Cast: Ben Silverstone, Brad Gorton, Charlotte Brittain, Stacy Hart, Kate McEnery, Patrick Nielsen, Tim Harris, Jacquetta May, David Lumsden
One of the breakaway gay hits of 1999, Get Real is a sharply observed coming-of-age story infused with charm, humor, emotion and a knowing sense of the difficulties of being a gay teen. Steven (Ben Silverstone) is a thin, pale-skinned, dark-haired 16-year-old living in the new British suburbia with his upper-middle class parents. Despite his youth, Steven knows that he is gay (since 11) and, although not open, experiments with sexuality at the local park men's room! Life changes for the soft-spoken teen when he locks eyes on the school's strappingly handsome super-jock John (Brad Gorton). The two are attracted to each other, but John's self-hating fears of others finding out about his sexuality threatens to tear apart their tentative relationship. There are several interesting supporting characters, including Charlotte Brittain as Steve's best friend and next-door-neighbor. Silverstone brings a wonderfully realistic and tender take on the teen who is not ashamed of being gay. There are some failings in this mainly winning story -- the plot is too similar to Beautiful Thing, there are some unnecessary melodramatic excesses, having an over-weight female friend for comic relief is tired, the finale is clichéd and the film's look has a slickness that makes it less like and independent British film and more like a John Hughes flick of the '80s. But complaints aside, this tale should charm and captivate any audience familiar with feelings of being different and an outsider. The screenplay is by Patrick Wilde which is in turn based on his play, "What's Wrong with Angry?"
