Bros
An inclusive cast doesn't change the fact that Bros is just another Hollywood product designed to sell as many tickets as possible – and Billy Eichner's attempts to subvert expectations make that all the more grating
“Straight people, especially in certain parts of the country, just didn’t show up for Bros,” was Billy Eichner's excuse for the underperformance of the North American release of his feel-good, LGBTQ+ inclusive romcom. A strange contradiction given the film opens with his character, Bobby Leiber – an emotionally closed-off podcast host – recalling a disastrous film pitch where he became indignant at Hollywood's demands for a gay romance movie that “even straight people could enjoy”. Bobby insists “our stories are not your stories”, before embarking on a love story so cliché it makes Love, Simon look like The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
The protagonist’s run-of-the-mill feistiness proves the movie's undoing. What could have been an expressionless but occasionally chuckle-able flick is now smugly trashing “Hallheart specials” as kitsch while simultaneously using some of their most eye-rolling tropes. Independent Bobby becomes entangled in his first long-term relationship with Aaron Shepherd (played by Luke Macfarlane, a former Hallmark star), a clean-cut, no-fuss hunk, whose dating history so far has consisted of gym bros more meat-headed than he is. Bobby projects his own insecurities onto the relationship (because his supposed peace with singlehood at the beginning of the film was, of course, the stereotypical rom-com delusion), convinced he's not roided-out enough for Aaron. (Note: by real-life mortal standards, Billy Eichner is actually ripped.)
Whilst the majority of the cast are members of the LGBTQ+ community, providing an applaudable amount of visibility, these extras just become scene dressing for a hardly groundbreaking love story. Even the endearingly explicit sex scenes only ever feature white, muscular models. Dressing up the next twee romcom as a landmark not only discredits queer cinema, but robs what might be an otherwise charming picture of any heat, humour, or heart.
Bros is in cinemas now via Universal