DVD
Review | 24 Nights
Written by: Kage
Alan
Friends still make fun of me because I love a number
of pretty bad films from
my youth, but at least I don't still believe in Santa. That
would definitely
be pushing the boundaries of innocence and creativity. In any
case, it's fun
to see other people facing their issues because they make my own seem
fairly
tame. Take the lead character in "24 Nights",
Jonathan. That boy will be in
therapy for life and it absolutely makes me feel better about myself.
Is
that wrong?
While four-year-old Jonathan is out shopping with his mother for
Christmas
gifts, she informs him that Santa is real and that he'll always get
what he
wants as long as he "believes" and if he's good. He
holds her words close to
his heart, even at age 24. While Jonathan's (Kevin Isola,
"How The Grinch
Stole Christmas") beliefs haven't changed, his life certainly
has; both
parents are now dead and he lives with his sister, Marie (Aida
Turturro, "The
Sopranos") and her husband, Stan (Rob Bogue, "Oz").
He passes the time
working at a local gay bookstore, hitting the clubs with co-worker
James
(Mark Bateman) and smoking pot with another co-worker, Sara (Sybyl
Walker,
"Oz").
The one thing missing from Jonathan's life is a man and who better to
deliver
one with a huge red ribbon for Christmas than Santa? With 24
shopping days
to go, the jolly man in the red suit had better get a move on!
Fortunately,
things look up when recent young Arkansas transplant Toby (David
Burtka, "The
West Wing") walks through the door and applies for job at the
bookstore.
There's one hitch, though; Toby already has a boyfriend, Keith
(Stephen
Mailer, "The Sweet Spot"). What's a gay man in love
supposed to do?
Jonathan isn't the type of person to let Keith stand between him and a
future
husband, so he pursues Toby with reckless abandon. What unfolds
is a
comedy/drama about dysfunctional families, relationships, friendships
and a
holiday lesson about receiving what one deserves and not what one
necessarily
wants. For the most part, "24 Nights" works despite
its low budget. The
actors appear sincere in their desire to put something special on the
screen
and that really helps elevate the film. The only thing working
against the
production is its often simplistic camerawork, awkward framing and
main
character's desire to constantly be stoned.
TLA has delivered a decent Widescreen transfer of "24
Nights" just in time
for the holidays. Picture quality is probably the best it's
going to look,
but there are a fair amount of flecks and specs still present from the
master. This isn't TLA's fault so much as it is a budgetary
restraint.
Audio quality is slightly muddled, but doesn't really detract from the
overall film. As for extras, there are a number of trailers,
instructions on
how to play "45 Poker" and an extremely enlightening audio
commentary with
Writer/Director/Producer Kieran Turner. All aspects of the
production are
covered here, both positive and negative, and the director even admits
to the
occasions when he threw temper tantrums on the set. Ya gotta
love honesty!
One positive thing about films in the gay genre is that they aren't
all
typical Hollywood products. Since their budgets are often tiny,
they must
rely on character driven stories and actors who are either taking a
break
from mainstream films or are looking to make a name for themselves in
order
to be considered for bigger films in the future. "24
Nights" is a decent
effort and it will be interesting to see what projects Kieran Turner
works on
next. Best of luck to him.
Film Rating:
B
DVD Special Features: B
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