Stephen (Greg Lauren, “The Wedding Planner”) and Danny (Christopher Gartin, “Johns”) are living the good life in Manhattan.  Not only do they have terrific jobs, lots of money, a fantastic house and the respect of those around them, but they also have each other.  Being gay really isn’t a handicap for these two and their respective parents are perfectly fine with their son’s lives.  What they don’t know, however, is that Stephen and Danny are hit men for mafia boss Victor Patrizzi (Tony Lo Bianco, “Nixon”).  How’s that for turning the genre on its head?

Despite the occasional mumblings behind their back, the two guys have a pretty smooth existence.  All of that is about to change, however, when Stephen’s parents (Beth Fowler, “Sister Act” and Frank Pellegrino, “Knockaround Guys”) decide to pay them a surprise visit to celebrate the father’s birthday.  It also just so happens that dad is an F.B.I. agent.  Oops.  Now it’s up to the entire mob family to come together, host a party the parents will never forget while somehow keeping their mobster background from surfacing.  Worse yet, some of the wiseguys are going to get a crash course in what it takes to come across as gay.

Does “Friends & Family” work as a comedy?  Absolutely.  Many of the clichés inherent in gay films are avoided with the two main characters only to surface later on as the mob family tries to do what they think is necessary to “fit in” as homosexuals.  The results are hysterical and in the best sense.  The writer and director aren’t making fun of straights or gays so much as showing how easy it is to have misconceptions about each other.  There are enough surprises to keep viewers interested and the script doesn’t collapse on itself in a mess of heavy drama towards the end, another failing within the genre.  Heck, even my parents enjoyed this one!

Wolfe Video has released “Friends & Family” in a Widescreen transfer.  Picture quality is fairly solid with a minimum of grain.  Audio quality is also problem free and, combined with the video, delivers an overall enjoyable viewing and listening experience.  As for extras, this was a screener disc and didn’t contain a finished product.  The final disc is listed to include a trailer, some outtakes and a commentary.  I would have loved to have heard the commentary and seen the outtakes, but the film itself is worth telling people about.

This isn’t your average gay film.  Some thought went into the script and turning the genre on its side like hasn’t been done before.  The direction is solid, the acting fairly fluid and the overall film comes together quite nicely.  In the end, it’s Stephen and Danny’s jobs that are largely in question, not their sexual orientation.  If only more films dealt with the subject matter like this one does.  “Friends & Family” is great fun!

Film Rating: B+
DVD Special Features: TBD

A surprise visit from the parents sends a gay couple into a tizzy. You see, Mum and Dad know Stephen and Danny are gay. What they don’t know is that they work for the mafia as enforcers (with Cary Grant dinner-suit debonair). It’s a case of hiding the semi-automatic weapons, rather than the sex toys. The ruse is not acting hetero, but well … like caterers instead of hitmen. The boys can’t even use a microwave!