☆☆☆½
Less than a generation ago, all but the most fearless of gay high-school students were expected to keep their sexual orientation hidden. Just 30 years after John Hughes’ spate of high-school movies it is, to paraphrase one character in Giant Little Ones says, more acceptable to discuss and experiment with sexual orientation than ever before.
Except, well, it isn't. High schoolers are always high schoolers. Boys will be boys. Frankie (Josh Wiggins) and Ballas (Darren Mann) are longtime friends, both with girlfriends, both on the swim team.
After a boisterous high-school party, Ballas ends up in Frankie's bed for a sexual encounter. They never speak of it, and in fact Frankie starts making moves on Ballas's confused, wounded sister (Taylor Hickson). The boys' once-easy and happy friendship begins to shatter amid Ballas's hyper-masculinity.
Giant Little Ones offers an insightful, sometimes dramatically confusing, view of sexuality, never forcing its characters into easy corners. Despite a couple of violent outbursts, it's a mostly genteel film that looks at its upper-class characters through sympathetic eyes. It's never messy or raw -- unpredictable attributes that could have brought a lot to the film.
As an exploration of the confusion and sheer panic of high-school sexuality (and attendant harassment and bullying), Giant Little Ones is worth seeing. Kyle MacLachlan as Josh's late-in-life-gay dad brings real emotional heft. The filmmakers seem to be trying for a Call Me By Your Name style sucker-punch with the dad's big speech, but nothing about Giant Little Ones is a sucker punch ... more a gentle pat on the back serving to remind of the difficulty of finding yourself while coming out.
Viewed March 10, 2018 -- AMC Sunset 5
1715
Except, well, it isn't. High schoolers are always high schoolers. Boys will be boys. Frankie (Josh Wiggins) and Ballas (Darren Mann) are longtime friends, both with girlfriends, both on the swim team.
After a boisterous high-school party, Ballas ends up in Frankie's bed for a sexual encounter. They never speak of it, and in fact Frankie starts making moves on Ballas's confused, wounded sister (Taylor Hickson). The boys' once-easy and happy friendship begins to shatter amid Ballas's hyper-masculinity.
Giant Little Ones offers an insightful, sometimes dramatically confusing, view of sexuality, never forcing its characters into easy corners. Despite a couple of violent outbursts, it's a mostly genteel film that looks at its upper-class characters through sympathetic eyes. It's never messy or raw -- unpredictable attributes that could have brought a lot to the film.
As an exploration of the confusion and sheer panic of high-school sexuality (and attendant harassment and bullying), Giant Little Ones is worth seeing. Kyle MacLachlan as Josh's late-in-life-gay dad brings real emotional heft. The filmmakers seem to be trying for a Call Me By Your Name style sucker-punch with the dad's big speech, but nothing about Giant Little Ones is a sucker punch ... more a gentle pat on the back serving to remind of the difficulty of finding yourself while coming out.
Viewed March 10, 2018 -- AMC Sunset 5
1715
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