User Reviews

Four holy young men from Mormon country go to L.A. to preach the gospel to urban heathens. But, one of the young Mormons is a repressed gay who "happens" to cross paths with a very "out" young L.A. party boy. (What would film plots be without coincidences?). These two, very different, young men become friends, and in the process, affect each other's outlook which, in turn, sets up an inevitable clash between gay and Mormon cultures.

That is the premise of "Latter Days", a 2003 film, written and directed by C.Jay Cox, himself a former Mormon missionary. The film's story is, of course, highly relevant, especially in contemporary America. Variations of this story need to be told, and retold, and retold, hopefully in future films ... because the underlying theme brings to light the hatefully superior attitude that Christian fundamentalists too often display toward gays. By its nature, "Latter Days" is provocative, and I doubt that the film was well received in Provo or Pocatello, even though the script is intelligent, sensitive, and insightful.

"From C. Jay Cox, the writer of the hit comedy 'Sweet Home Alabama', comes a heartwarming and tender gay romantic drama that combines laughs, seduction, tears, and plenty of romance. The handsome Aaron (Steve Sandvoss), a Mormon missionary, travels door-to-door in Los Angeles spreading the word of his religion. Christian (Wes Ramsey), a cute West Hollywood party boy, goes from man-to-man without much commitment. Opposites attract when Aaron and Christian meet, and sparks begin to fly.

"Featuring two star-making performances from Sandvoss and Ramsey, the film also features a terrific supporting cast including Mary Kay Place, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and international screen legend Jacqueline Bisset," according to the DVD sleeve description. Not to mention some sweet vocalizations from Rebekah Jordan (as Julie), the stock sympathetic roommate. Debuting director Cox turns his otherwise ordinary "Latter Days" into a enjoyable and touching drama, due to some story surprises and an engaging team.

******* Latter Days (7/10/03) C. Jay Cox ~ Steve Sandvoss, Wes Ramsey, Jacqueline Bisset, Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Latter Days (2003) is a very sweet, touching and powerful love story. The actors portraying Christian and Aaron are so great and spot on with their performances, they really made me feel like they truly loved one another. This film really had great dialogue and a well written script, it might be a bit cliché at times, but it was still very sweet and heart felt. I love how this movie made me feel, this movie made me feel warm and just happy. There are some sex scenes with male nudity involved, but they aren't trashy or distasteful at all, they are loving and romantic and truly beautiful, and I'm glad they were there, because you could really see the love between the two characters. Lila in this movie was awesome too! I really loved her character, the film wouldn't have been the same without her. Also Joseph Gordon Levitt makes a short appearance in the movie, and I thought he did a good job, even though his character was a homophobe and a true bigot, he did a good job portraying that. This movie had good heated confrontations between the characters, and they were very impactful and powerful. There was so much great chemistry between characters as well, the bonds were very real and believable. I 100% recommend latter days, whether you ate gay or straight, I think you will enjoy it. You can find it on YouTube, and I saw that it's actually coming on LOGO tomorrow morning at 6 AM, I would urge you to tune in.

I'm not going to go into my entire life story here, but I will tell you that i'm a straight person, so it may seem a little odd that I'd like to watch this movie. I work at blockbuster video and I was running movies one day when I came across a movie entitled "Latter Days." This was intriguing to me because I grew up in a mormon household (but am no longer a firm believer). I read that back and was instantly intrigued. I have much respect for both the mormon community and the gay community, so watching this was something I had been anticipating for a while. I was quite curious how the director would portray the life or a mormon who is hiding his sexuality. All in all, I have to say that this movie is definitely worth watching. There have been some negative comments posted about the quality and about how the dialogue didn't seem to flow amazingly well at times, but I didn't notice anything. I was so wrapped up in the plot and the portrayal of the movie that I didn't notice much of anything that was bad. Most of the people that have left comments on here have been gay, so I assume that most of the people watching this movie would be gay males, and if that be the case, it can become very poignant and heart wrenching at times. I know what it's like to be shunned from the people you've grown up with, not exactly how aaron does, but I have a definite feeling and this movie went straight to my heart. As for recommending this movie, I am all for it. Whether you'll enjoy it as much as I did really jumps from person to person, but I say that you should go out and rent the movie just to make sure.

I have nothing but good things to say about this tasteful and heartwarming film. I think that the effort of the film's director/writer is courageous as well as inspirational. I loved this film not only for the fantastic story (which needed to be told), but also for the way the actors delivered the story. This is not another shallow "gay movie" that depicts stereotypical characters in humorous situations. This was a memorable and flawless effort to show people that love truly knows no bounds, and love is still as beautiful and wonderful as it always was.

Another thing that touched my heart was how well I could relate to the emotion portrayed in this film surrounding the coming out of one of the main characters. We all have to go through similar situations living in the society that we live in and feeling that feeling of detachment from everything that is "right" and "normal". I give my most heartfelt praise for this fabulous and courageous story.

Back in the 1930s and 40s, a popular genre film was the womens film, quickly made but well-crafted romances with Carole Lombard, Kay Francis, Joan Crawford, or Bette Davis, films in which the lead character struggled with her values and sometimes her career in order to find, at last, True Love.

This film is not too far removed in spirit, intelligently updated, no doubt, but still basically and essentially a Romance, even if it does confront a modern dragon in the guise of fundamentalist religion. I never found that watching this film was dull, as the plot is compelling even if one suspects the ending--the actors are appealingly fresh and attractive, the villains far too easy to boo, but veteran Jacqueline Bisset turns in a warm tribute in the mode of Lauren Bacall school as a wise restaurateur, and there are other cameos that are a delight;

For a young person struggling with coming out of the closet, this film might be a joy and a revelation; for others, less so. It is film crafted with affection at a time when there is massive and social change and certainly reflects how various liberties can clash in a multi-layered culture.

I love so much about this movie: the music, the cinematography, the acting, the story, and all the Mormon clichés. Just because they are clichés doesn't mean they aren't true! This is not perfect, it is a movie after all. Though excommunications are held in well-lit rooms with nice big desks and chairs, it was totally appropriate to portray it as the dark, cold scene they did in this film. I also liked the scene with the angel waiting at the bus stop, smoking a cigarette. I thought that was so cool. I mean, I believe that angels do watch over us. What is one supposed to do while waiting? Smoking is a way some people pass the time while waiting. I loved the irony cause Mormons make such a deal about smoking. I saw this movie 7 times in theaters in Salt Lake, and cried every time! It blows me away. And I've watched it 3 times on video now and it still makes me cry every time. I would jump at the chance to see it again on a big screen. I hope the Tower Theatre in Salt Lake will bring it back regularly at General Conference time, as a cult movie (pun intended, but no offense intended).

This roller coaster of a movie has you up one minute almost wetting yourself with laughter and then almost blubbering like a schoolgirl into a snotty hanky the next. Put simply it is a modern day gay love story, but it is so much more than that, taking a look at uniting love from different sides of a religious divide as it does. It had mixed reactions from the critics when it was released in 2003/4 and barely broke even on the production costs, yet it garnered many awards from various lesbian and gay film festivals from all over the world.

Briefly Latter Days is the love story of Aaron Davis, played by Steve Sandvoss and Christian Markelli acted by Wes Ramsey who come from different sides of the religious tracks, so much so that it might as well be different worlds. It's these seemingly insurmountable differences that provide the bulk of the films content, substance and emotion. Aaron is a young Elder of the Mormon Church Of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints, yep a Mormon missionary, he desperately wants to do his family proud and is quite passionate about his religion, he's also passionate about film. He is sent to the big bad city of Los Angeles with three fellow missionaries to preach the word of god, Mormon style. These three men of 'god' move into an apartment next door to Christian and his roommate Julie, who are both waiters with dreams, she's a singer and he's a err party boy!

At first glance, Christian seems a rather shallow character who only looks forward to shagging a new guy every night. This shallow and emotional carefree existence is amplified no end when he makes a $50 bet with a work colleague that he will bed one of the three newly arrived missionaries before the end of the month. He works fast and latches on to Aaron, the most inexperienced missionary and makes an assumption he has a closet gay guy. Now there are a few problems from here on for the two heroes of the piece, firstly Christian is falling for Aaron, secondly Aaron thinks Christian is a shallow 'shag anything' sort of guy and thirdly, most importantly the Mormon church doesn't do gay very well.

What follows is a tangled tale of battles and woe as first they are discovered in a romantic clinch and their love and sexual identity is forced out in the open. A cavalcade of emotion erupts for the two, as they have to go through the emotional ringer with things like regret, loss; perseverance, forgiveness and courage which all vie for mental head-space. Is it going to be a happy ending, can love conquer such a vast religious divide? I suppose you will just have to watch the film to find out, all I will say is it is a well-crafted picture laying emotion down thick, fast and heavy and really should have got a better reaction that it originally amassed. The story is well written and put together in a completely honest, frank and believable way. There are several issues raised during the course of the movie regarding not just gay, but any relationships where such a religious obstacle and difference is in place. For me, the movie only works because of that, take it away and you are left with little more than candy-floss. It is a passionate little film, with a passionate and powerful story to tell and I am so glad they made it. The Toronto Sun said it was "The most important gay movie of the last few years" whereas the LA Times chimed in with "At once romantic, earthy and socially critical. Latter Days is a dynamic film filled with humour and pathos". I for one cannot argue with those sentiments for as I said before the film is a bit of an emotional roller coaster. Gary Booher of Affirmation – a lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-gender Mormon organisation praised the films accuracy "It was so realistic that it was scary. I felt exposed as the particulars of my experience and of others I know was brazenly spread across the big screen for all to behold" Those thoughts are echoed the bucket loads of positive comments received from former Mormons, excommunicated from the church because of their sexuality. It really is a powerful and honest emotive film about a subject that is not often covered in gay or even mainstream cinema. Read more and find out where this film made it in the Top 50 Most Influential Gay Movies of All Time book, search on Amazon for Top 50 Most Influential Gay Movies of All Time, or visit - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007FU7HPO

I had been quite excited to see this movie for multiple reasons: my interest in religions and how issues are dealt with, my enjoyment of many movies with LGBT lead characters/subject matter, and finally, Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Alas, I my excitement was for naught.

It was great story concept with mediocre acting and dialog. Several times I actually cringed. But, despite those flaws, I did care for the characters, which shows this was not a total loss of time (for me).

There were many moments in the movie that I could immediately see ways to make them better in simple ways. Often, a few words changed out, or stressing certain words over another, or modifying the facial expression/body language. Then there was Jacqueline Bisset. I don't actually think she was the problem (or maybe she was), but about every scene she is in felt so terribly forced and fake. She is suppose to be the wise-mother figure and (without giving anything away) her character is vital to the story's destined conclusion. But her scenes were not just bad, they were bad (!).

Loved Erik Palladino (playing Keith Griffin). He was my favorite character in the story. Of course I loved Joseph Gordon-Levitt, but he could be in a cat litter commercial and I would be captivated. And finally, felt very motherly toward Steve Sandvoss. He is just so adorable and even when I disliked his acting or his scene, I just wanted to give him a little pat on the head and maybe some chocolate chip cookies with milk.

Last note: I am glad I finally saw this movie. But, I would not watch it again.

First of all, I'd like to say I'm just an amateur in commenting movies and that English is not my native language, but that I felt a strong feeling compelling me to write about such movie; possibly as a way to thank and congratulate C. Jay Cox, the cast and the crew for such a brilliant production.

Yesterday I watched "Latter Days" for the first time.

At first I thought it might be similar to the movie "Priest", which I liked very much for showing a gay priest out of the closet. But "Priest", maybe due to its restrict Catholic Ideological notions, didn't supply my spectator's needs by revealing a profound sad end.

"Latter Days", on the other hand, broke that concept (and some other ones as well, such as the Mormon's principles); presenting a tender and cheerful story, leading it to a happy and emotive end, and yet arousing a feeling of God's blessing and hope. A great movie indeed!

Somehow "Latter Days" made me feel L.A. as a city of angels.

I would recommend this movie to anyone who likes astoundingly beautiful gay love stories!

I have to say right from the start, I'm biased with this film. I love gay dramas, gay comedies, gay romances, gay biopics, gay horrors....I just don't think there's enough of them out there. However, after seeing so many, I find myself coming back to some that I feel strongest about, and Latter Days is definitely one of them. It's takes a classic plot of opposites attracts, using the characters of Christian, a waiter with a passion for partying and men, and Aaron, a young Mormon missionary away from his family for the first time and struggling with his sexuality. When Christian takes a bet that he can seduce Aaron despite his vow of chastity and his church's stance on gay rights, it takes an imbecile not to work out where this is going. However, that is the fun with this film - it doesn't pretend to be a scathing expose of the church, or a moralistic tale about the dangers of living your life in clubs - it simply takes two characters who clearly have something missing in their lives, and tells us their story. At times, the dialogue can be a tad sticky and forced, and not being a believer, I do try to ignore the dollop of good-ol'-God on the side, but the charm of this film lies in it's heart and character. Joseph Gordon Levitt almost steals the show with his grating yet hilarious portrayal of a Mormon Elder, and Steve Sandvoss' quiet and anguished Aaron sticks in the viewer's memory for quite some time. If I had to be picky, the narrative comes a bit unstuck towards the end, but the feel good nature and the general loveliness of this film are irresistible. Don't watch this film with a critic's eye, watch because deep down....you know it feels good.

Director/writer C. Jay Cox makes a valiant attempt at creating a gay-oriented film for a mainstream audience, but he pads his story with so many contrivances that don't allow the film to resonate as it should as a thoughtful treatise on the hostile incompatibility between organized religion and homosexuality. The story focuses on the ironically named Christian, a standard-issue WeHo party-boy who waits tables at a fancy LA eatery, and Aaron, a fresh-faced Mormon missionary, one of four uptight, white-collared boys who plant themselves next door to Christian to spread the word of their religion. This sitcom-sounding set-up leads to a $50 bet made among the restaurant wait staff to see if Christian can bed Aaron, obviously leading to complications that look anything but promising to either the characters or the viewer.

Fortunately, the film improves marginally once the two get together, even though the evolution of their relationship is inevitable according to the conventions set forth by Cox. What is intriguing at this point is that Aaron's self-acceptance as a gay man is not as automatically liberating as one would expect. Instead, Aaron challenges the narcissistic Christian for his vapidity, and in turn, Christian looks inward as he becomes close to a sardonic AIDS patient. The movie resonates most when it deals directly with the restricted attitudes of the Mormon Church as embodied most viscerally by Aaron's mother and when Christian comes to accept his own lifestyle limitations. However, Cox layers too many coincidences toward the end and eventually disavows his social commentary in favor of a predictable ending.

The music, which is actually integral to the plot, is unfortunately the type of irritating LA-based pop that distracts from the drama, in particular, a song performed by Rebekah Jordan (playing fellow waitress Julie) with lyrics courtesy of Christian's Palm Pilot diary. The performances are variable. Wes Ramsey certainly looks the part of Christian, though his stereotypical character doesn't give him much opportunity to provide depth even as his character gets more serious-minded. On the other hand, Steve Sandvoss is surprisingly substantive as Aaron, bringing a lot of conviction to a role that demands a level of naiveté that could be alienating in more cynical hands.

In a role directly opposite to the hustler he played in last year's "Mysterious Skin", Joseph Gordon-Levitt is disappointingly one-note as Aaron's homophobic colleague; but Mary Kay Place brings searing candor to the role of Aaron's intolerant mother, especially in her blistering kitchen confrontation with Aaron. In a surprising appearance, the still-beautiful Jacqueline Bisset plays the restaurant owner Lila with effortless worldly élan. The film provides true value for its perspective. I only wish Cox trusted the controversial premise more than he does here. The DVD package has deleted scenes; three music videos; less-than-insightful audio commentary from Cox, Ramsey, and Sandvoss; a better making-of featurette; and a short film from Cox, "Reason Thirteen".

I am also an X-Mormon who was ex-communicated for being gay. It was a very devastating experience. I thought this movie was true through the depicting of the Elders and Church's hatred of gays/lesbians. I was shocked to see it in the blockbuster and had to see it. Thanks for making this film and i hope it helps other people. I know of two Elders who did succeed in killing themselves over their gay struggle--that is just so unnecessary. This movie was one of the best gay movies i have ever seen. It is a tale of 2 men, it was not about the sex. I laughed and i cried and i related so well to many of the things happening in the movie. You would think that the Church would offer some time of assistance to those of us who have/do stuggle with being gay--but the sad reality is that you are cut off just like the movie depicted and sadly, cut off from your family and shamed within the community. If they were truly a church of Jesus Christ, then you would think there would be love and compassion and forgiveness shown.

I may be a sentimentalist. But i found this movie truly moving. It was the first movie that reduced me to tears. And it did it more than once!! I recommend it to anyone both gay and str8. Religious or not! Supporting co-star Jackie Bisset stole the show, especially with her one liners. The nude scenes were superbly crafted as well, and all in were good taste. Most shocking was the portrayal of the orientation reversal deprogramming instituted by the Mormon church to the lead character. It shocked me that this still goes on in the world. Nevertheless I enjoyed this movie tremendously. This is definitely the best gay film since Torch Song Trilogy. And much better than the other gay movie offering that year - The Fluffer.

When I lived in New York City one of my close friends was a lapsed Mormon. He discovered he was gay as a teen and cut all ties between himself and his family by mutual consent. He worked first as a dancer and later as a makeup artist.

My friend was from the Las Vegas area and his partner was a New York City person. Later he did contract AIDS and did die in 1991. There was no effort by the family to even acknowledge him. His partner who also had the virus had the expense of burying him which a group of friends helped him with. And when his partner died in 1993 there was no mention of the lover who passed on at the service that his family held.

Watching this film so reminded me of my friends Kim Sherwood and Paul Pastorella. Kim came to grips with his sexuality early on so unlike the character Aaron, he was never that involved with the Church of Latter Day Saints in that manner. And he was in fact more of a party animal like the Christian character. At least when I knew him.

But both of my friends Paul and Kim had each other and that was enough. And like Aaron and Christian they had a circle of sustaining friends. You could see at the end of the film Aaron and Christian had developed such a circle.

Aaron was in a church that certainly had one of the strictest disciplines going in the Christian world. The family that Christian described may have been more secular, but not any less homophobic. It's the homophobic cultural values that nearly smothers both of them.

One scene I particularly liked was the ex-communication church trial that Aaron was subjected to when his homosexuality was discovered. Aaron made the Elders most uncomfortable by pointing out the polygamous lifestyle that their ancestors had. Certainly an alternative lifestyle back then.

In fact until the LDS church changed its teachings on polygamy, Utah could not gain admission to the United States until 1897. The issue is still being debated today in some quarters.

Latter days is a poignant and tender gay love story. Both Aaron and Christian through exposure to each other grew as people as they grew in their love.

Kudos to Steve Sandvoss as Aaron, Wes Ramsey as Christian and the rest of the cast and this film ought to be required viewing for all of us, but especially the young.

The very first time I heard of Latter Days was when I was renting DVD's and I was interested as I am a member of the LDS Church. I found this movie very heartfelt and in several areas it made me cry. The reason for this is that too many years ago I knew a young man who went through what Aaron (played by Steve Sandvoss)does in Latter Days, but unlike Aaron this dear young man did not survive the ordeal. He ended up taking is life after his church, his friends, and his family disowned him because he was gay. There have been many people who do not think that the things that are shown in the movie really happen in this day and age, but the sorry and sad thing is they do. For those of you out their who are gay and young you need to see this movie and if you are a gay Mormon you really need to see this movie. Plus if you get the DVD there is help for you listed in the DVD. Teenage suicide in the gay world is very disturbing and this movie touches it but that part is hidden to a degree. The acting and the music is excellent. This movie sold out every movie house that it showed but it only showed in major cities and had a very limited release, so for those who would like to see this movie I would recommend the DVD release. The only people that I know who did not like the movie are members of my own church and they did not see the movie because of the subject matter gays and the LDS Church. See the movie, experience the story, and feel the emotions that are showcased in this movie you I feel will not be disappointed.

From the poster art and what little I knew about the film, I expected a low-budget film with lots of wandering from house to house by Mormon missionaries. I didn't realize, for example, that there are so many incredible people in the cast. Jacqueline Bisset, for example, is her usual riveting self. There's Mary Kay Place...and, hey, if you love "Buffy," there's Amber Newman. He doesn't have a huge role, but I was delighted to see Rob McElhenney as a young Mormon missionary--he's one of the dissolute crew from "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." Joseph Gordon-Levitt doesn't get much of a chance to break out of the strictures of his character, and I find it very, very difficult to believe that a homophobic Mormon missionary would actually be so free and easy about using words like "homo" and "fag." That would have to be pretty unusual.

The best part of the movie is definitely Steve Sandvoss, not just because he does a good job of embodying the role of a basically innocent missionary struggling through the situations in which he finds himself, but also because Sandvoss is so insanely, insanely beautiful.

A lot of the action and situations seem rather forced dramatically, but this film is definitely worth watching. It's a good looking, handsome film with a talented cast.

While not a ground breaking gay romance like "Brokeback Mountain," "Latter Days" is an entertaining love story that is greatly enhanced by its talented boyish lead, Steve Sandvoss. When a group of Mormon missionaries move into the apartment complex where party boy Christian, played by Wes Ramsey, resides, Christian makes a bet with his restaurant co-workers that he can seduce one of the squeaky clean Elders. The plot unfolds predictably, but well.

However, the film strives to be more than a romance. Sandvoss's deeply closeted Aaron wants a meaningful relationship before he breaks his vows and becomes involved with a man, while the superficial Christian enjoys a life of anonymous one-night stands. Writer-director C. J. Cox handles Aaron's struggle with his Church and family better than Christian's search for a meaningful life. Aaron glows with a natural innocence and sincerity. His conflicts with Mormon teachings and his parents clearly torment him, and the self-realization and acceptance of his sexuality have evidently evolved over time. However, Christian is not as convincing, and his change of heart occurs too quickly for someone who has devoted his life to sex, discos, and clothes. Ramsey's soul searching seems as contrived as his ironic name. Meanwhile, Christian's employer has her own set of issues. As the secretive restaurant owner, the still-beautiful Jacqueline Bisset makes a welcome appearance and provides a nurturing mother figure that contrasts with Aaron's intolerant unforgiving mother, who is played by Mary Kay Place.

Whether or not the Mormon Church is as harsh as portrayed in the movie, the unyielding parents and church elders make ideal villains, especially for gay audiences who view religious extremism as the enemy of tolerance. However, the bigoted character played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt does not fit with the general image of Mormons. His Elder Paul is more violent, aggressive, and hostile than the polite, well-mannered missionaries who ring doorbells. Despite the small quibbles, "Latter Days" overcomes its deficiencies and pulls viewers into its core romance. Although the film's visuals are too slick, and the sets are lit like a television episode, the flaws fade as the story develops and viewers fall in love with both Aaron and Sandvoss.

OK so one of the reasons I watched this film was because I noticed a lot of praise for the film and being billed as "the Best Gay Film" by many. However this film was terrible. The quality of the film was just astoundingly bad. The acting was awful by the entire cast...even Joseph Gordon-Levitt's acting couldn't give this movie a shred of dignity. At one point you could even see a crew member in a mirror holding a camera!! I will admit the plot of the movie was ambitious, however they failed to really nail it and give it the right treatment. Also the sex scenes were ambitious but the characters were far too uncomplicated and simple. The story was completely predictable with an even more predictable ending. Everyone was talking about how they cried when seeing this movie. It didn't work for me, which is surprising cause I cry to a lot of movies ha ha. They just didn't allow enough time for proper character development.

Please I recommend everyone to formulate their own opinions but if you want a quality film that will actually resound with you, watch "Beautiful Thing", "Get Real" or "Shelter"...I cried to "Beautiful Thing" ha ha

Latter days is the best gay movie of the homosexual genre. Most of the films entail sappy stories, one night stands, and let us not forget infamous baseball teams? Latter days actually contains male affection beyond the kiss in the dark, and quite graphic material that made me wonder whether the film belonged at Blockbuster or badpuppy.com. The films emotional journey is what sets it above the rest in the genre. Not until this film had I seen a story of such intense passion and love, and the torture that it can bring. I think when people cry during movies they should be beaten, but I found myself sobbing throughout several scenes because of the realistic nature of the world in which we live. I suggest every gay male see this film, and if you have a boyfriend, thank him...

I have little patience for bad scripts, sloppy cinematography, bad acting or inadequate editing so I was pleasantly surprised when this movie won me over again and again. The film sometimes suffered from an improbable or overwrought script, sometimes from so-so acting and sometimes from indulgent editing but by far the most persistent impression is one of an honest and meaningful film. I can't adequately express how impressed I was with the acting of Steve Sandvoss. His performance was vulnerable, brave and very true. I found myself tearing up not only because of the plight of the characters but also because of how validated Steve Sandvoss made me feel. I left the theater feeling warm and a bit more alive. See it and I think you will too.

OK. I am NEVER, EVER, EVER again going to trust a movie review in the Gay press. After fawning all over this film and Cox's writing, I have to wonder who is getting payola and who is just afraid to say that the emperor has no clothes. I should have learned my lesson after Mambo Italiano, which the Gay press would have you believe was My Big Fat Greek Wedding--done "correctly" and better--when it was a waste of money to see in the theater.

Every cliche in the book was used in Latter Days...let's see...cute, shallow guy? Check. Cute, innocent boy? Check. Queeny black sidekick? Check. Understanding gal pal? Check. Saintly older parental substitute? Check. Homophobic climactic scene? Check. Older, wise, AIDS-infected character? Check. Idiotic chain of circumstances that link all of the main characters? Check.

The dialog was about as well written as George Lucas' drivel from Attack of the Clones. I burst out laughing several times at what were supposed to be "serious" moments and felt horribly embarrassed for the actors having to spew the crap written in their scripts. The actors mostly did a fine job, given the material. The two leads were certainly fun to look at. Sandvoss in particular portrayed what seemed to be a very genuine character. The sex scene was completely underwhelming from what I had expected from reading the gushing reviews.

Don't get me wrong. I enjoy fun, funny, non-serious gay romantic comedies. Straight people get to see them all the time why shouldn't we? Instead of wasting your cash on this (until it hits video), go rent All Over The Guy or I Think I Do for a good date movie.