a film by Wade McDonald 2011 | 96 mins | US ›› Hold Your Peace a gay romantic comedy that lives up to its name. From the multi-talented mind of writer, producer, cinematographer and director Wade McDonald comes this feel-good romantic comedy of boys falling in love. As in the case of Forrest and Max; two men soon to commit to each other in a ceremony in front of their friends. Only trouble being that Max is in dire need of a best man and with almost everyone on his list unavailable, he is left with no other option but to ask his ex boyfriend Aiden to come to the rescue. Yet therein lies problem number two, given still singleton Aiden doesn't want to be the spare prick at a you-know-what, prompting him to reluctantly take up the offer of his best friend Janice and in turn ask, think beg her stereotypically OTT colleague Lance to pose as his somewhat unlikely twink styled boyfriend "Brick." A cunning plan that surely cannot go wrong, provided that is Aiden is truly over his ex lover. He is - well isn't he? Set for the main part in the weekend leading up to the big day in a lush lakeside house, here we find McDonald playing with the "will they get back together again" scenario for all its worth, teasing you right through to the end, as a series of comically disastrous blind dates are countered by the drama of Forrest and Max's respective pre-commitment parties. A signal for setups if ever there was one, with Blair Dickens' "too good a catch" personality as Forrest, boy can he cook, allowing for Aiden and now love struck Lance to go get their man. Yet whilst there is no doubting the look of overplayed love in Scott Higgins' eye as out and proud Lance, Chad Ford plays Aiden all too serious at times, a reflection of his character being ever conscious of the reality of the situation, no matter what his heart may wish otherwise and here cue Tyler Brockington as lover boy Max, now forced to confront feelings that he thought were in his past. Yet the real star of the show is Aleisha Force who excels as Janice, determined to get her boys walking down the aisle - with the right man by their side. True, there are some negatives in the mix; that of a sadly underused Skai Dabney as lovable lesbian Sue and an all too fast ending that is both emotionally and realistically unconvincing. But that said, this is still a well-executed delight, that of a gay romantic comedy that lives up to its name, with laugh out loud moments and comical turns guaranteed to keep you amused, before love conquers all in the final reel. Totally entertaining and a cinematic debut well done for McDonald & Co. Need more be said? Gay Visibility - overt.  Nudity - strictly from the waist up.  Overall - file under ... 3+ stars.  ›› Available to buy from Amazon.com. available on DVD as part of the Breaking Glass Pictures catalogue: 06.December.2011. starring: Chad Ford / Aiden, Tyler Brockington / Max, Scott Higgins / Lance - Brick, Blair Dickens / Forrest, Aleisha Force / Janice, Todd Jenkins / Jack, Skai Dabney / Sue, Cameron Kirkpatrick / Dave, Ryan Harper Gray / Gary, Christopher Nash / Shawn, Joshua Morris / Harold, Bradley Johnson / Mal and Melissa Jobe as the Pastor. Copyright 2011 David Hall - www.gaycelluloid.com. archive reference #449 ›› previous page | back to top | print me ‹‹