October 1, 2020
In 1969, there was an off-Broadway play by Matt Crowley that was considered a theatrical landmark for being the first to dare tell a frank story about the lives of male homosexuals. After its 1-1/2 year run onstage, the play went on to have a film adaptation in 1970, directed by William Friedkin, who would later be nominated for Best Director Oscars for "The French Connection" (1971) and "The Exorcist" (1973).
For the play's 50th anniversary in 2018, there was a revival on Broadway directed by Joe Mantello that went on to win the Tony that year for Best Revival of a Play. The cast of this revival production was notable because they were all actors who are openly gay. This year, Ryan Murphy (again!) brings back the director and the actors of this revival to make a new film version of this play to be streamed on Netflix, starting September 30.
Michael (Jim Parsons) was hosting a party that night at his apartment. This was to celebrate the birthday of his friend Harold (Zachary Quinto). The guests included Michael's current partner Donald (Matt Bomer), African-American librarian Bernard (Michael Benjamin Washington), designer Emory (Robin de Jesus), Math teacher Hank (Tuc Watkins) and his boyfriend Larry (Andrew Rannells). A male escort "Cowboy" (Charlie Carver) was there as Emory's gift to Harold.
However, Michael's old college friend Alan (Brian Hutchinson) suddenly showed up at Michael's apartment unannounced. Married and very conservative, Alan was uncomfortable at the conversations he was hearing at the party. He was particularly averse to Emory's florid effeminate behavior such that he lashed out in a fit of violence. This unfortunate incident led to reopening to old secrets and frustrations among the guests, especially when Michael started a game of making a telephone call to admit feelings of love.
Parsons delivered his lines with the same cadence as his famous Sheldon character, Michael also being pushy and domineering. Quinto's Harold was all cynical, jaded and aloof with age. Bomer's pained face reflected Donald's inner conflicts. Washington's Bernard repressed passion under his mild exterior. de Jesus' Emory was scene-stealing because of his campy, unabashed flamboyance. Rannell's Larry was very flirty in contrast with Watkins' strong and stoic portrayal of Hank (Ranells and Watkins are a couple in real life). Carver was enjoying his dumb himbo Cowboy. Hutchinson's Alan was a big question mark all the way through.
Having been all part of the Broadway production, the actors obviously had command of their respective characters and easy rapport with each other. This made the ensemble work impressive and fluid in interpreting Matt Crowley's snappy lines. LGBTQ people will probably be able to relate more to the challenges in these characters' lives and relationships, even if this was set pre-AIDS crisis, 50 years ago.
Since all the scenes were only confined in one setting, the emotional tensions in that apartment do percolate to uncomfortable degrees, even vicious during that toxic phone game. The material may be not be easy to process for those still uninitiated with the libidinous lingo and dramatic dynamics among gay men. 7/10
*****
If you want to watch the original 1970 film: click on this LINK. Both films followed Crowley's script very faithful, and so both were very similar to each other. It was up to the performances of the actors to give their respective characters their distinct individual personalities. The 2020 version depicted the flashbacks as the guys reminisced about their past. We also see what the fellows did after the party broke up with a montage accompanied by a sax solo.
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