Coming out of the same studio that gave us RuPaul's Drag Race, and stacked with a whole crew of former contestants, Stop! That! Train! plays like RuPaul basically taking a bow for the entire franchise she's built. It's not really a gay film in the traditional sense, but with so many drag stars from Ru's shows popping up alongside a few cameos from well known out gay actors, I figured it earns a spot on this blog anyway. The whole thing is completely over the top, packed with GenZ slang, loud flashy visuals, and humor that's constantly winking at you knowing how ridiculous it is. Going in you'd assume it's meant to be a laugh riot, and a lot of critics online seem to be eating it up, but I just couldn't get into it at all. I've never really been someone who vibes with campy silly stuff like this, so honestly my reaction doesn't surprise me one bit. The setup follows Tess and DeeDee, two low level stewardesses who sneak onto the fancy Glamazonian E...
He show starts with us meeting Ana, a medical student who has a crush on Fuse, an engineering student, but he never acts on his crush. Circa, one year later, Fuse is hanging out with his friends and most of them are in some relationships and Fuse feels lonely and wonders how come a handsome guy like hi cannot find a boyfriend. Sad, he goes to a dentist to get his teeth cleaned and meets Ana there who is working at his father's practice. The two make small talk. Fuse mentions how he's hopelessly single. Ana takes a bold initiative and offers to go out with him. Startled by his forwardness, Fuse agrees to a date. From that day onwards, they officially begin a relationship as boyfriends. They start dating. We find out that Fuse used to have a boyfriend, who he broke up with when he realized he wasn't serious. More drama is thrown our way when Ana's parents are reluctant to like Fuse, only because the last boyfriend broke his heart. Fuse has more battles to fight. Not only is the fact that their son maybe gay is news to them but also they feel he is way too young (not even 20) to make a decision like this. They briefly breakup only to get back stringer and managing to convince there parents that their love os true and for real.
When Is aw that there is a Thai show with only 6 episodes, I was happy for a moment that finally someone is listening to audiences and making crispier shows, but then the first episode itself gave me a taste of what to expect. The start of the couple's romantic journey itself was one of the most bizarre to say the least. Fuse is desperate to find a boyfriend, Ana offers himself and bang here you go! I mean, how ridiculous that sounds. The series doesn't explain their attraction, explore their feelings, or emphasize their bond. And things don't get any better. The cringy dialogues and attitude, the unnecessary jealousy by the ex or even close friends, total unfunny jokes; almost everything is just plain simple boring and bad. Future often comes across as childish and amateurish, embarrassing itself with an unpolished script that needs refinement. The love story is extremely bland. They claim to love one another after only dating for a short time. Yet, their shaky relationship is eclipsed by angsty conflicts and needless drama. The actors are good to look at but when you have a shoddy script like this, almost no one can save this hot mess. The finale is ok with parents getting together to talk about their kids and future, but I mean these are just students. Just let them be. Why does everything have to be so serious. An easily forgettable series, this one had no business to be made. (3/10)
Comments
Hope you have something pleasant to heal your wounds with. I'm taking a midnight walk to smell the blossoming linden trees.
I kindda liked the beginning. Ana accepting to be his boyfriend just like that may seem odd, but let's be honest, one night stands we all had are rarely based on personality lol. Doesn't prevent the hook up from turning into the man of your life (... yes I'm talking about me here haha so maybe I felt a tiny connection there). But then all the rest was so tedious to watch. With all the possible BAD cliches around (of course they would go with the good ones).
At the same time it comes from "Love mechanics" world. I didn't really find the short version thrilling, and hated the long version, so I don't really know what I was expecting... "Because in our hearts were are teen girls" and because "I was happy for a moment that finally someone is listening to audiences and making crispier shows". Yeah, that. Once again you perfectly summarized my feelings Golu!
Don't miss futon watching this French film I just reviewed recently
https://www.gayfilmsreview.com/2023/07/arrete-avec-tes-mensonges-french-lie.html
But still: this series together with the whole set of prequels and parallels was so sadly half-assed in every aspect - camera work, production, lines, locations, everything.