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Reviews
The Rules of Attraction (2002)
Do believe the critics - dreadful flick
The narration at the very beginning of the film hits it right on the head. It's boring.
An unlikable plot about a group of unlikable characters doing unlikable things, to themselves and each other. A (classic? Hardly) love quadrangle forms the central plot, with no-one wanting to be with anyone else that actually likes him or her. To compensate, the characters get high, get drunk, and mope. Extensively.
While I'm giving a score of 3 simply because so many of the characters are well-acted and look good with no clothes on, other than those two things, there's really nothing to recommend this film. I've seen people comment that the film is wonderfully realistic. If this film matches your reality, I am sorry. You should turn your life in and get a refund, and buy a new one from a better trim line. Really? EVERY SINGLE PERSON on Earth does not get drunk, do drugs, and make everyone else they know miserable.
Finally, after an unsatisfying ride through the film awaiting something interesting to break out, we have an unsatisfying ending. I guess the point of the movie is that life is unsatisfying. Personally, I go to movies to get something different, not to be bored or depressed. I can get that from real life, with people that are much happier and nicer to be around! Overall - I'll take movies that entertain me, thanks. Rules of Attraction? Not so much; more like "Rules to an Unhappy Life with terrible people" So sad.
The Lair (2007)
Quite enjoyable
"The Lair", for anyone who doesn't already know, is a spin-off series from Here!TV's "Dante's Cove", and follows it the footsteps of that series in that it's a supernaturally-themed gay soap-opera. In most other respects, it's a different thing entirely.
I enjoyed "The Lair" quite a bit. While it suffers from all those things that typically plague new shows (the actors are still finding their characters, and so are the writers, for that matter) - especially new, short-season shows - it's well-produced, and feels well-directed as well. Some of the actors' performances are quite good, and I would say that all the core character performances are superb, which is unusual for a new show. The characters of Thom, Damien, and Colin are strong, motivated, and well-acted, and the supporting cast does a good job as well.
Although the show is a gay soap spin-off of "DC", and contains a "Gentlemen's Club" as a major location, it is actually less nudity-saturated than its sire. Perhaps that's due to "DC's" island beach location, while "The Lair" has a somewhat more urban feel about it (although it's ostensibly set on an island as well.) The nudity in this show feels more "natural" (that is to say, more plot-supported and less random) than that in "DC", and is only on rare occasion a distraction from the show's main action. There is sex (gay) and a lot of it (remember the "Gentlemen's Club") but it feels natural to the plot line and the location, and is generally well-acted (a major thing, in my opinion, if you want "hot" instead of "huh" in your sex scenes.) I'll give one ding in that there are scenes of group sex where the guys are soft (though the camera doesn't dwell on that part of the anatomy - this isn't hard-core porn, after all) and it feels off. Maybe there's a rule about showing hard guys on non-porn, but it seems to me that for a couple of seconds of airtime, it greatly help with suspension of disbelief - after all, I'm supposed to believe these guys are ENJOYING this. Either that, or edit more tightly so it's not obvious on a casual (that is, I'm not freeze-framing to hunt for it) viewing.
Overall, I really enjoyed the show. I think it got off to a stronger start than "DC" and am really enjoying the mix of interesting characters, skin/sex, and of course the "John Doe Murders" plot line running as the main frame the show lives on. I think this one has legs, and will give us all a good run.
Dante's Cove (2004)
Improving greatly!
When I saw the first season, I posted a review and commented on the bad acting and sub-par writing. But, I really enjoyed the show anyway. I'm glad I stuck with it, because it's gotten better. A LOT better.
It has all the basic elements I like - Gothic plot line, romance, and skin on screen. The writing, acting, and directing have come a long way since Season 1 - in fact, I would have to say Season 3 is by far the strongest yet. The writing is tighter, the performances turned in by series veterans have improved enormously (Charlie David in particular is giving substantially-improved performances) and the show is just plain FUN! Gothic Horror is a genre I love, and Dante's Cove delivers that. Especially in Season 1 (the show moved shooting locations to Hawai'i starting Season 2) there are great locations with old architecture and some spooky native locales. The cast is hot, the sex is getting hotter by the season, and the plot lines are engaging - covering all the territory from "jealous boyfriend" to "jilted fiancée" to "mind-controlling warlock" as time rolls on in the show. There is humor (both intended and not, I think), drama, and by Season 3 the camp atmosphere feels more intended than accidental and the show has finally hit its stride.
One ding - every season the show appears to move. Between Season 1 and 2, shooting moved to Hawai'i (O'ahu, to be exact) so some established locations either just changed (The Hotel Dante) or "closed for renovations" (the Historical Society building.) Between Seasons 2 and 3 we've moved locales again! For reasons I won't get into here, we're not spending any more time at the hotel. The feel of the locales has moved from Gothic to Paradise Beach - while Hawai'i is gorgeous, it's a bit sunny and fun for the feel I got from the first season. Personally, I find the constant venue changes jarring, and hope we'll get to see some of the same locations for Season 4 when it arrives, or perhaps return for a bit to some older ones.
In any event, I love this show. For those who haven't figured this out yet, it does feature full-frontal nudity (male) and lots of sex - gay, lesbian, and IIRC a straight scene or two. The show (with the sole exception of the opening five minutes of Season 1) doesn't show full-frontal with erection, which occasionally looks strange given what's supposed to be going on, and which seems strange given where it went in the show's opening five minutes of Season 1. A couple of the actors are obviously not planning on full-frontal, and occasionally contort to avoid it, while extras are frequently (and occasionally pointlessly) nude, and soft even when horn-dogging someone. Perhaps more creative set staging or action blocking could help them cover up without looking so odd doing it, or maybe they'll decide one day that full-frontal in a gay soap is not career-ending. While I'm not looking for pornography here, a touch more realism would help with "suspension of disbelief" quite a bit.
All in all, if you like horror, and like gay themes, give "Dante's Cove" a try. Try to watch at least two seasons, and I really recommend going for the third - it's the strongest yet, and starts to deliver on the promise of the premise that we've been waiting for from the beginning.