50 Ways of Saying Fabulous

On September 8, 2005 at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), I had the chance to see the world premiere of the film "50 Ways of Saying Fabulous." Based on the Novel by Graeme Aitken, 50 Ways of Saying Fabulous is a coming-of-age film set in the '70s in rural Australia.

It stars Andrew Paterson as Billy, a chubby thirteen year-old kid who's interests are different from the regular kids in his school.

While all the other kids are interested becoming rugby stars, Billy dreams of becoming a character in a children's TV show quite similar to Lost in Space. Normally – this would lead to a lot of criticism from his classmates, but Billy's best friend just happens to be Lou (Harriet Beattie) – his cousin, and the best rugby player in the school.

So Billy lives blissfully in his own little world, faux-ponytail and all, until the arrival of puberty. Add to that a few new faces, and a few unexpected twists, and Billy's life will never be the same.

Great effort was made to keep the look of Australia in the mid seventies. Everything from the clothing to the cars – looked authentic. Impressive – considering that this was not a big budget film. The Director Stewart Main has a love for his homeland, and it shows - as Australia is filmed beautifully. In particular – the night scenes are reminiscent of the older days of filming, and not the normal "night = blue lighting" we've become accustomed to seeing.

At the screening, the director said he wanted to make a film that would appeal to all audiences, young and old. That brought about a very quick response from a member of the audience, "Not in America!" This film deals with friendship, homosexuality, love and lust. While it's far from an explicit film, its subject matter will prevent it from showing up any multiplex in America. In Canada on the other hand, the film already has distribution rights. So unlike many TIFF films, this one will be coming soon to a store near you.

The film is not without it's problems. Although it has a healthy mix of imagination, humour, and charm, the end lacks punch. And while it does try to rise above the genre, it has an unattractive "me too" quality. It doesn't offer anything truly unique like the intensity of the movie "Thirteen", or the cattiness of "Mean Girls".

That doesn't mean I didn't like the film. The actors were all wonderful. The cinematography was great.

It's not a film worth going to a theatre to see, but it is a film worth seeing. A nice rental.

What an enjoyable watch with a real sense of rural New Zealand in the 70's. There were some wonderful performances from the children & the audience embraced the gentle humour & story, especially it seemed, an older generation. It connected with an audience who either knew these characters or anyone who had grappled with the complications, the lows, the trivia & the joys of growing up. The landscape of Central Otago looked stunning & was transformed into an amazing moonscape in the day-for-night scenes - loved that moody twilight world.

The 'look' actually reminded me a lot of the genius & madness of Canadian Director Guy Madden's films. The 'zany' quality w/ camera zooms, fantasy sequences & OTT music worked fabulously together, but it's a rare beast that also has a sensitive, good looking and well told story - all bundled into one fab package. Well done I say!!

The story of my life as a young overweight gay boy growing up in a small town 35 years ago. What a darling little boy. I also noticed how very true it was that the young man knew what he wanted. His eyes were bleeding to see what he wanted to see! And, yet, his girlfriend, who was not all too happy about being a girl, had no concept of attraction to anyone. She just knew she wanted to play sports and it was her job to take up for the "puffits" of the world. My favorite line was near the end when he said he "belonged here." That sense of belonging is what brings us all together.

Sweet movie. Lynn

This coming-out story of 12-year-old Billy is set in rural New Zealand in 1975. Actually, it's more of a Bildungsroman, because it's no secret to anyone that Billy is gay. His family and friends accept him for who he is, but he's having problems at school.

We follow Billy as he shows us his home, family and childhood friends (mainly tomboy Lou) and his school life, where he is bullied and struggling with his dislike of rugby.

We follow him as he experiences his first relationship with fellow "pufter" Roy and his first crush on older and completely unobtainable Jamie (played by a sexy young Michael Dorman).

"50 Ways" has an incredibly strong sense of time and place. I can't remember any movie that so successfully reconstructs the 1970s. The clothes, the haircuts, the town scenes, the homes -- it was all spot on. There was even a fondue dinner. Am I imagining it, but did the cinematography somehow reproduce the quality and texture of photographs from the 1970s? Movie goers are also treated to almost two hours of beautiful New Zealand landscape.

Main seems to have directed this movie using a group of rural New Zealand children. The line between fiction and documentary is a thin one. The child actors in this movie appeared only in this movie and almost nowhere else. How often do you see real children acting out a graphic gay coming-of-age movie? How did Main accomplish this? I think this would have been unthinkable in puritan America, wouldn't it? For this reason alone, the film is remarkable.

The realism is astonishing. This is not a phony after-school special school. These are not American movie children. These are children without guile and sophistication, without internet, without MTV. Main shows us children and school life as they really were, with all its complexities, difficulties and awkwardness. Sure, the acting was occasionally amateurish, or the dialogue a little forced, but for the most part I felt like I was watching a real group of New Zealand children ca. 1975.

Andrew Paterson, Harriet Beattie and Jay Collins -- I'd like you to thank you for playing in this movie. You did a great job. Your characters will remain with me for a long time.

I found the film to be moving, engrossing, relevant. I thought the movie had good character development and a few interesting plot twists. The complex and problematic relationship between soft Billy and tough Lou was the core of the movie. We outgrow our childhood friends as we discover ourselves.

Main doesn't sugar coat what it's like to grow up gay. It's a rich and full look at every aspect. Billy's hopeless and awkward crush on Jamie felt true. I felt really sorry for hapless Roy. Billy's difficulties with Roy and Jamie reflect core relationship issues that reverberate throughout every gay man's life. The struggle with "rugby" (and what that represents) is also familiar. Adults play a very minor role in this movie. Isn't that also accurate for gay teenagers? What I particularly liked was the way that Main explored how we come to terms with those dreaded words ("pufter", "faggot", "queer", or whatever). "What does that really mean?" And "Yes, that is what I am." Dealing with those words is a big part of growing up.

At times the director introduces some whimsy, mostly based on the theme of Billy's imagined fantasies of a television show similar to Lost in Space. Billy identifies with Lana; Lou identifies with Brad. It's difficult to know what to make of such a deliberate and in-your-face use of cheese in a movie like this. I have to confess I was also into these shows when I was a kid. Or perhaps I have a high threshold for cheese. I think it's accurate to make a television show the centre of a boy's imagination in the 1970s.

I see the movie has not got a strong score on IMDb. However, I wouldn't let this dissuade you from seeing it. Gay movies tend to get inexplicably and undeservedly low scores. Worth seeing!

Not as true to the book as it could have been. Some of the more feminine moments in the book ended up on the cutting room floor. However congratulations to the young male actors for very brave performances. The golden colours appear too contrived at times and this was unnecessary because the landscape is awe inspiring anyway.

At screenings in Wanaka this last week I am told the audience is clapping at the conclusion of each screening. Well done to all involved particularly given the budget the film enjoyed.

This is another example of a New Zealand film that takes a universal theme (the complexities and confusions of adolescence and early sexual awareness)and puts it into a very traditional rural context and reminds us of the normality of it all.