Cathardincu Surprisingly incoherent and boring

FeistyUpper If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

MoPoshy Absolutely brilliant

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

meaninglessbark Watercolors would probably be most enjoyed by by queer guys in their young teens, they might find it meaningful. But for grownups and people who like good film Watercolors is a predictable young queer romance tragedy with acting that's slightly better than the average porn film.Watercolors looks nice, is well shot and edited, and has decent music choices. And there are some naked bits that are pleasing to see. But the story line is as subtle as being run down by a train that you're actually walking towards. Here's what happens: Sensitive not surprisingly gay artist kid meets swimmer/sidewalk surfer dude, unbelievable queer flirtation happens, believable pathetic falling in love with a dolt happens, expected queer bashing happens, extremely obvious tragic ending occurs. (And just in case you didn't suspect there'd be a tragic ending there are clues along the way that are delivered with the coyness of a hammer blow to the head.) For good measure there is a heavy sprinkling of clichés thrown in...The free-spirited art teacher who can see the amazing talent the sensitive queer kid has, the hard edged English teacher who teaches Shakespeare with FORCE, the crippled and pudgy female best friend of the queer kid who is also the photographer for the school paper, alcoholic single parents, intolerant jocks, and an angry school principal.For WTF? weirdness the story of Watercolors is book-ended between some scenes from the sensitive queer kid's adult life which are absolutely ridiculous, add nothing to the story, and are the sort of dialog and acting that should only be followed by hardcore gay sex.If you're not 15 and queer Watercolors is really best just for gawking at the cute nerdy sensitive kid and the Spicoli-esque swimmer guy who takes his clothes off a lot.

gregory1224 This film is a brilliantly acted coming of age film. For all of us who have experienced the tragic results of first love, this film will move us to tears. The love in this film is incredible. The young actors hold this film to together like seasoned vets. Another thing that I really liked about this film was the realistic scenarios that are portrayed on film. While the recovering alcoholic dad and mom could have been caricatures, the actors tackle them and make you actually feel for their problem. On a side note, the film stars the great Karen Black who gives another one of her great performances. This alone is worth the watch. I have never seen a David Oliveras film, however, now I look forward to seeing more of his films. To think that he wrote it...I wonder if it was from a personal experience. If so, wow!

Consumer007 Not only is Tye butt ugly in the face and has this horrible sarcastic look on his face all movie long but he portrays this character that is full of himself, self serving and a total victim. I found myself disgusted at this character's actions and final "solution". A total coward and unmitigated ass. He was completely unworthy of the affections of his lover from start to finish. Young people like this character are exactly what is wrong with the gay community. it should have been him who was bashed, not his naive lover.On the whole the movie is a self indulgent dramatic waste. I hope for All the gay folks out there that they don't have lovers like Danny Wheeler As their first loves, or anywhere along the way either.

JetBoy "Watercolors" played at San Diego's FilmOut today. I have to say, when we read the synopsis in the FilmOut guide, and watched the trailer, we both thought this was going to be just dreadful. We weren't sure we wanted to even sit through it. I'm so glad we did -- it would be a mistake to miss -- to our amazement, this is a terrific film! First-rate acting all around, with special note to the dad's demonic smoking, the art teacher's facial expressions, the mother's nuanced looks. The writing, while melodramatic, is well-done. Nice cinematography, with cool underwater shots of the swimmers, long shots of outdoor scenes, and so forth. The casting, for the most part, fit nicely, especially Tye as Danny. It was fun seeing Greg Louganis as the coach, although I think it would be have been terrific to cast him as the anti-swimming father.I especially liked the relationship between Danny and his mother. Very funny, touching, warm. The dad character could use more depth, but the mannerisms were nicely done. Tye as Danny looked so small and vulnerable (he's taller in real life, as we saw during the cast Q&A) and had such a perfect geek haircut.This really didn't feel like a "film festival film", although it could do with a bit more editing to tighten up some of the scenes and cut the running time by 10 or 30 minutes.