Movie Review - Something Like Summer

Jay Bell is the author of a dozen books that are collectively known as the "Something Like" series. It's a group of YA novels that were successful enough to spawn a dozen of them. It's not too surprising that a film adaptation has been made. Long-time cinematographer, David Berry in his feature debut with writer Carlos Pedraza turns the first in Bell's series into a teenage, romantic comedy. Berry doesn't just do a teen rom-com. His film could also be classified as a musical. There are about seven songs performed. The film follows its characters for the better part of two decades. If we are to assume that the film ends in the same year as when Bell's book was first published, that of 2011, then we can deduce that it begins in the late 90's, either 1998 or 1999, which would make sense with some of the technology we see, particularly the phone technology.

However, this film uses pop songs for its musical numbers. The first one, which we hear in the first, five minutes, is Regina Spektor's "Us," which was initially released in 2003. Therefore, it's more likely that this story begins either in 2004 or 2005, if we are to assume that the protagonist singing Spektor's track isn't meant to be anachronistic. Now, some could argue that the start of the narrative isn't greatly affected with a possible seven-year difference, but, by 2005, The Ellen DeGeneres Show was on the air across the country and Brokeback Mountain was a part of the culture. Homophobia is still a significant issue in that time, as it still is today, but, it's not as much of a factor here in this film, as it perhaps should have been, if it truly began in the late 90's.

Grant Davis who is a young pop singer stars as Ben Bentley, a high school senior who is an aspiring actor and singer. He lives in Houston, Texas. He's openly gay, having come out at as a freshman. There's one scene where he's bullied somewhat, but Ben being openly gay is less of an issue than one might expect for the time period and it's also less of an issue than it is in Love, Simon (2018), which is meant to take place a decade or so after this one. His main issue is that he's obsessed with a so-called straight boy and he spends every waking hour thinking about this straight boy and veritably stalking him.

This is of course a common theme in queer cinema or queer media. The theme is that of a gay person lusting after a straight person. It's a problematic theme or a theme that's a double-edged sword. It's bad because it reinforces the homophobic trope that gay men are predatory toward straight men who in theory would never want those kind of advances. It's good because it explores the homophobic trope that straight men can't explore homosexual relationships without being labeled gay. Bisexuality, pansexuality and even sexual fluidity are topics that were dismissed or overlooked. The bigotry that any man with same-sex attraction or any kind of homosexual activity is labeled gay without any nuance or interrogation needs to be fought. Yet, that's not what this film is doing. This film is basically arguing that Ben's object of affection is simply a closeted gay guy. There's no evidence of his hidden homosexuality at first. Ben just lusts after this straight guy because he's a pretty jock with blue shoes and a nice derriere.

Davi Santos (Tell Me a Story and Law & Order True Crime) co-stars as Tim Wyman, the aforementioned pretty jock with blue shoes and a nice derriere. He's the object of Ben's affection. He's Latino but biracial. His mother seems like she's Mexican and his father is white. His family is wealthy. They live in a really nice home, near the park by the lake. His gift from his parents is a Ferrari. He's given a red Ferrari. The look of which indicates that it's a Ferrari F355, which is the last Ferrari of the 1990's, so either this film does begin in the late 90's or Tim's father has gotten him a used car. However, from football to Ferrari, there is no evidence that Tim is a closeted homosexual before Ben approaches him.

The film at least has some self-awareness to call Ben a "stalker." It also has the self-awareness to call out the fact that Ben would and could go to gay bars. Love, Simon had some self-awareness and acknowledged how a young gay man might use social media like the app Grindr. Unfortunately, Love, Simon only acknowledged it. The film didn't go as far as showing the young gay man actually using and engaging in that app. It's the same here. This film acknowledges Ben would and should go to gay bars to meet and interact with others like him, but the film never goes as far as actually showing him do that. This would be fine, if the film provided some evidence or any evidence that would lead Ben to think that pursuing a straight boy with romantic intentions would be successful in any way. There isn't any evidence nor any hints at all that Tim might be gay or have same-sex attraction.

Ben Baur (#Adulting and Hunting Season) also co-stars as Jace Holden, a flight attendant that Ben Bentley meets while he's in college. The first hour focuses on Ben's fascination with Tim in high school, but the second hour focuses on his actual relationship with Jace in college. The problem is that Jace is slightly older than Ben and is already working a full-time job, while Ben is still in college. Jace's job also takes him away from home for days or even weeks. At one point, Ben suspects that Jace is cheating on him. It becomes about how much Ben can trust Jace and how much he can put his obsession with Tim behind him and move on.

However, another aspect of this film is the passage of time and how circumstances can affect the trajectory of where people's lives go. The film skips over chunks of time but never fully convinces that time has advanced at all. By the end, 12 years have gone by, but it could have easily been just 12 months. I understand that the film is trying to underscore the point that Ben's first love is indeed his true love and the love that remains with him, so that no matter the amount of time he will always have it and it's only the circumstances that prevented Ben from being with that true love.

Ajiona Alexus (Empire and 13 Reasons Why) also co-stars as Allison Cross, the female best friend of Ben. She's the lovely and supportive gal pal. If this were Will & Grace, she would be Grace. We don't get too much into her life, except she's an aspiring musician too, but she becomes a tether that keeps Ben connected to Tim, despite Ben choosing not to be around him. At one point, she literally drags the two of them together. It's again a failing of the film that it doesn't explain why she would do this. The film seems to suggest and wants us to accept that Ben's relationship with Tim is endgame when in reality a person's first love is generally not their last and a high school infatuation often doesn't go the distance over the decades.

It's odd also because Allison brings Ben to Tim, following Tim doing something really manipulative and hurtful. It would be one thing if Tim showed any remorse for that hurtful thing or was apologetic for it. Yet, he doesn't say sorry or regret his actions. Tim even doubles down, justifying the hurtful thing he did. After what is eight years, Tim doesn't even attempt to make contact with Ben. They just go their separate ways. The film again doesn't provide evidence that Ben has been longing for Tim after the hurtful thing happened in all those eight years.

I'm not sure if Bell's novel fills in the gaps. If so, then it's a problem with the adaptation. However, it may be an issue with the source material because subsequent novels from Bell do fill in the gaps of providing us other perspectives during missing time periods in this film. For example, in this film, as the novel, we stay exclusively in Ben's point-of-view, so when Ben goes to college for four years and loses touch with Tim, so does this film lose touch with Tim. However, Bell wrote a sequel novel, Something Like Winter (2012), which goes back and tells the same story but exclusively from Tim's point-of-view. If Bell felt the need to do that, then Tim's perspective probably wasn't in the first book, as it isn't in this film, which I think undermines the love story here.

Finally, the musical numbers are mostly just Ben on a bare stage singing covers of certain pop songs, while other characters stand or sit frozen. Allison occasionally joins him to duet. It's reminiscent of how the TV series Glee (2009) staged many of its musical numbers. In fact, Ben and Allison sing "Barely Breathing" by Duncan Sheik, which is a song that Glee also covered and the way that series did it isn't that different from how this film does it. The only musical number I truly enjoyed was when Ben performed "Killing Me Softly With His Song" by Roberta Flack. I enjoyed it because unlike the other musical numbers, it wasn't performed on a bare stage and it didn't sound as if Davis was lip-syncing to a pre-recorded track. It sounded as if he were singing it live in the scene and it felt impromptu and authentic. Plus, it's the only song of the other six that I was most familiar.

There aren't many musicals made any more, particularly independent musicals, focusing on LGBTQ characters. I would rank this one under more effective films like Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001), Camp (2003), 20 Centimeters (2006), Colma: The Musical (2007), Were the World Mine (2008) and The Big Gay Musical (2009).

Not Rated but for ages 14 and up.
Running Time: 1 hr. and 55 mins.

Available on VOD and digital platforms.