Get Real

An English teenager (Ben Silverstone), comfortably gay but discreetly closeted, falls in love with his school’s handsomest athlete (Brad Gorton), who furtively returns his affections but won’t speak to him in the halls. Patrick Wilde’s script (adapted from his play What’s Wrong with Angry?) echoes with familiar clichés, from the hero’s understanding gal pal (Charlotte Brittain) to a climax that recycles the ending of the Paul Rudnick/Frank Oz In & Out, only without the humor. In fact, the film could use a little more humor; it’s a bit over-solemn and moony, with the hero tending to whine and feel sorry for himself. Then again, straight or gay, that’s pretty much what teenagers do when they’re in love. Clichés and all, director Simon Shore and the attractive cast put it across with conviction.