Broadway Damage

I lived in Manhattan from 1978 to 1986 and these were characters inspired by many of the creative aspirants filling the streets, shops, bars, cafes and yes, air shafts and fire escape landings, during that era. Guess you had to be there to get it!

"Broadway Damage" is a sweet confection spun around the the classic gay triangle: the lovable Hunk, the fag hag Chunk, and the best pal Lunk secretly in love with the Hunk. More corn syrup is ladled on thick when Hunk and Chunk move in together in modern Greenwich Village, no less. Apparently set in the present, "Damage" feels like the kind of screwball romantic comedy that Hollywood never really made. You half expect the cast of "Wonderful Town" to come marching down Sheridan Square humming a showtune.

Combing the obits finds them a bohemian squat lately owned by a deceased young actor - they've hit the real estate jackpot! No one mentions, however, that their good fortunes are probably due to the tenant's death from AIDS. In true fairy tale style, the dive is transformed into an ultra cool pad in one brief montage segment. (You know how talented those fellas are with decorating!)

Despite some modern kinks (Hunk's love trouble, Chunk's job trouble, and Lunk's Hunk jones) flick never can get too serious about much. And dialogue never really cracks like genre demands. Fade out is just as we'd expect. And no one suffers much damage - on Broadway or elsewhere.

Two years ago, in high school, I did some community theater shows in a theater that was also used by the actress Mara Hobel as part of her acting school for children (in suburbs outside of NYC). There was a big bulletin board showing pictures of Mara's film work, including of course "Mommie Dearest," (she was Baby Christina) and a movie I had never heard of, "Broadway Damage." I didn't see it until a few months ago, and being a student at NYU, I was able to play "spot that building" since much of the movie was filmed in NYU's surrounding neighborhood. But on to more important things: Regardless of where I grew up or where I live now, this is one adorable movie. When it was over, I felt like I wanted to hug the world. And it's great when movies have such a positive effect on you. Watch this one with people you love. 9/10

The acting, for a low budget movie, is surprisingly not horrendous. The story is coherently told and is shot in an unobtrusive straight forward manner. It's just that the characters are insipid, the plot is predictable, and sitting through it borders on mentally damaging. The characters are written as if they are supposed to be likable, clever, thoughtful, and funny. They are instead, vapid, predictable, shallow and a total waste of time.

This is a sweet movie, yes, sweet movie about gay love, gay friendships, gay life and finding the right guy in your life. It took me back to the days when I went through this, myself, while living on the West Side in New York. I, too, had a girl-friend, a bit overweight by the name of Cass Elliot [Mama Cass before success]. Mara Hobel reminded me of Cass, except Cass didn't go back to Baltimore, where she was from. Hobel had some wonderful moments [funny and sad]. The boys did well for themselves. The gorgeous Michael Shawn Lucas [Marc] and his romantic tryst with Hugh Panaro [David] seemed doomed from the beginning. It was the key case that gave him his walking papers in my diary. Yet Panaro gave the role lots of depth without making him just a sleeze-ball. Some tenderness in him and such a body, oh my. I'd ask him in to share my bed. But the line, "Let's be lovers for just one night" went out in the 60s. When was this movie filmed? Then there was dear sweet Robert [Aaron Williams] who without those glasses looked really cute. Sort of a good looking Gilligan [from Gilligan's Island]. That book store clerk was crazy to turn him down. His scene where he wrote the song for Marc [and by the way, it was a gorgeous song and I'd love to have a recording of it] but then denied it when discovering Marc with David was touching. Yet, when he finally sang the song for him, my heart went out to him. And still he was denied. Ugh! But, love wins out in this and thanks for that goes to writer/director Victor Mignatti. Mignatti is a romantic, thank heavens, and gives us this special Valentine of love. Victor, if you ever read this critique, where can I get a copy of that song that Robert sang?