Make the commitment to see "I Do" [REVIEW]
“I Do” is an honest film about American life and love in 2012. It successfully tackles the complications of same-sex marriage and immigration, and the way it affects gay, straight, citizens and non-citizens alike.
“I Do” stars the film’s writer David W. Ross who plays Jack Edwards, an openly gay British photographer living in New York City.
The film starts off lightheartedly while Jack, his brother Peter (Grant Bowler) and his wife Mya (Alicia Witt) are out to dinner. But things get complicated fast. We find out Mya is pregnant, Peter is feeling pressure in his marriage and Jack is having trouble settling down.
A tragic accident occurs and we fast-forward seven years, Peter and Mya’s daughter Tara (Jessica Tyler Brown) is in school now and we see that though Jack is sad and single, he’s capable of being a good father through his caring and attentive role as “the gay uncle.”
We soon meet Ali Federman (Jamie-Lynn Sigler) who plays Jack’s gold star lesbian best friend and U.S. citizen. We see the strength of their friendship when she agrees to marry Jack after he receives a letter from the INS saying his work visa was denied and that he must return to England.
Though the newly married couple is only really married on paper, the on-screen depiction of their marriage commitment is effective because of all the straight marriage issues that arise. We watch as Ali, who recently split from her lesbian lover, becomes lonely and jealous when Jack starts spending time with a Spanish architect named Mano (Maurice Compte) he instantly falls in love with. Jack’s affair isolates Ali, despite the fact that the two are not actually romantically involved.
Jack’s newfound happiness with Mano doesn’t last too long when INS comes knocking at his and Ali’s door unexpectedly, and his lover gets an international call that requires him to return to Spain.
In the Q&A immediately following the film, Ross mentioned that he originally wrote it as a comedy but decided to change it to a drama. The decision to change the film’s tone works very well; despite the several comedic occurrences, it’s difficult to imagine it as pure comedy.
Ross also mentioned that he did not originally write the script with himself in mind as the lead role. Though his acting seemed forced when his character dramatically contemplates suicide, Ross’ performance felt very real.
Child actress Jessica Tyler Brown’s performance was the show-stealer. She seemed natural in her portrayal of the seven-year-old girl too smart for her own age. She asks the adults around her the hard questions and sees past their sincere attempts to hide adult problems like gay relationships and immigration from her. You feel her emotion when she demands answers about her gay uncle’s lifestyle and finds out that he could possibly be deported.
What was most interesting about the screening was the ratio of young to old people in attendance. A majority of the audience was older, most looking older than 40, which was surprising because our generation is often thought of as more open-minded toward gay rights and the LGBT community. Several older people praised the writer and director for their successful creation of a film that gay and non-gay people of different generations can be positively affected by.
Overall, “I Do” is an honest film that questions legal issues in America, and is definitely worth seeing.
