Jump to the good stuff: The Story | Some Thoughts | The Final Verdict
The Story:
Eden’s Curve is a gay drama set in 1972 about a young man attending an exclusive university and learning about life.
Peter (Sam Levine) begins university in a frat house, where he meets his roommates, Joe (Trevor Lissauer), who isn’t shy about being naked in front of him, and Bill (Bryan Carroll), a gay student who takes a liking to Peter. Joe invites Peter to hang out with him and his girlfriend, Bess (Amber Taylor), and the three of them have sex with each other.
As Peter gets to know Bess and Joe, he forms a friendship with Bill. Soon Joe becomes jealous of their friendship and acts out, culminating in a fight. And with that, the truth about Bess and Joe’s relationship is revealed, and Peter must make a choice about how he wants to live his life.
Some Thoughts:
Eden’s Curve has an interesting story that will draw you in. The acting isn’t great, but good enough that we get a sense of the characters. The cinematography tries too hard to be artsy and becomes annoying with fancy visuals that add nothing to the story.
The dynamics between the central characters are enough to hold the viewers interest. There’s also a sexual aspect that gives an added complexity to the friendship between Peter, Joe, and Bess. This is handled well, and I wish the director (Anne Misawa) had focused on that instead of trying to make it look artsy.
Although there’s a fair amount of male nudity, none of it is full frontal. This is the type of movie that would benefit from a more natural viewpoint unencumbered by awkward angles to hide male genitalia. It made me long for European cinema.
In the second half of the film Peter becomes interested in Ian (Julio Perillian), a university professor. Although Peter’s interest in the professor is understandable, Ian is the least developed of the cast. Ian’s story also feels a bit forced and contrived. It gives the impression that they added the character because they didn’t know how to end it.
The Final Verdict:
Eden’s Curve is an interesting drama that would have would have benefited from a more seasoned director.