I've always had kind of a love hate relationship with Chinese historical BLs. Some are genuinely excellent, but then there are others that cram in so much plot that keeping track of all the layers of betrayal and scheming gets exhausting, and I end up checking out mentally. Part of the issue is also just how much content is out there in this space, so something really has to stand out to keep me hooked. In this case, the production value is genuinely impressive, top tier stuff, but story wise, I just couldn't bring myself to actually care about these characters. There's a ton of political scheming and backstage manipulation running throughout. Somewhere in the middle of all that chaos, a hostage ends up falling for his own Prince Charming. The show runs eight episodes, each around 50 to 60 minutes long. After spending three years guarding the border, Fifth Prince Yin Qi gets called back to the capital because of a secret letter, only to end up walking straight into a deadly...
Russel and Gunnar are best friends since kids. But Russel has a secret. He is gay and can’t even bear to tell anyone since his father has high hopes from him. For his friend Gunnar’s sake , he goes on double dates but is very frustrated. But his dreams soon start to come true when after a few meetings, he gets into a secret relationship with the hot and hunky Kevin, the school’s quarterback. At their first kiss, their classmate Min sees them and invites Russel to join ‘Geography Club’ which essentially is a cover for clandestine LGBT club. Initially reluctant, Russel does join the group and meets a few other friends there. When his sexuality is revealed to the school, by some random jealous girl, Russel, initially hurt, decides to do something about it. He alongwith Min decides that they will officially make their geography club as the ‘Gay Straight Alliance’ club, the first of its kind in school. Russel also tells Kevin that he needs to come out in open. Even though Russel loves him, he cannot do that because he is looking forward to a scholarship and this could hurt his chances. Kevin walks away and Russel and Min get a decent number of people for their club. Russel is super surprised by how supportive his best friend Gunnar is with the whole thing. Finally its about being there for oneself.
The film had interesting premise but a lot of things were just too convenient. The way Russel just out of the blue becomes part of the football team just so he and Kevin can spend more time together was a bit unbelievable. There are certain scenes that have been handled with extreme sensitivity while others are amateurish. There is not consistent pace. More than the love story of Kevin and Russel, I felt the friendship with Gunnar was given more prominence; which is actually not bad because kids need to know that there is a lot of support out there from people who they are close with. They just need to feel comfortable. Acting by all actors is thankfully pretty good but I would hope actors who actually look like teenagers were chosen. Kevin, though extremely hot, barely looks like a high school student. And that sometimes takes away the authenticity of it all. Interestingly, from the film’s perspective, the conflict comes mostly from within, rather than from school bullies or inflexible parents, as each of the characters must decide whether to go public with his or her sexual orientation.
It's a good movie, but could easily have been a better one had the writers taken better care on the screenplay. Not bad by any standards, I feel bad when a movie could have been so much more. (6/10)
Comments