Straight guys trying to do it? Chick must have directed it

As I continue my round up of the notable films of 2009 I decide to watch Humpday (2009) from writer/director Lynn (girls name) Shelton. Now apparently Humpday is part of a movement called mumble-core, which are films that are mostly improvised and done super cheap (it gets its name from the actors mumbling their lines). I started watching one other mumble-core movie in my day and had to turn it off after ten minutes (the movie will not be named). Despite my one negative experience with the genre I had heard lots of good things about Humpday and was in one sense eager to see it, I also knew the premise and was curious how that was going to be pulled off realistically.

I wouldn't say that it was ever really pulled off so that the audience, especially a male audience would believe that for the sake of art two straight men would have sex. However the film was able to transcend the concept and make it more about thirty somethings trying to cope with adulthood and the differences in there lives. The movie never feels improvised and there are some really really funny yet awkward scenes.

Humpday is about two friends Ben and Andrew, who after Andrew unexpectedly shows up at Ben's house the two reconnect but at the same time realize the differences in their life. Ben is white picket fence, wife and about to start a family. Andrew is a loner, always on the move and experimental. One kind of idealizes the others life and as sort of a plot point and experiment they want to both prove they can do the one thing all straight guys are most scared of....gay sex.

To Shelton's credit the film masterfully presents these characters and their feelings over time and really gets close to nailing (excuse the pun) some human and generational truths. Ben's wife seems to be used as the eye of the audience and the rational character which is very much needed with such a high concept film.

Overall I liked the characters in Humpday, they were just two relatable guys talking, and I felt like I knew them. Maybe I didn't buy the plot points, but the themes and relationships all rang true and that to me was the success of this film. The film may be a mumble-core movie, but it also takes the Bromance to a whole new level.

***1/2