As a polemic to conservative Australians, it hammers the message home. It might have worked as a piece of theater but as a film it fails. Preaching to the converted? I think so.No sexual chemistry between the leads...neither gay or straight. Russell's helmet-head, hawk-nosed, super hair-sprayed boyfriend doesn't convince. Everyone tries hard and fails. It has a low-brow streak of melancholy running throughout. A bit like a soap without the continuity.That this qualifies for inclusion in the top 100 gay films of all time on AfterElton can only reflect low expectations.Wanted to like it but didn't. Disappointing

I just saw this movie on the Independent Film channel, which may be showing because of the popularity of Brokeback Mountain in theaters now, which has another young Aussie's, Heath Ledger, award-winning portrayal of unrequited love for another man. In "The Sum of Us", Crowe (at age 30) portrays a straight-acting but fully "out" gay man, (Jeff Mitchell) a plumber and rugby player in his mid-twenties subtly acting his disappointed love for another gay man his own age. Crowe's brilliantly nuanced performance underscore his acting genius and the viewer can favorably compare this work to his captivating work, three years later, as a tough cop (Bud White) in love with a high-class call girl in "LA Confidential." "The Sum of Us" however has a more universal theme, as Jeff and his widowed father also work out their relationship: Filial love is contrasted with romantic love. Also, black and white flash-backs to his beloved grandmother's long-term lesbian relationship highlight the universality of the movie's theme. This is no skin-flick; it is raw emotion in a compelling plot, artfully and sensitively written, acted, directed and filmed. Kudos to IFC channel for broadly showing this film, which deserves wider distribution on DVD in the US.

This movie was very different from any of the others I have seen with Russel Crowe. He has the talent to even pull of gay. Not ever actor could play a gay man. The only other actor I believe that can play a gay character is Bruce Willis. I enjoy how the father narrated as he performed in the movie. It made the movie (in my opinion) more personal. I like the end when the father has the attack and his girlfriend is ashamed of herself. She deserved it. It wasn't the fathers fault the son was gay. She should have figured that out right away. You can't blame the father for what the grown-up son does. All in all I enjoyed the movie even the kissing didn't bother me.

Given the blurbs and that the film is set in Australia, I wasn't expecting more than the average gay film. But "Sum" is a remarkable film; it puts "gayness" in perspective.Not only the story of a couple of wonderful guys looking for love, Sum is a big slice of everyday life up there on the screen. Low-key it might be, but the film's endearing characters and big mistakes (of the sort we all make) keep it right up close. Far from the relationship portrayed by Hanks and Gleason in "Nothing in Common", Harry and Jeff have a wonderful relationship. Almost too wonderful it seems, halfway through the film; but then "Sum" does something remarkable that carries it far above the surface.It's too easy to take life for granted. And sometimes it's hard to see past the surface. "Sum" is wise about what matters, without having to paint anyone as a saint or demon. Not many films manage such loving and admirable economy.