Ice Men

Male-on-male relationships are the focus in Thom Best's surprisingly compelling feature directorial debut, Ice Men. But, lest you think this is a "gay movie," be forewarned that only two of the film's six characters are queer?and even one of those is questionable. Instead, former Queer as Folk cinematographer/director Best seems far more interested in exploring the simmering rage that lies beneath male affection. Freshly divorced and cuckolded, Vaughn (Martin Cumming) invites three of his childhood friends up to his family's cabin for a weekend of leisurely winter fun, but tensions flair when Vaughn's estranged brother Trevor (Ian Tracey) shows up and sexual tension arises between two of the other men. Soon all of them begin to question just how much they still have in common. The script is a bit too talky at times, and the abrupt ending leaves far too many loose ends dangling (especially the gay one), but Best's direction is formidably competent, and the ensemble cast of good looking young actors is uniformly strong, making this one definitely worth a look. -- Ken Knox

Matrimonium

Reality shows have been around long enough to engender satires, but none have gone so far as to tackle the tricky topic of gay marriage. Matrimonium, based on the concept of My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiancé, stars Rick Federman as Malcolm Caufield, a studly but obtuse wannabe actor who tries to score a million dollars by convincing his family and best friend that he's gay. In order to win, he must get them to attend his wedding with Spencer Finch (Sandon Berg), an ultra-lispy Southern boy with a heart of gold. The unofficial union mocks the concept of televised marriages, as well as the roles of gay men in mainstream media. Largely improvised, the acting here leaves much to be desired, but the humor tends to fall into place when the characters let loose within a scene, like the meeting of Malcolm's uppity parents and Spencer's redneck family. Matrimonium doesn't break any gay-genre boundaries, but it does at least get the conversation going. --Sarika Chawla

Slutty Summer

The gay community is in need of a whimsical, emotionally fulfilling gay comedy right about now, but, unfortunately, Slutty Summer isn't it. Writer/director/star Casper Andreas casts himself as Markus, a young writer who, after catching his boyfriend fooling around on him, decides to start anew by taking a job as a waiter in the fast-paced New York City restaurant where his best gal pal works. There, he meets a group of young gay waiters who convince him that he needs to have a "slutty summer" in order to get over his ex. The film wants to be a gay Sex and the City, but it lacks more than three-quarters of the finesse. Riddled with virtually every cliché known to man and saddled by a bitchy, shallow script, it fails to break any new ground, while the direction and performances are uniformly amateurish. In fact, Slutty Summer is proof that anybody can pick up a camera and make a movie -- which is not always a good thing. --Ken Knox