Defying Gravity
Popular frat guy Griff, the ultimate boy next boy, has a great big secret... Pete. Given an ultimatum by Pete, Griff goes the straight route until things get rough. Ultimately, defying reality is harder than he had ever imagined.
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- Cast:
- Niklaus Lange , Lesley Pedersen , Nicki Aycox
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Reviews
Powerful
Expected more
It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.
I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.
I loved this movie. It was touching and heart wrenching.It showed that love conquers all no matter what happens. I can't stop watching this movie. I play it over and over again I just can't get enough of this film. The director did a great job with this film. It captured the essence of true love and what is meant to be in love with someone.I think they should make a Defying Gravity 2 even after all these years. I would like to know what happened with Pete and Griff's relationship, Griff's friendship with Denetra. The second movie should be class reunion about what happened in their lives after the first movie and what they been up to.
I must say, I love the continuity in this film. Others have said that it should be shortened a bit, because writer/director John Keitel feels compelled to tie up every loose end. But that is what I love about this film. When a character is sitting on a hillside looking at a view, the director actually shows you the view! So many much more expensive movies fail to provide the viewer this simple courtesy. The view shot is just a physical example, but there is emotional continuity in the film as well. Defying Gravity has given me a great deal of pleasure. I wish John Keitel would direct more. He seems more interested in editing which I am sure he is great at. I noticed he edited Latter Days, another favorite.
This movie has several opportunities to make a splash. There is a gay bashing. There is the closet gay who refuses to talk about his relationship yet wants to open up to a black female class mate. I feel like the story should have explored more with the closet lesbian and not so much on the back slapping antics of young men talking about how much sex they got the night before. The one really horrible item to this movie is that the lead actor was by far the worst actor in the movie. Everyone else was actually very, very good. I could not feel his anger when he found out who the bashers were, which I felt should have been the most pivotal point of the show. His frustration at being gay was sometimes there, sometimes not. I just felt like something ended up on the cutting room floor.
When I saw this film the first time I had an uncontrollable urge to smile to myself and go "agghhh" rather like granny when she looks at a particularly embarrassing baby photo of me. The film has many flaws but I watch it over and over again. The plot is well developed although quite predictable as it progresses. This is however not a thriller. There is some quite good acting from Nicklaus Lange and Don Handfield. Daniel Chilson looks right for the part and tries his best. He is however on a few occasions fairly wooden and ill at ease. I can well understand that his film acting experience had been (still is?) a little low level. The film is professionally produced with good production values.The script was OK. It dealt with plot development well but some of the dialogue was appalling. Do intelligent people talk this way in America? Some of the characters were ghastly stereotypes of gay people. The camp pink shirted activist was I think cast for effect but he made my toes curl! I know these are flaws but don't let that put you off. This is a "feel good" film and rather made me think of "Beautiful Thing" (time shifted slightly and moved to America). I recommend it to all