Andy (film-critic)
I was very surprised by the level of humor, wit, charm, and simplicity surrounding the film I Think I Do. I was expecting to see another low-budget independent film about homosexuality similar to what I witnessed in Go Fish, you know, the graininess of the scenes, the cliché homosexual characters coupled with humor that would be more political than funny, but I was wrong. I must admit, I Think I Do was extremely stage-ish and not overly original, but what captured my attention throughout the film was the level of respect that the friends had for each other. This was not a film that carried any hatred, or insecurities, or racism towards our main characters, but instead centered itself on the power of friends. I think that is why I had such a big smile on my face as I watched this film. Sure, on the surface it was about a gay man's struggle to decide between the man he has loved for many years or the long-term relationship he has already developed. Yet, for me, there was so much more. I would have to say that friendship was the central theme of this film, and director Brian Sloan realized this and used it to his advantage. Instead creating this cliché pro-homosexuality film, Sloan just created a movie. As you watch the characters develop, you forget that this is a gay film, but instead feels just like a typical modern romance that you would pay to see in theaters. I hate to use the word average, but for I Think I Do, it is not a bad thing. This was an average movie, and because of the average nature of the themes, characters, and emotions, I Think I Do is better than any romantic comedy that Hollywood could create.With independent films you sometimes run into the problem of having too many hands in the cookie jar. By this I mean, too many characters and not having enough time to develop the emotions behind them all. Brian Sloan overcame this typical hurdle and produced a film that gives each of our eight characters a chance to breathe and live on screen. As I think back to this film, I do not know of one character that I could say I didn't know anything about. It is rare in cinema, because so often directors focus most of the attention on their two centralized characters that the minor players fall to the wayside. This is not the case in I Think I Do. Everyone is developed, shockingly, and everyone is their own unique personality. Sloan made sure that the eight different players didn't suddenly end up like each other. With these types of films, especially in Go Fish, everyone was the same. You had characters that were supposed to be different, but talked and walked exactly the same. It is as if a gay man can only be played one way. This film proves different. I thought that the entire Sterling Scott backstory was hysterical. Here you have this mediocre soap opera star that has this HUGE gay fan base. For me, I found this so funny. Sterling was by far my favorite character because he could have been one to dapper the entire film, but instead he continued to keep it light and bubbly. It was good to finally have "fun" characters, watching them have fun, and seeing this over-played story develop in a new way.The music in this film played a huge part in creating the tone of the film. Instead of playing these cliché gay music, Sloan took contemporary tunes and placed them in the background. These songs completely lightened the mood and created the essence of a comedy. There weren't any dark, dreary moments to this film, you knew what was going to happen from the beginning, the only obstacle to overcome would be how Sloan was going to handle it. I must admit, he did a great job. Sloan's camera work isn't the greatest, his direction isn't as tight, but that isn't the reason for this film. Love, friendship, and the classic tale of a missed college romance is the center of this film and Sloan keeps that in our face. I have to applaud his dedication to these themes. He didn't go political, he didn't try to make a huge statement about the gay community, he just made a movie. This may be hard for me to explain, but I loved watching the "standard" wedding take place in the backdrop of this bigger romance. I think Sloan placed our characters in the best positions for the best humor. I just think I liked this film because it wasn't pushing pro-gay in my face, it was just demonstrating true love in our modern world.Again, I would like to restate that this was not a perfect film. Was it a play prior to being captured on film? While the answer may be "no", it did have a stage-like aura to it. The actors seemed to pause after each of their jokes, and my only change would be to speed up the pacing of the humor. It was funny, don't get me wrong, but the overall feeling of the film could have been tightened to create a perfect moment of gay cinema. Finally, Sloan had the ability to build more into his story. He made it so simple that more lines could have been crossed, and I secretly wished they would have. I wanted to see more between Beth and Eric, and even more closure with Sarah, but I was satisfied. This was a great film. Funny, witty, charming … you know, all those elements that seem to be missing whenever Hollywood taps its magic wand. The story was unoriginal, but the themes will just grab at you and make you happy to live in a culture that will soon accept this type of lifestyle.Grade: **** out of *****
gdragonsf-alpha
This film is horrible. SO poorly written that it surprises me that anyone can suggest otherwise. The acting is camp, over-the-top, community-theater-amateurish, and generally really bad; almost to the point of insulting. This is not a funny film. It rides on the expectation that gay men are hungry for ANY depiction of gay characters who don't die or suffer. I am not a macabre person, but I found myself wishing that these characters would die. I certainly suffered. But like a seeing a train wreck I couldn't turn away... I couldn't believe it could get any worse. It does. Save yourselves. As a post-script, it might interest some to note that this "voice-to-the-stars" Marni Nixon has a small role in this. There's a reason she didn't hit it big as an actress.
