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Summary: The story of my life....
Review: I just love this movie..Makes me feel great about it as some scenes are quite similar to my life as a teenager when i first came out...plus those music background...just love it though this is a coming of age movie..worth for my queer's movies collection.
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Summary: No new ground broken here, but well done nonetheless
Review: Perhaps it is because I loved the 80's music in this film that I was more receptive than usual to the standard could-i-be-gay-no-way story. The cast is appealing and look of the film is good as well. No deep channels are mined here, but sometimes it's just nice to be entertained.
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Summary: Oh God lose that hat!
Review: Ok, you so you will cringe at the clothes and definitely at THAT hat and hairdo - but hey it was the 80s. This movie does it perfectly. Mum doesn't cry and accept, Maggie doesn't become his ...: it's realistic and truthful. Angie (??) the lesbian boss absolutely steals the scenes that she is in, and holds this great piece of work together. It's not quite "Get Real" or "Beautiful Thing" (the English tend to be able to do quirky romance films better than most) but still worth the purchase!
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Summary: Too honest for words...
Review: This is the most honest look at coming-out in the 80's. For those of us who where coming-out then, the movie really is too honest for words. It is funny, witty, sad, brutal and touching. And, it shows a time when our "Aunties" (older gay men) were an important and significant part of our culture.
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Summary: A Brutally Honest Film
Review: This movie explores some of the pitfalls of not only homosexuality and coming out, but also coming to terms with sexual freedom and exploration. There are many moments that are just so brutally true that for some people they might hit a little bit too close to home. The theme of this movie is that you are not alone in your confusion. I wish I had seen this movie when I was younger, because I had nobody to guide me through those tough times. Some moments forced a little too much emotion for plot purposes, but otherwise this is an enjoyable film.
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Summary: Great Movie, honest look at coming out in the 80's...
Review: You have to love this movie. The Edge of Seventeen is a welcome and positive addition to the gay "coming out" film genre. In fact, it's probably one of the best movies about youthful self-discovery in all its pain and confusion since "Beautiful Thing." But "Edge of Seventeen" is a little grittier and grainier than that sweet love story, and it also hits some harsher truths. Coming out isn't easy, and you're bound to hurt the ones you love along the way, especially while in the throes of figuring out what's what. But in order to move past the pain, the trick is to remain true to oneself.
In this filem, Eric (Chris Stafford) is a 17-year-old living in the depths of conservatism of Sandusky, Ohio, in the 1980s. He dreams of moving to New York to pursue his musical career at NYU. In the summer prior to his senior year, Chris takes a job working at a restaurant at a local resort. His best girlfriend, Maggie (Tina Holmes), works there too. It proves to be an eye-opening experience for both of the teens. Their boss is an irreverent, butch lesbian named Angie (Lea Delaria). And a co-worker, an Ohio State University student named Rod (Anderson Gabrych), is gay and has his eye on Chris. Chris doesn't understand his attraction to Rod at first, but the door has been opened, and there's no way Chris can go back.
His decision to pursue his identity in an era that spawned the androgynous look of Boy George and Annie Lennox causes problems for Chris and his mom, as well as with Maggie, who believes they have a deeper connection and a future together. The young cast is quite good. Chris Stafford has the right look, physical unease, defiance and eagerness that ring true.
The movie is even more notable for its lack of self-destructive impulse. Eric is a focused young man, despite his confusion, it's nice to see a gay-themed film that ends with hope instead of disenfranchisement..
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Summary: The Gay '80s
Review: Anybody who came out and lived through the 80's will find much to love in this movie. Moving, Funny, Sad. A gay version of a John Hughes film .... and if that isn't 80's I don't know what is. I remember those days fondly - but when I see the visuals - wow do the clothes scare me! Soundtrack is perfect.
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Summary: Cedar Point in a movie, finally!
Review: Okay, that wasn't the only highlight of this sleeper indie film, but it certainly gave Cedar Point its first (that I'm aware of) movie exposure. The film takes place in Sandusky Ohio, and is a fun and sometimes dramatic look at a young boy's struggles with coming out as a young gay man. The 80's soundtrack transported me back to a time when I was first coming out, and you just couldn't help but be right there with the title charactor as he started realizing who he was. Lea DeLaria gave an unexpectedly awesome performance as Eric's supervisor, and later, good friend and psuedo counselor. For a look back at coming out, at the 80's, or just to share a good time...Edge of Seventeen will take you there.
Rating:
Summary: Not to be missed
Review: This is a very powerful gay coming-out film, unlike others in its directness, simplicity and honesty. This is not a coming-out tale told thru rose-colored glasses. It's not a romance. "Edge of Seventeen" depicts the coming-out of 17 year old Eric Hunter in Sandusky, OH, in 1984. The cast overall is not as stellar as, say, "Beautiful Thing" or "Lilies," or several other very good gay films, but most of them have very minor roles, anyway. Of those that are crucial to the story, Chris Stafford deserves a statuette for his portrayal of Eric, nailing just about every nuance of emotion such a boy would go through, though he has a tendency to giggle at times when I think a soft moan would be more appropriate. Tina Holmes gives a wonderful performance as his steadfast girl friend, Maggie, and Stephanie McVay is excellent as Everymom. Lea Delaria perhaps brings some cachet to the film as a gay icon, but I would have preferred the role to be filled by a non-celebrity. Celebrity actors usually make better contributions to films if they play against type, if they have the acting skills to do it. Andersen Gabrych is creepily perfect as Rod, the college stud who knows Eric is attracted to him before Eric does and intends to use that knowledge to his personal satisfaction in every way he can. The directing, camera work and editing are accomplished if not exciting or groundbreaking. The 80s was a nothing decade for me musically, so the soundtrack does nothing for me. There are some rather explicit scenes, though nothing XXX; they will probably be a little discomforting for some straights and some gays, tho for different reasons. Unlike most gay films, the bad guys in "Edge of Seventeen" are not the homophobes, who are very inconsequential, nor a father who is unsupportive, nor any of the other usual suspects, but various gay characters, all too true to life, whom Eric encounters in his "Summer of '84." Number 1, of course, is Rod ('wham, bam, thank you little boy'). Number 2 is the predator who hits on Eric on his first visit to a gay bar ('wham, bam, slurp, "Whatever"'). Then there are the various jaded queens at the bar, latter day 'Boys in the Band' wannabees who can't wait to have Eric find out what 'It's Really All About, sweetie.' We all know all these characters. Roger Ebert stupidly concludes Eric can't wait to be a slut. But Ebert is right that the film doesn't present a single positive male homosexual character. Nevertheless Eric survives his rites of initiation into the gay bar scene, and seems to be stabilizing happily at the end, which is otherwise a bit vague and cliche. The scenes in which Eric struggles with coming out to his Mom and then does are heart-rending and among the most moving in gay cinema, as is his coming out to Maggie. Despite my minor quibbles, I put this film on my very short list of 5-Star rated, excellent gay films. It is not to be missed. I will be looking forward to seeing more of Chris Stafford in future films, even if they're not about gay subjects.
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Summary: Coming Out and Coming of Age - Highly Recommended
Review: This teenaged gay coming-out story is very special, not only because it captures the coming-out experiences of those who were teenagers during the mid-1980s (with particular music, fashions, language, etc.) but also because of its universal appeal and truths. Gay people who came out in any decade can relate to the innocent hero's romantic hopes that his first lover will be his last, while his older seducer is far more interested in acquiring as many notches to his bedpost as he can muster. Naturally, our hero is disillusioned and wishes to return to the closet, a solution that is ultimately not viable. There is a sense of honesty about the film that suggests that it is based on autobiography, and perhaps, here is where the trouble lies. Despite this film's being far more realistic than most gay coming-out movies, which are heavier on idyllic romance, this movie loses momentum at the end. Construction-wise, there is no genuine climax (our hero's unsatisfactory attempt to make love to a female friend and then his coming out to a mother who is unable to cope does not make a climax). And lacking a climax, the movie can't have a satisfactory ending. The fact that our hero has forsworn the local gay bar for a time, and now returns, is not a workable resolution. Even so, the movie is a real charmer -- sensitively directed and with an exceptional cast. Even with the flaws mentioned, few compared to its virtues, this highly likable film deserves to be in anyone's gay collection.
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