I liked this movie--the relationship between the son and his friend is a really nice one at the beginning. The mother is a little quirky and amusing, as is the little sister. The father does a good job of showing that odd place in life where one realizes one left things behind due to choices that need to be revisited, i.e., him being gay.I would have rated higher if the ending had felt a little more satisfying. Clearly the son, sister and mother are all making peace with the dad being gay and getting on with life. Our two gay characters seem to be left with a very uncertain future ahead of them and they don't seem to have any reason for optimism. I don't think it had to be a happily-ever-after ending, but I didn't have a sense of closure with the two characters with whom I identified the most. Still, I did enjoy this movie and would recommend it.

This really could have been a great movie in my opinion.Especially loved the acting of Thea Gill and Derek Baynham and the plot was (except for all the cheesy details) realistic and well devised.Having said that, here is what really sucks about this movie: Chase (main character, they "gay guy") behaved like the greatest A-hole on the planet during the movie!! I mean, I was really starting to hate him when he treated that girl Christy in the most condescending way ever! It's one thing not to be attracted to girls, but that doesn't give you the right to treat them like trash. First, he meets her at a party where she tries to make small-talk, but he totally ignores her and then he tells her he will grab a beer just to leave her stuck on the couch (all right, it's a party, whatever). But then, he does it again at the barbecue, only this time he tells her to grab a bear FOR HIM, then goes to play football. They never show it, but I wonder how she must have felt when she came back with the beer and saw him being gone.I mean I get what it's like to hear someone say "I wouldn't want my son to grow up being a f**(F-word)" but that doesn't mean he can do it to someone else. He should have no right to complain after treating someone like that! But it gets worse: First he betrays his best friend Tyler (who so far had shown considerable support after his coming out and behaved pretty much as perfectly as you could expect from your best friend) by having sex with his dad (Nathan). But even when he gets caught by Tyler's mother, that doesn't keep him from making out with Nathan some more, not even 20 seconds after Nathan told him that his wife had seen them in the woods. Motto:"Oh, I just might have destroyed your family, f*ck it, let's make out some more." Really!?! So then they make out some more in broad daylight and (surprise!) Tyler walks in. He storms off, being chased by Chase who yells:"It's not what it looks like!" WTF!? In my head I'm thinking: U stupid piece of sh*t! Maybe now is the time to pack your bags instead of running after your best friend who just found out that his dad is gay and you two are having an affair!!! I mean the dad is not innocent either, of course. But Chase just takes the cake by behaving totally selfish and with no regard for the lives of other people.The fact that Tyler in the end says:"It wasn't your fault" is totally beside the point. Of course it wasn't Chase's "fault" that Tyler's dad was gay, but the way in which it was revealed was well set up in order to maximize trauma to the whole family, whose lives as they knew it were destroyed.

I couldn't want to see this movie. Finally I thought, a movie with a twist and possibly realist portrayal of a closeted gay man and its impact on his family. What did I get, 90 minutes of over the top soap opera music, really really bad acting (either over done as with the son finding out his dad banged his best buddy, or no reaction at all. The father telling his wife he has been 'interested' in gay sex since college with no emotion at all on his face (Botox strikes again I suppose) and the 'lover' telling his best friend that he and his father had done the mattress mambo and showing no feelings at all. The only saving grace in this entire movie was the wife. I can not place where I have seen her before but she was both metered and nuance. Her face while the husband was unloading his burden rang true to me. My advice, skip it. If you into gays either over acting (remember Carol Burnett in her Mildred Peirce impression, but only not funny this time) or giving the classic soap opera stare as the music swell look, then you gonna love this, then you are gonna love this. If you want this story told correctly with good acting, check out the short Awakening.

This film is a shining example of how to properly express a point of view in a way that everyone can understand and relate, rather than the traditional sledgehammer approach that we're used to from the big Hollywood films.Mulligans deals with the issue of straight vs. gay, and how it affects the lives it touches. The film deftly shows the stark contrast between the forced bravado of the fast-paced college frat-boy lifestyle against the shameless and unapologetic honesty of the exploration of emotional needs and desires. Set against the stunning backdrop of Vancouver Island, the scenery works well to reflect the depth and tone of the subject matter. The lead character shows, for the most part, a confidence in his own sexuality that throws the seemingly "normal" lives around him into turmoil. It forces others to examine their own beliefs and prejudices and decide for themselves whether a person's sexual orientation is their defining characteristic, or just another facet of a complex and intriguing personality.This film is beautifully scripted to allow the viewer to take the journey with the character, so that when the question of sexuality comes up, it doesn't feel like an issue of orientation so much as an exploration of how best to fulfill the basic emotional need that we all have for intimate human contact. A truly inspirational musical score that works both to drive the action and stretch the heartstrings as necessary is a welcome enhancement to the story. It's rare to find a soundtrack so well suited to the mood of the film, the composer should be applauded for his work on this beautiful score. With its sensitive screenplay and superb acting, this film is definitely worth watching.