Man, I wish I could have watched ‘Bookends’ in theaters – even though I’m very thankful for the screener. The thing about me, yes I’m a grumpy whore, but I also love watching other people fall in love. And that’s the basic fundamental of ‘Bookends.’ It’s a classic, cookie cutter romance-comedy with a few bumps in the road, and it also takes a look at how different generations view love. Starting with a modern crash and burn scenario, ‘Bookends’ finds Nate (played by Noam Ash) having to move in with his grandparents after being stripped of his boyfriend and his self-esteem. Armed only with his sass and ambitions of publishing his debut novel, Nate soon discovers that getting to start over again is sometimes a blessing in disguise.
‘Bookends’ is written by Noam Ash and directed by Mike Doyle. Noam also produced the feature with Scott Einbinder, Alon Shtruzman, Henry Bergstein and Warren Ostergard. Tari Segal served as cinematographer with Ryan Kendrick serving as editor. Lead cast members include Noam, Charlie Barnett, Caroline Aaron, F. Murray Abraham and Jazelle Villanueva. Shot by 5x Media and Story Mill Entertainment, ‘Bookends’ is currently enjoying a strong film festival run where it’s already picked up a number of award wins. Find it next as part of FilmOut: San Diego, screening on Sunday, August 23 at 7:30pm. Click here to purchase your tickets of this cozy, must see gay drama that reminds you how to love love.
Realistically my only complaint with ‘Bookends’ is that it’s just too perfect. The story is fairly predictable and there’s not too many obstacles for its main characters to overcome. Despite knowing how this one was going to go, I thoroughly enjoyed my viewing because, especially in this day and age, sometimes you need a little bit of happy, a little bit of lightness to counteract all the bullshit going on in the world. ‘Bookends’ is the type of movie you watch after a bad day, when you need to smile from beginning to end. It’s just… nice. Oh, wait! I do have one other small complaint. Why would characters fuck in the grandparents’ house knowing they’re down the hall? Where is the sexiness in that? Especially when one of them has a home they could go to for more privacy.
‘Bookends’ is deeper than a slow burn love story, though. It covers many important topics like cheating, when a relationship deteriorates from a boyfriend to a personal assistant, how wanting to achieve a goal can become too consuming, the importance of STD tests, dementia, the importance of language and culture, and the importance of nurturing and maintaining a relationship – not just enjoying it. Plus, it develops the porn troupe of wanting to fuck your doctor. Have we all not wanted to fuck a hot doctor? I know have, but after watching Charlie Barnett in this flick, now I can say that twice as hard.
It’s not lost on me that the inclusion of the grandparents is far more important to the narrative than a place to stay. They mirror Nate and Daniel, one is fun loving and determined while the other is more cautious and calculated. Nate is very much his grandfather, Saul, while Daniel is very much the grandmother, Miriam. It’s the perfect example of how ying and yang can work so well together because they balance each other out. And, hey, let me not forget to mention the fifth main character – Sarah. Sarah is Nate’s best friend, and she’s the best friend we all wish to be blessed with. Speaking of parallel metaphors, Sarah unfortunately represents the life that Nate had to leave behind to progress.
‘Bookends’ is equal parts romance, drama, comedy and an insight into how different generations view love. ‘Bookends’ shows that love isn’t always easy, it isn’t always fireworks and fun but working it out instead of walking away is always the better option. And what’s great is that it depicts gay and straight relationships. Because besides different body parts, it’s all the same thing. I think what’s beautiful about the finale of ‘Bookends’ is that it’s not the end, for Nate it’s just the beginning. I would watch this movie a second time… and that says a lot.
Final Score: 9 out of 10.
Bookends Trailer
Suggested: https://instinctmagazine.com/test-will-become-the-biggest-gay-sports-story-of-2026/