Strong and Moving!

Absolutely the worst movie.

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

So, the hand cam got on my nerves rather quickly.Spent the first part of the movie trying to figure out what kind of film I was watching. The film is obviously set up to be a "worlds collide" situation. Perhaps I was expecting that those 2 worlds, or their separateness, would have been better defined from the beginning.The whole project comes off like an amateur attempt judging by the lack of polish. The lighting is crap. The camera work is distracting. The casting is good. The dialogue is effective but the plot jumped around too much for me to follow. Makes me feel like I have A.D.D.The technical flaws kept me out of the film and I was left with an overpowering sense of watching a film rather than experiencing it.

I started out disliking this, but ended up rather enjoying it. The cinema verite style was very hard for me to get past. It seems really contrived, particularly because several of the characters were absolute caricatures. The senator and his wife were cartoonishly unambiguous and the bitter friend seemed like unnecessary set dressing. Comedically evil right wing conservative and hand-held cam make for strange bedfellows. I came around during the Palm Springs hooker scene, just because it didn't go for the obvious gambit. That did cut the potential smarminess of the whole coming out agenda. The narrative convention of the reporter and protagonist is also absurdly contrived. Having said those things, Jack Noseworthy really puts the thing over. If he smiled at me, I'd probably throw my whole life away, too. Ultimately, the movie isn't really about gayness or politics. It's about grown children allowing, or not allowing, their parents to control them.

POSTER BOY is a film with a lot of potential: the story premise is solid (though a bit tired), the cast of both young and experienced actors is quite fine, and there are some worthwhile statements about our political system, about tolerance and acceptance and family, and about being true to yourself. Despite all of these aspects that should have made a fine little film the whole thing bogs down with some of the worst editing and camera work on record. That, and the writers' (Lecia Rosenthal and Ryan Shiraki) need to place platitudes into normal conversation is most distracting. Zak Tucker as director just didn't seem to have control of this piece.The story itself is rather simple. Through the gimmick of a confession to a reporter we meet handsome young Henry Kray (the talented Matt Newton), gay since early teens but electing to keep his private life a secret, who is the son of Senator Jack Kray (Michael Lerner) and his lovely but docile wife Eunice (the fine Karen Allen). It seems that six months prior to the time we are invited into the conversation Henry met Anthony (hunky Jack Noseworthy) whose roommate is HIV positive Izzie (Valerie Geffner). Henry and Anthony have a one-night stand the day before Jack Kray is to give a speech for re-election at Henry's college. The Senator accidentally hits Izzie with his car and Eunice insists Izzie stay with them in their suite where the two women bond. Meanwhile Henry's night with Anthony makes him late for the speech, but a talk to Henry from Jack before the speech telling him what to say (Jack is the best father, loves family values, etc) sticks in Henry's throat and soon after he obeys his father's wishes for the speech introduction, Henry turns to his table partner Anthony and the two kiss openly as the Senator is addressing the crowd - all caught by the media of course.How this moment of honesty alters the lives of everyone around is the crux of the ending. Not a bad tale, but the camera work is so patchy and disconcertingly disconnected that it defies the viewer to keep the storyline straight. But if the viewer can keep up visually, the performances by the cast are well worth attention. There is some very fine talent on the screen of this B movie! Grady Harp

I just saw this movie yesterday and I for one, thought it was a terrific movie. I thought it's messages were great and I especially thought Matt Newton's performance was spectacular. I just felt that the one aspect of the ending didn't really work and that was the fact that Henry never made contact with Anthony again. You would think since he asked him to stay with him in the gym that they would've at lease kept in touch. But overall I thought this movie was very powerful and am still wondering why the critics have been so unkind to it. This includes Kevin Thomas of the L.A. Times who gives every gay movie a good review.