Gray Matters

For a 2007 WLW movie, Gray Matters got a pretty wide release. This was a film that actually had some budget and studio backing. And I don’t understand why. Despite the style it takes on, the story was not fit for a fluffy, crowd pleasing rom-com. Gray Matters may have made less money but would’ve been much more successful as a smaller movie. Fitting into a mainstream rom-com box really robbed this narrative of a lot of depth, potential and actual comedy.

Gray Matters focuses on two adult siblings, Gray and Sam. After being assumed to be a couple one too many times, Gray decides they need to find romantic partners for each other. Gray immediately hits the jackpot with Charlie, a random beautiful woman at a dog who happens to share all of Gray and Sam’s interests. Both siblings immediately latch onto Charlie with Sam proposing to her after 24 hours. But Charlie and Sam’s whirlwind courtship makes Gray realize something about herself; she’s gay. And she’s not just gay, she’s in love with her brother’s wife.

Gray Matters is a very perky movie. But there’s not a lot of actual jokes. The energy is good, sure. But there aren’t too many actual punchlines. That’s my big issue with the film. This is true for a lot of the films in this genre of lighter than air rom-coms. It’s good that the film has energy and that Gray is charming. But where are the jokes? They’re either missing or so cliche they fall flat. Gray Matters is far too happy to use bits and punchlines that aren’t only popular, they’re overdone. The film happily falls headfirst into genre cliche. I know this was made before the era of snide fourth-wall comments and genre deconstruction, but a little genre awareness and attempts to subvert the film beyond just the gay thing would not have gone amiss.

Personally, I think this plot would’ve worked better in a comedy that has a bit of an edge to it. Gray and Sam’s relationship is unusual and occasionally creepy. The film is semi-aware of this but refuses to deal with it. There’s a heavy amount of ambiguity surrounding Gray’s jealousy of Charlie and Sam. Had I not know this was a lesbian film, I would have assumed her jealousy was based on her interest in her own brother. Despite this framing, the existing film does everything it can to water this element down. I think an edgier, indie film might’ve suited this narrative better. A little less Nora Ephron, a little more Lars and the Real Girl would work better for this story of better homosexuality than incest.

The big positive of the film is that it does feel forward-thinking. The way it tackles not just homosexuality but discussions of consent and body positivity feel like it comes from a movie made at least 5 years later. There’s little meanness to the film, even around topics that are usually the butt of the joke in 2000s comedies. Gray also has a moving moment where she breaks down about how she wants a life where she can get married, have kids and hold hands with a partner and it be normal. There’s a genuine passion for acceptance and equality to the film. But at the end of the day, that doesn’t change the quality of the movie. Gray Matters maybe feels like a film from 2012 instead of 2007 but it’s not a good film in either of those years.

Gray Matters is such a weird mix of lighter than air, overdone rom-com cliches and a progressive and occasionally moving coming out story. Obviously, I approve of the second half of that mix. But the first half really holds the film back. I wonder if maybe writer/director Sue Kramer was trying to use the rom-com structure to try and destabilize the genre with her film. Destroy it from the inside, basically. Sadly, it doesn’t work. The strict adherence to rom-com cliches doesn’t read as subversive or deconstructive, it just heavily waters down what’s good about the story. By playing within the rules of the mainstream rom-com, Gray Matters neuters its own message and makes this a film without an audience. Straight people probably don’t care and it’s too simple and too overtly made for straight people to be a particularly successful queer film.

Overall rating: 4.7/10

Other WLW films in similar genres