There aren't many gay themed thrillers, let alone good ones. I was looking forward to this film given the genre, but I have to say that this was overall a disappointment. Actually calling it psychological thriller maybe better where the two protagonists happen to be gay. There is no specific gay angle otherwise played out here.
Grady is a failed actor. Bipolar and is now running a lodge in middle o nowhere making him desolate and lonely. He is looking forward to a weekend where his friends are coming over including his boyfriend. We meet a young boy Beetle, a drifter, whom Grady buys pot from. Grady hires him for the weekend at the lodge to help him with stuff. But Beetle has his own agenda. We then meet a straight couple, who are Grady's friends and the girl used to be Grady's agent and also Andy, who we later find out is actually here to break up with Grady unlike what Grady thought of getting married. Soon we realize that Beetle starts to play his small little mind games trying to distract Grady's mind right from switching his meds, to trying to steal his identity and also creating a rift between all the friends over the weekend. The tricks that Beetle uses are quite interesting actually.
Beetle is clearly the star of the show, as the girl in the film says ""With your Southern charm and your looks, I'll bet you're a handful." And handful he is. He charms everyone and u like him but you also know that he is unto no good. He is the kind of villain you love to hate. He's cute in a dorky sort of way, and socially inept, and everyone buys his act. For a lead role Grady was not good either as a character or an actor. Why would a failed actor decide to take a run down resort on middle of nowhere is beyond me. The film is a decent thriller when it comes to story by marred by strictly average performances. The only "gay" scene is where Beetle tries to literally seduce Andy and teases him and the very next day accuses him of trying to molest him. What were really Beetle's intentions was never clear as such but whatever. At some point I really didn't care. I have very mixed feelings about this one, more negative than positive to be honest. IT came out 11 years ago, and I might have thought better o fit then, but in todays time, I will not go around recommending this one. (4/10)
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