Latter Days

Jeremy and I caught the last film of the 10th annual Out in Africa gay and lesbian film festival, at least in Cape Town. It was Latter Days, which some may remember caused some news for being banned in Salt Lake City. Basic plot: Shallow gay party boy Christian (Wes Ramsey) meets closeted Mormon missionary Aaron (solidly played by newcomer Steve Sandvoss - you'll see this name again), both change for the better.

Latter Days has been accused of being hateful of Mormons and the Church of Latter Day Saints, but that seems to be a gut reaction.

I think the film did a lot of work not to be directly negative about Mormons. It told a story, partly autobiographical, which could still occur (in orthodox groups in many religions) today, and the choice of Mormonism is based on the writer's life story.

The fratboyesque behaviour of the other Mormon missionaries, their admissions that they're just going through the motions to get on with their lives is contrasted nicely by Aaron's quiet and caring piety. It's Aaron who displays the virtues of the Mormon religion.

His treatment by his church seems mostly to stem from his father's loathing; I think the message is clear that this may not have happened at any Mormon church. But this has happened before, so it's not as if the writer is making up excommunication for (acting on) homosexuality. His subsequent treatment (I don't want to give too much away) is again specific to his family, and not really a reflection of the general religion.

Serious interlude over. This is not an intellectual film about a boy's struggle to come to grips with being homosexual in his religious environment; that's just background noise to the romantic comedy/drama of the boy-meets-boy variety, and how the individuals involved change to become better people and to come together.

As such, the happenstance at the end of the film is understandable. There were almost-cringe-worthy moments throughout the film, but somehow the film managed to portray them in a digestable fashion.

The film is digital, and thus very bright (being in the first row may have had something to say about it), and is not particularly imaginatively shot - not unusual for the genre. There're digital after-effects in some areas, and some shots have motion issues, but otherwise it's pretty standard.

Steve Sandvoss gives a convincing and comfortable performance, has good presence, and builds empathy for his character well. Wes Ramsey takes the light-hearted scenes in his stride, but seemed a tiny bit out of place in the more emotional bits. Both are comfortable in the scenes showing skin and body contact, which is fortunate as the scenes'd've been terrible otherwise.

Honourable mention to Joseph Gordon-Levitt (ex. 3rd Rock From The Sun, 10 Things I Hate About You) playing Elder Ryder, who (the character) incidentally I think is misinterpreted by some as being particularly homophobic, leading to people being surprised when he does something. However, I feel the character only acts that way around the other elders in attendance, and, as he admits, doesn't particularly care for the beliefs of the church, and is just going through the motions so he can get married to his girlfriend. Mostly. I'm not sure, that's how I interpreted it.

I'm not as ravey about Jacqueline Bisset (as Lila) and Mary Kay Place (as Aaron's mother) as others, but they're dependable actors giving a good performance.

But really, it's all about Steve Sandvoss for me on the acting side, and I hope to see him on screen again. It's unsurprising that he's studied acting and has a theatrical background.

Oh, and let me not mention the other factor that differentiates this film from You've Got Mail and similar methodic romatic comedies. It's actually very funny. And it's got a few jokes and references that only gay-friendly people will immediately get, often compounded on something that's already funny that anyone would get. Quite amusing hearing two rounds of laughter as one or the other joke sinks in before the other.

Unlike some reviewers, I found the set of events that make up the ending quite amusing (I like things that aren't obvious, which may help people who pull things together in obscure ways). I would've tried to find an alternative ending scene if I were writing this story, but it was sufficient. It wasn't particularly strong; I felt that sort of ending scene, especially to a gay-themed film, had been overcome by events five years ago.