Were the World Mine (2008)

Were the World Mine (2008)

Director: Tom Gustafson
Scenario: Tom Gustafson, Cory James Krueckeberg
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Musical, Romance
Country: USA
Year: 2008
Duration: 95 min
Rating: 7.8/10

Actors: Tanner Cohen, Wendy Robie, Judy McLane, Zelda Williams, Jill Larson, Ricky Goldman, Nathaniel David Becker, Christian Stolte, David Darlow, Parker Croft, Brad Bukauskas, Reid Dawson, Alexander Aguilar, Yoni Solomon, Colleen Skemp

Description:

Nisam siguran da je ovaj tip filmova san današnjeg prosječnog tinejdžera, više mi nekako liči na snove tinejđera 70-tih godina. Kako god bilo, onim romantičarima koji sanjaju o svom najboljem drugu, a ne smiju mu to reći, mjuzikl Where the world mine bi mogao oslikati san. Negdje sam već gledao neku skraćenu verziju ovog filma, al nisam bio baš nešto oduševljen. Možda je samo bio loš trenutak ili naprosto nisam bio raspoložen za mjuzikl o tim dječačkim snovima.
Neki klinac mi jednom reče kako bi volio da živi sa nekim kao što to žive njegovi roditelji. Pitao sam ga da mi opiše kako to zamišlja i on mi ispriča čitavu jednu bajku kakvu može da sastavi samo romantičar kao on! Na kraju te priče samo sam mu rekao :" Probudi se mali! Život se ne živi u bajkama!"

'Were the World Mine'

Reyhan Harmanci, Chronicle Staff Writer

Friday, November 21, 2008

The phenomenon of teen musicals - beloved by actual teens - is a little perplexing. There is just nothing ... cool ... about breaking into song and dance routines in daily life. Disney's "High School Musical" juggernaut and the popularity of the stage show and film version of "Hairspray" have brought more attention to the teen-centered Broadway hit "Spring Awakening," which will be made into a film as well.

"Were the World Mine" follows the teen musical formula but renders its material with admirable lushness and intelligence. It was a hit as an indie short film on the film festival circuit before director and writer Tom Gustafson turned it into a full-length musical, so irony and self-referral humor are written into its DNA.

"Were the World Mine" tells the story of out gay teenager Timothy (Tanner Cohen), who is attending a boys' private school. He is hazed repeatedly and ruthlessly by his homophobic classmates, but he survives by escaping into fantasy (here come the musical sequences) - mostly, fantasizing about the extremely cute Jonathon (Nathaniel David Becker). He also has to deal with his struggling mother (Judy McLane) and friends Frankie (Zelda Williams, daughter of Robin) and Max (Ricky Goldman).

Life changes abruptly for Timothy when, after being cast as Puck in the school production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" by his slightly batty drama teacher (played by "Twin Peaks" actress Wendy Robie), he finds a secret recipe embedded in Shakespeare's famous farce. Timothy, like Puck, has the ability to make people fall in love with the first person they see. Should he use it?

Well, it wouldn't be much of a movie if he didn't. As the action unfolds, with dazzling color and crisp choreography, the homophobic boys get the lesson of their lives.

The weakest part of the movie, besides some rather drawn-out plot machinations, is the musical aspect. The tunes just aren't catchy enough to linger or clever enough to stand in for dialogue. It's a welcome addition to the cavalcade of teen-focused musicals, but like a midsummer night's dream, can hardly be remembered the next day.

-- Advisory: Boys kiss boys often in this film, but nothing truly shocking.

More about this movie HERE