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...
This movie is actually a Peruvian remake of a Mexican film called Hazlo Como Hombre, which I’ve reviewed before. One nice thing about watching so much stuff is that I eventually forget the details, so this didn't even feel like a repeat to me. It helped that the cast was new and the setting was different, but they definitely kept the same sense of humor from the original. We don't see a ton of LGBTQ+ stories coming out of Peru, so it was a nice change of pace to see them tackle this subject.
The story is about three childhood best friends—Raul, Eduardo, and Santiago—who have always lived that typical, "alpha male" lifestyle. Raul is about to be a dad, and Santi is actually dating Raul’s sister, though she’s been complaining that their sex life is pretty non-existent. Everything gets flipped upside down when Santi finally comes out as gay and breaks up with her. Raul’s sister goes into overdrive trying to win him back with some pretty hilarious (but useless) schemes. Meanwhile, Raul is a total homophobe and refuses to accept it, even trying to "fix" his friend through some crazy therapy sessions and unconventional methods. Santi eventually starts dating a guy named Julio and is ready to move to the US to get away from Raul’s constant judging. But right before he leaves, he finds out Julio wants an open relationship and changes his mind. Around the same time, Raul’s wife leaves him after finding out he’s been cheating, leaving him totally alone to realize what a mess he’s made. Eventually, he sees the error of his ways, apologizes, and the friends all make up.
Even though the subtitles on the version I watched weren't great, the movie was still really funny. A lot of that is thanks to the actor playing Raul; he plays the homophobic guy so well that it creates some genuinely hilarious moments, especially in the locker room and during those therapy sessions. I think the movie does a good job of poking fun at the strict ideas of "masculinity" that you see in places like Peru. You kind of have to take the movie for what it is and not get too hung up on what’s politically correct or judge the characters too harshly. It’s meant to be entertainment, but it also has a good message that might actually change the minds of people who think like Raul. My only real gripe is that the relationship between Santi and Julio felt a bit rushed—we never really saw how they met or why they fell for each other. But I get that the movie was more about the friendship and learning to be accepting than it was a romance.
It's a funny and lighthearted look at how friendship can survive even the most awkward changes, as long as people are willing to drop their prejudices. (6/10)
Comments