Written by Quite frankly, I’m a huge Olympics junkie and so, the few hours that I haven’t been working this week, I’ve been half watching the Games and trying to sleep at the same time. Sleep is losing. The Games get a gold medal. Rest assured, at work, where I can read books when things slow down, I’ve been catching up on my reading. I wanted to get back in the posting groove though because I’ve been really, really lax this summer so I picked an old favorite movie of mine, a gay romantic comedy to recommend to all of the non-Olympics junkies among you.
First though, a quick, true story. Eight years ago, my then girlfriend and I hit the road for the world’s longest yard sale that (then) ran from Cincinnati, OH to Arkansas or some such thing. Now it starts in Michigan and runs all the way down there but that’s not my point. On Saturday night, we decided we had enough of our base in Frankfort, Kentucky where they roll up the sidewalks promptly at 6:00pm and we headed out to check out the gay scene in Lexington…yes, Lexington, Kentucky and yes, there is a thriving one.
Anyhoo, for a short part of the evening we ended up in a bear bar before it was in full swing for the night. The guys were welcoming and friendly so we stayed for a couple beers and we watched mens synchronized Olympic diving with them. Just picture a bear bar with big hairy guys and guys in cut out leather chaps hooting and hollering over male divers in Speedos… Yeah, it was a rocking good time! It’s one of my great memories of my “early coming out period.”
Now On to the movie:
It’s unusual that a romantic comedy released on DVD in 1996 with a cast that speaks German (English subtitles are provided) shows any staying power as a sales hit in the U.S. but, our review for today does just that. The movie I’m talking about is the Rolf Silber written and directed piece, Regular Guys
Ohrt plays the character Christoph (yes, they used his name), a straight, plainclothes police officer whose fiance has had enough of him being married to his job. She throws him out. He drinks himself stupid and wanders into a gay bar in that stupor. He wakes up the next morning in the bed and arms of gay man Edgar (Bergmann). Mayhem ensues as Christoph tries to figure exactly what happened and Edgar plays coy. Christoph goes off to find a place to live but he can’t. Meanwhile Edgar, already smitten, offers up his place and his heart to Christoph’s insistence that he’s straight. Regardless, because he can’t find a place to live, Christoph ends up moving in and more mayhem ensues. There’s a lot going on here but it all fits together perfectly.
This is, admittedly, not high art. Even with subtitles, what it is, is well acted and very funny. It’s a great way to relax and enjoy a movie on a summer Friday evening…if you’re not watching the Olympics.
