Excellent but underrated film

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

A seemingly straight high schooler who apparently has never considered he might be gay (never mind the memory of getting a 'boner' in the locker room at summer camp as a young boy...hasn't every guy had something similar happen at some time in their childhood?) meets a gay guy at a party and after sharing a joint, is confused by the feelings he is having. So far, so good. He is a virgin and makes plans to have sex for the first time with his girl friend, planning an evening at a hotel. Still, so far, so good. He becomes buddies with the gay boy he met and as they sit and talk, he suddenly grabs the gay and plants a heavy-duty kiss on him, immediately regretting it. Not quite so good.This movie then turns into a fairy tale (no pun intended) when he decides he is definitely gay and confesses to his gf and friends. They all rally around him, supporting him 100%. His GF sets him up with the gay dude at the prom ("I'm passing the torch"...huh?) and the two boys stand in the middle of the dance floor in a heated embrace, kissing passionately while all the students either ignore them, or give them the 'thumb's up'. Utter Hollywood baloney.Sorry, I don't buy it. This is not the real world, as much as most people wish it was. The movie is filled with stereotypes, including the main character's nerdy friends, the school jock, the dying mother, the whiny, weeping girl friend, and on and on. There is even the stereotypical quote 'Maybe it's just a phase you're going through' uttered, not by the parents but by the spurned girlfriend. For those viewers who don't want to see a true story about coming out but would prefer a fairy tale, this is your movie. Otherwise do not be insulted by this Hollywood hogwash, especially if you've lived the painful result of coming to terms with being gay.

Hormones are running wild at Buchanan High. Animal obsessed student body president Alex Truelove is an awkward teen looking for true love. He falls hard for Claire and they become video partner best friends. Eventually, they get into a relationship. Claire lets slip that Alex has been preventing her from devirginizing him. They decide on a hotel rendezvous to do it for the first time. Then he meets openly gay Elliott.The crass friend Dell does something crass to prove a point. My move would be less crass but still somewhat crass. Dell is more than a simplistic idiot sidekick. This is a good sexual confusion movie. I do have a presumed idea of where this movie is going but this takes a different road. I expected the hotel to be the climax. It might be better to structure that way. It may not be as sweet but it would be more dramatic. After the big emotional explosion, it can't really get that big again. Emotional tension kinda drift slowly down. Even his big reveal can't break that level again. Honestly, she has a bigger emotional arc than he does. Maybe, the coming out story is thankfully no longer shocking and this should be her story instead. Of course, there is a comparison to the other recent teen coming out movie, Love, Simon. I think they are both very compelling and slightly flawed in different ways. They could be a solid double bill.

A gem of a movie that not only accurately depicts the journeys of some LGBT+ people but also addresses ignorant world views in a comedic manner, whilst insinuating that they're not the best way to approach certain situations. It's also addressing the confusing time that many people have trying to figure out which sexuality they identify with which I adore! The performance of all actors in the film are incredible. Particularly the actors who portrayed Dell, Alex, Elliot and Claire did an exceptional job of it. The writing is also comedy driven which I adore. Really, this is just a classic RomCom, only it's really good lol.

The film was cute and it was very genuine in how it portrayed teenage confusion over sexuality, but the biggest surprise was Madeline Weinstein. Usually the role of the girlfriend in this kind of story would be a secondary one, a small role without much depth, but I really appreciated that the main love story of this film turned out to be that of the lead guy and his best friend. Weinstein was perfect here. There were so many shades to her character and I felt like she was the most heartbreaking during the emotional parts of the film. She was in last year's Beach Rats and now she's proven she has endless amounts of charisma. I hope we see her in more things.