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WERE THE WORLD MINE [U.S.A., 2008, Directed by Tom Gustafson, 95 mins., UPC: 807839004045]
[What the Studios and the Critics have had to say]
A musical dream come true.
Infused with homoerotic energy, Thomas Gustafson's WERE THE WORLD MINE literally sings with lust and Shakespeare with total abandon and creativity. In this remarkable musical fantasy, an inspired English teacher casts her summer production of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" with magic in mind.
If you had a love-potion, who would you make fall madly in love with you?
Timothy, prone to escaping his dismal high school reality through dazzling musical daydreams, gets to answer that question in a very real way. After his eccentric teacher casts him as Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream, he stumbles upon a recipe hidden within the script to create the play's magical, purple love-pansy. Armed with the pansy, Timothy's fading spirit soars as he puckishly imposes a new reality by turning much of his narrow-minded town gay, beginning with the rugby-jock of his dreams. Ensnaring family, friends and enemies in this chaos, Timothy forces them to walk a mile in his musical shoes. The course of true love never did run smooth; it's a bumpy ride.
Life’s tough for Timothy. He’s the victim of homophobic bullying at his all-boy high school, he’s isolated by narrow-minded townsfolk and it’s all pretty miserable. But things change when a mysterious drama teacher (Twin Peaks’ Wendy Robie) casts him as Puck in the schools musical version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Discovering a magical recipe for a love potion hidden in the text, he decides to use it on the man of his dreams. Things get a little crazy and before you know it he’s turning the whole town gay to give the bigots a chance to walk a mile in his shoes see what love’s all about. It’s a nice twist on the typical coming-of-age story with something important to say about the power gained from being yourself in society. It also benefits from strong production values, some great vocals, and one absolutely terrific song.
Timothy (Tanner Cohen) is a gay boy stranded in a private boys school obsessed with rugby. There’s just one thing about rugby he's obsessed with, the über-hot Jonathan (Nathaniel David Becker). Both boys are students in Ms. Tebbit's (Wendy Robie, who "Twin Peaks" fans will recognize as "Nadine") English class. She's a teacher with a mission: to excite her students with the literature of the ages. When she decides to cast these two boys as the romantic leads in her production of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and to cast boys in girl's roles, you know she’s just as mischievous as Puck himself. The rugby Coach and townspeople are up in arms, and Timothy sends himself off into musical gay fantasies that look as if they're designed by Pierre et Gilles. But Timothy just can't get the language right and Ms. Tebbit advises the boy to let the words work their magic. They do just that as Timothy finds in the script the recipe for a potion to make people gay! One spritz from Timothy's magic pansy and the person goes totally queer. The entire town (filled with Christian fundamentalists) is whipped into frenzy as the glorious production night approaches. This deliciously surreal confection of a film is steered by first-time co-writer/director Thomas Gustafson, whose 2003 short Faeries inspired this bit of magic. The musical numbers are over-the-top, production values first-rate and the acting is as flawlessly beautiful as the boys. We know the Bard would appreciate this totally queer take on his immortal tale of mayhem, "If we shadows have offended, think but this, and all is mended."
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0476991/
Studio: Wolfe Vidéo/TLA Releasing
Producers: The Group Entertainment/peak Productions/Were The World Mine LLC.
Director: Tom Gustafson
Running Time: 95 mins.
Language: English
EAN/UPC: 754703763235/807839004045
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[My personal take]
I had discounted this film as being somewhat well meaning "Gay Fluff" and as a consequence not really taken more than a jaundiced look the first time around; I regret that now, and realize my error. This is one seriously very, very, good film, and not too shabby a musical into the bargain.
DO NOT let that it is sourced from Tom Gustafson's earlier gay-themed short-filmed subject, FAERIES, discourage you from screening this little gem as I had done.
Suitable for viewing by all members of a family, it is the soundtrack which will particularly appeal to the youngsters at home, and here at A Place Of Safety, featuring a simply outstanding Britain's young Patrick Wolf (he of the simpering, smoldering, stare and flaming red-hair and baritone pipes) in the school play's finale, and again during the film's closing credits.
Bravura performances are given by both leading men (Tanner Cohen and Nathanial David Becker) with better than average support provided from those playing lesser roles; with young Becker being simply one of the most visually stunning actors to come down the film circuit pike in a great long while.
Not since Channing Tatum's arrival in in the teen-geared feature-film, STEP UP, has another youth turned my head in quite the same fashion as the young Becker does. I would give him the World were he mine!
Warren C. E. Austin
The Gay Deceiver
Toronto, Canada
[Updated on: Mon, 06 September 2010 00:00]
"... comme recherché qu'un délice callipygian"
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