Is this technically a gay show? Even after getting through the whole thing, that's still kind of tricky to answer. There's never any physical intimacy shown between the two leads, not even a single kiss. What it gives you instead is something that goes way deeper than that. It traces an emotional bond that spans a full decade between two guys who are both dealing with their own baggage, and what they share basically amounts to being soulmates. The story moves across Japan, South Korea, and Berlin. Honestly, whether people want to call what they have a romantic relationship or not doesn't really matter to me. A relationship doesn't need a label like boyfriends attached to it to actually mean something. And closeness doesn't need to be physical to feel genuine. What this show captures is something quieter but way more powerful, a bond rooted in understanding, respect, and just showing up for each other. Across eight episodes, each running 35 to 45 minutes, this is one...
The film starts when a young mother accidentally runs over a small boy who's walking with his brother and his mother crying in disbelief. Years forward, we now meet Benny studying for medicine in university of Akron. He meets Christopher, who was born in Akron but later moved to Florida with his mom. They soon fall head over heels in love with each other and Benny's parents also love Christopher. They decide to go to Florida on their spring break. Just before the trip, when Christopher is at Benny's house, he finds that Benny had an elder brother who was killed in a road accident. Christopher realizes that it was his mom who was responsible but keeps his mouth shut. In Florida, when Christopher's mother realizes this, she cant help but tell the truth to Benny. Benny is devastated and he decides to come back to Akron. Realizing that Christopher knew about this and still chose to not tell Benny makes him want to break from him as well. Benny's parents see their miserable but cannot understand why. On prodding, when Benny tells them the truth, they appreciate their son's gesture. But true love cannot be held back for long. They boys soon realize that they miss each other and get back together but this is not liked by Benny's parents. This is when Christopher's mother flies in from Florida, asks for a heartfelt apology from Benny's mother and begs her to forgive so that both their sons could lead a happy life. Benny's father talks with his wife to try harder to forgive past and live in future, finally the love of the boys is accepted by the family.
The first scene of the boy dying in the accident first feels irrelevant until the connections are made and you are shocked and wonder what will happen. The drama is never over the top. Benny processes the new found information and decides to go back home. He doesn't breakup with Christopher because of the accident issues but because Christopher knew and didn't tell him. Benny is deeply divided in his duties towards his grieving yet very very supportive parents vs his love. I personally was hoping that the teens would stay away being responsible individuals and it would be the parents that will bury their hatchet and bring the boys together. I think that would have added a different dimension rather than the above story but this also was very realistic. All the actors seem new and this is what adds to the freshness of the whole love angle. The film clearly reminds one of first love, teen love and innocent love at that – whether gay or straight. And as I mentioned above, there’s something nice about watching a gay relationship treated with normalcy, free of the baggage. The lead actors are both very charming and act really well.
The film will be no game changer. If you ignore the random title that doesn't justify the movie, the movie offers a fresh perspective rather than rehashing done to death gay stories. The 90 minutes breeze by quick and very engaging. It has flaws, like every film, but I am really really surprised why this tiny indie gem of a film is not getting mentioned in more forums. The film definitely deserves to be seen by a lot more people. I urge my followers to please watch this film. (7.5/10)
Comments
Akron ,little town with an important University ; Akron , a very pleasant movie .
What's good is that all reactions seem realistic. You can't blame any of the characters reaction because they are all suffering for a good legitimate reason, and the situation seems unsolvable.
Just the ending that is too fairytail maybe, with no in between (but I still prefer that to a gloomy ending)
And again, so nice to see a movie where homosexuality is nowhere like the beginning of an issue! I think I'm gonna stick to happy teenagers movies where it has become the norme haha.