Nick recently visited the New Orleans Film Festival and has a slew of reviews to share. Along with reviews, Nick also recorded his thoughts on the audience perspective of some of the films. Enjoy!

Weekend (2011) Directed by Andrew Haigh. Starring: Tom Cullen and Chris New. IMDB says: After a drunken house party with his straight mates, Russell heads out to a gay club. Just before closing time he picks up Glen but what’s expected to be just a one-night stand becomes something else, something special.

There was a lot of buzz coming into this film after it performed well at SXSW and Outfest. So naturally, my expectations were high. They were and weren’t met. The story is about two men that meet at a club and end up spending the weekend together. They spend their weekends discussing life as gay men, past relationships, and occasionally use drugs. The performances are solid. Both leads (Tom Cullen and Chris New) are great and their dynamic works well together. Their characters stay static through the film, but it’s that unapologetic change that makes them interesting and relatable. Another great thing about this film is that they’re very grounded. Despite the fact that the story is dull and it tends to drag, it grounds itself in realism. None of the characters are over-exaggerated or gaudy like most homosexual characters portrayed in television and film. No goofy catch phrases or ridiculous conundrums; It’s just a love story about two people. The only twist to this film is that it’s about two men. But even then, nothing feels new. The drugs help them drop their guards a bit and really expose themselves, but there is no true revelation that captivates us. Overall, I felt underwhelmed by the story throughout the entire movie and, unfortunately, it left me uninterested in the characters towards the end.