“Getting It” is a good movie. It’s the debut feature from Tom Heard, who also wrote and starred in the film, but that’s not the whole if its appeal. What is appealing about it, in fact, is how approachable and relatable it is. The film is an LGBTQ+ project, and is unmistakably sweet and enjoyable. It should appeal to anyone wanting a heart-warming drama and feel good romance in equal measure.
The film centers around a man named Jamie (Director/Writer Tom Heard), who lives a depressed, ‘life-on-hold’ existence in an apartment complex in Austin, TX. He has little in terms of companionship; his social circle consists of a busy-body, gossip-type neighbor named Linus (Adrian Laguette) and his boss Elaine (Sharron Bower). Jamie’s a writer; but for the last bit he’s been missing deadlines. His current article is on dreams, and he’s having trouble completing it. It’s understandable, as his boyfriend Patrick left him a year ago he never really moved on. Linus likes to gossip about the young gay man who has moved into the complex, Ben (Donato De Luca), and how cute he is, but Jamie isn’t into it. However a chance meeting with Ben—along with Jamie learning a truth about his own selfishness—sets him up for love, and a self-discovery he’s long avoided.
A Charming Gay Romance that Skips Adversity and Grappling with Sexuality
What I like about this film is that it’s charming; but not because it is filled with tropes or emotional manipulations, but rather because it is real. Jamie is a real person, a man slightly past 40 who has emotional baggage. He doesn’t think he’s good enough. He can’t commit. His excuses all find ways of saying he doesn’t believe in himself. But he’s also that kind of person keen to say ‘no’ to people asking him for things out of habit. He doesn’t do it out of meanness, I don’t think; maybe he does’t even know why he does it. Opening up doesn’t come easily for Jamie, which may be why he feels so alone.
But what follows is a sweet romance picture, if only because it makes sense why the couple meets and bonds, and you understand the emotion of why they want to make it work. Subsequently, I wanted to see it work. I can’t remember another romantic drama I’ve seen in the last year that’s made me feel the same way.
One of the strongest parts about the film is the acting from Donato De Luca, who plays Ben with vulnerability and pain. Ben is in a hard situation. His mother died a year ago, and his brother whom he lives with (Jason Graf), blames him and despises him. He’s a young man trying to get over his mom’s death and move on, all while carrying the burden of her death (the reason is detailed over the course of the movie, but will not be spoiled here). But somehow in a way that looks easy, De Luca effortlessly makes you believe his drive, passions, and heart. His pain is real; in a scene after a fight with his brother, as he feels regret and shame, his facial acting is among the best I’ve seen. De Luca has much to give the acting world, and is great here.
Donato De Luca and Tom Heard Have Great Chemistry
There are several other strong parts of the movie, such as Jamie’s relationship with his boss, Elaine, and the chemistry with Ben he tries so hard to deny. Jamie learns some hard things about himself over the course of the film, but does so with grace. And Eliane is a very likable character, is Jamie’s ‘boss’ but obviously a life-long friend and so much more. Heart-to-hearts she has with Jamie are the film’s backbone.
The backbone is completed with Jamie and Ben’s relationship. There’s demons they both bring to the table, but both actors do so with grace and willingness. Ben is a poet, and Jamie is a singer. “Getting It” shows the passion and talent they have for these, and how pursuing them is what the ‘dream’ Jamie is searching for actually looks like. Yes, there’s some standard cliché, such as one partner who knows what he wants while the one has cold feet, but that’s just triviality. The film’s close, while slightly rushed, provides a joy-inducing payoff and wraps up a sweet film nicely.
A Good, Relatable Romance
As said, “Getting It” is a good film. Heard is good in the acting role, and doesn’t feel like he’s playing a character he just wrote for himself. The rest of the cast is all likable and pleasing, and the film deals with relatable themes that transcend sexuality, and in fact solely deal with the human condition. Heard performs a couple of intriguing singing numbers, and the film is funny; it knows when to joke and take the tension off, and it knows when it’s okay to leave it on. But most of all, it is very heartfelt. It’s a look at two characters we can care and root for, and like most good romances, discovers that with love comes healing, which can be one of the greatest gifts of all.
*Note: “Getting It” is available for streaming on Amazon Prime, YouTube, iTunes, Fandango, Google Play, Dekko, and Vimeo. It is also available on DVD. Additionally, if you like “Getting It,” Tom Heard is currently writing a new LGBTQ+ romance called “Comeback.”
