Boulevard Review
This dark, introspective drama hinges on one of Robin Williams' final film performances before his death in 2014. And it's one of his most unusual roles too, a sensitive depiction of a man grappling with a long-repressed truth about himself. Most importantly, the film is never sentimental, and it continually refuses to take a political or moral approach to a potentially touchy topic, exploring the issue of sexuality with unusual honesty.
Williams plays Nolan, who at 60 has no reason to feel unhappy. He has a great job and a loving wife, Joy (Kathy Baker). But a change in the health of his father (Gary Gardner) makes him feel the need to address a very deep desire that he has been hiding all his life, even though he can't even admit to himself that he's gay. One evening, he takes a drive to the spot in town where the young male escorts hang out, and in a moment of panic he picks up Leo (Roberto Aguire). Nothing physical happens between them, but they become friends. And just opening himself to the possibility awakens feelings Nolan has been burying since childhood. Nolan's best pal Winston (Bob Oedenkirk) knows something is up but doesn't need to ask. And as Nolan struggles with what to do next, he has a nasty altercation with Leo's cruel pimp (Giles Matthey).
Although this plot point feels just a bit overwrought, it's thankfully not the focus of the story. Instead, it escalates the urgency Nolan feels about dredging up these long-suppressed feelings and admitting the truth to himself and others. Best of all is the way writer Douglas Soesbe and director Dito Montiel quietly explore the textures of Nolan's long relationship with Joy in scenes that are beautifully underplayed by both Williams and Baker. These are people struggling to say out loud the things they have always known but considered taboo. And now they are realising that perhaps doing what was considered to be the right thing all their lives only delayed the inevitable.
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