(Dir. Keith Hartman. US, 2010. 88 mins).
This sharp and outrageous closet comedy is an irresistible low-budget gem with plenty of laughs and endearingly oddball characters.
Coming out comedies are as common as flu (and sometimes about as welcome) so first-time writer/director Keith Hartman takes us down a different track by focusing on a conservation mother’s reaction to the news her son is a big gay, the twist being she’s a bit too okay with it.
Son Brian is 30-years-old, living in the city with his “roommate” in a home they have renovated together and spends weekends having lunch with his mother Mae, repressed aunt Rose and a revolving chair of surprise dinner guests who always just happen to be eligible, young women invited over by match-making mom.
When Brian is dumped by his boyfriend and Mae overhears a clanger about his ‘G’ status – backed up by a Glamour magazine ‘gay test’ – she does what any loving mom should do and, after the initial shock and handwringing, secretly sets about finding him a new partner with Rose’s even more clueless help. This is where things get very funny, especially when the neighbour’s 16-year-old son points them in the direction of Manhunt.com.
Hartman’s secret weapon here are actresses Joanne McGree and Carol Goans as Mae and Rose respectively. The two have such great chemistry and comic timing that they steal the movie and keep you smiling the whole way through. In fact Hartman turns a small budget to his advantage and often just lets the camera roll while the two women spark off one another and fill the screen with an infectious energy, culminating in a dining table farce of the Birdcage variety.
Yes the film perpetuates some stereotypical characters and situations, but serious issues are touched upon: Brian bemoans the superficial nature of the gay scene and some of the colourful characters Mae befriends along the way reveal some not so positive coming out stories.
I wasn’t expecting to enjoy You Should Meet My Son! as much as I did, but learning a lesson from this witty and good-natured movie, you shouldn’t judge a book (or film) by its cover.
You Should Meet My Son! is now available on DVD in the US.
