This is a very disappointing film but it is difficult to pinpoint exactly why. I viewed this film in 2015 in the UK where we have enjoyed Civil Partnerships for 10 years and equal marriage has just recently been made law so I am willing to concede that my perspective might be a bit skewed. However, for me, the issues raised in Role/Play suddenly seemed very out of touch. I am not even sure if an actor's sex tape would make the news nowadays. That said, I know aspects of American life can be conservative in their outlook so perhaps the themes here still have some relevance.I think the film tries to say too much in one forum. There are simply too may themes jostling for dominance set alongside the notion of true love always wins through. It is very predictable and there is no depth to any of the ideas presented. For me, the acting was generally poor – more akin to that in a gay porn movie – but equally the script did not give the actors the opportunity to really develop their characters.Overall, for me, this was a very lightweight film that was out of touch of what it means to be gay in the 21st Century.

As others point out, this is a movie that has was too much dialogue (the comparison to My Dinner With Andre with Speedos is apt) - and the director is definitely in love with his words; unfortunately, it's an excessively narcissistic obsession that no one else will be able to share, much less enjoy.What passes for wit is that even though the soap opera actor lead is 12 years older than the gay activist role, the mid-30s man living in West Hollywood and active in the gay community would not know some random pop culture references such as Dynasty and Dallas (for which the other actor would have been a teenager during their height).As with a number of recent low budget films aimed in this market, there is a minimum of technical proficiency in some respects, but given that this level is hit by so many others films, it needs to do MORE than merely be lit or in focus - the camera work should have some vigor and move a story, capture nuances in performances, etc. Likewise, a script should not just plod from Point A to Point B, as the trope states, you could put a thousand monkeys in a room with typewriters and they might turn out Hamlet; in this case, apparently, one writer-director couldn't do much than turn out a vanity project of sorts.

As a self-proclaimed connoisseur of gay-themed films, I have to express my disappointment in this movie. First, the positive... the acting was actually pretty good. Steve Callahan and Matthew Montgomery did a good job. Their skills are 50% of the reason why this review got 4 stars instead of 2. The other 50% (and let's be honest here) is the fact that both actors are VERY easy on the eyes - both their face shots and their derrières...which we see quit of bit of. Am I saying a full frontal of either of them would have been nice too? Well, it wouldn't have hurt, and maybe got the film one more star. And now for the negative: this film was incredibly boring. The writing was terrible (sorry Mr. Williams). I can't tell you how many times I caught myself drifting off, staring out the window, looking at the clock, mentally doing a grocery list, etc.. Finally, about three quarters of the way through, I just couldn't take it anymore and started skipping ahead to the end. I was bummed, because I was really rooting for the film to be better. There are so few gay/romantic/dramas that are, for the most part positive (and don't end in death, heartbreak or tragedy), that I really wanted this film to succeed. Instead, it was predictable, flat, and boring. Unfortunately, my recommendation on this one would be don't waste your time or money.

I have seen lower budget films than "Role/Play." I have seen worse scripts and worse acting. However, when it comes to superficiality and pretentiousness, this film hits a whole new level.I caught Steve Callahan before, including his roles in "East Side Story" and "Pornography," but in "Role/Play" he was virtually unwatchable. His speech was stilted and artificial and everything felt like it was being read for film class. Not a thing out of his mouth came off as believable. His partner, Matthew Montgomery was stronger as an actor, though I often felt bad for what he had to spout in this film.I will say that it was nice to see David Pevsner in this (though I am sure he regrets one certain scene this film-maker idiotically had him do). Pevsner deserves better. Anyone who saw him in "When Pigs Fly," off-Broadway, knows this guy has talent to spare.The real awfulness of this movie lies in the exceptionally bad script from director Rob Wilson.This script screams...'I am an insider,' 'I know about gay Hollywood,' 'I will expose glbt politics.' It was written by a person who seems to have spent his whole life locked in the fabulousness of a glbt community that only seems to know Chelsea, Palm Springs, The Pines and Santa Monica Boulevard. All you need to know about this film is the way that the couple that were not 2 pretty party twins were portrayed.Oh sorry, that was supposed to reveal that the main, 'important,' characters learned a little more about love because they realized that 2 partners were able to love each other without both being physically perfect.This film doesn't shut up, it is talky to the point of preaching. Plus, it then throws in occasional butt shots...well, just because they decided to show some nudity. Hey, you need good publicity stills to get somebody to watch this.Sorry, but this film's central characters were so self-indulgent, stereotypical and obnoxious that why would anyone care how it ended? It was beyond obvious how it would play out. In fact, my partner and I were joking about it as the story neared its end, and we hooted with laughter when it played out as predictably as it promised to.They don't get much shallower than this.