose marriage to, simply as a revenge ploy. And the other guy is not only cheating on his bride with another man, but the scriptwriter gives wifey a back story of a woman with abandonment issues whose father walked out on her. And then....let's her get pregnant! You are kidding me, right? Torture, I tell you. And forget that the wife is as clueless as a bag of rocks and has a clairvoyant girlfriend who can spot a gay man a mile away and then even sleep with them, because...well...it is theatre and a woman has to have sex with someone! Arrrrrggggggghhhhh.But the really torturous scenes involved a bachelor party and scenes with mom and dad and cigars and....oh it's too painful to relive it all.I will say this....it certainly had us talking. Just not in the way the filmmaker intended.ps.....afterward, consider how well Jon Prescott's acting resembled a plank of wood. He captures being an inanimate object as well as just about anyone I have ever seen.