This is the second vertical AI BL drama I've sat through, and honestly I went in knowing better. I had it on while I was doing cardio at the gym, and what struck me was just how much the plot echoed the last one I watched. Same step brother romance angle, same mystery girlfriend showing up near the end, same extra guy pining after one of the leads. Genuinely the only thing going for it was the runtime, the whole thing wrapped up in forty five minutes flat. The setup kicks off with Finn moving schools because his mom just married into money. He finds out his new step brother Aiden goes to the same place, and he's warned to keep his distance from him. Their first run in at school is rocky, just like you'd expect, but there's this odd pull between them neither can shake off. Finn keeps telling himself not to read into it because Aiden's straight and openly homophobic. Things shift when some kids start bullying Finn and the student council president, Ryan, steps in to ...
Alex, a young man, moves back to Miami with his family after breaking up with his ex boyfriend in New York. Though it's early, he is a bit aimless and can't find a job or purpose in Miami. He feels lonely and c complains about traffic, almost hitting rock bottom and depression. He finds his father's camcorder from his childhood and starts filming random vignettes of the city and life. He eventually finds a job in the LGBTQ center. He also meets Chris online, they hook up and have a great chemistry. Alex thinks that is love again but meanwhile Chris realizes that Alex is a mess and wants to be his friend during his lonely times and support him in every way possible. Second half of the film is set against the backdrop of an impending hurricane, a clear but unassuming metaphor for the storm of Alex’s inner conflict—the whirlwind of life—upending without any sense of direction along with the onslaught of feelings that come with it.
IMO, the film is trying to make a comment on growing up, facing adulthood, and possibility of life getting messy, using Alex as its protagonist; but at the same time as a subject int feels like its just going in circles. The film starts with Alex bored to death and looking (or not) for ways to get out of Miami but even by the end of the film. it does not appear that he has grown or changed in any significant way. Maybe the film makers heart was in the right place but the final product seems clunky. The actors are all good looking, but somewhere this indie film feels like a half-baked cake. At various places, we find awkward pauses and the lead actors dialogue delivery leaves a lot to be desired for anyone to take this film seriously. Alex’s personal epiphanies, inner turmoils, and feelings of loneliness could have more of their intended impact if we aren’t told directly in every scene how much he’s bothered by them and how torturous it is for him to be in Miami. A lack of subtle and nuanced evolution in Alex’s character is what keeps Fallen Fruit from succeeding. Maybe we will see a better second feature form this budding filmmaker. (4.5/10)
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