StunnaKrypto Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Ensofter Overrated and overhyped

Cody One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

Skyler Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

itsonlytrivia-1 This is, far and above, the most jaw-droppingly inane film I've seen in ages. 40-year-old, gay college professor with antiquated and immature issues with his own sexuality is "magically transported" (via collision with elk sculpture) back into his high school years. But, wait a second... everybody's gay! Oh, good lord, hold on! Now--in this alternate reality--he's straight, and facing the same trials and tribulations he did as a gay man in the real world. I'm sure the filmmakers were trying for irony, and undoubtedly for wit, but I found neither. What's the message here, exactly? Maybe it was lost in the midst of poor writing and plot holes the size of my fist. Or maybe it never existed in the first place.

moonspinner55 40-year-old gay teacher has a car accident and dreams he's back in high school again--only this time, gay is 'normal' and he's attracted to a comely female student. Silly, low-budget, under-populated comedy-drama is more ambitious than its thin production or straight-seeming cast can handle. The script is stuck in a revolving closet--the teacher has to come out all over again--and it's never clear to whom the picture is meant to appeal, straight or gay audiences. The filmmakers' idea of a novel twist is to have the homosexuals be the unyielding bashers, but is the movie preaching tolerance and acceptance or is it a treatise for heterosexuals in need of reassurance? (after all, their side wins). A less 'colorful' take on this material might have made for a funnier and perhaps thought-provoking comedy, but "Almost Normal" doesn't even scratch the surface of those possibilities. * from ****

gradyharp Marc Moody has written and directed a film that is so earnest and reaches so high for making a significant statement that it is difficult not to admire the result. ALMOST NORMAL is so obviously a gay version of 'Back to the Future' by its own admission that it becomes a bit tedious and silly, and when accompanied by low budget and tenuous production values it is a little squeaky in achieving its self-imposed high standards, it comes very close to being a forgettable effort. So why is it so popular? It has spirit! Brad (J. Andrew Keitch in a fine film debut) is a 40-year-old closeted gay college professor in Nebraska who lives in fear of derision and is frustrated he is unable to live his life in a happy relationship. His good friend Julie (Joan Lauckner) is supportive and encourages Brad to return home for his parent's wedding anniversary. Brad does so reluctantly, finds the usual homophobic atmosphere and in a moment of weakness, drinks too much and has an auto accident. Miraculously, when he awakens, he has the appearance of a handsome high school kid and when he wanders into the world he discovers that there has been a major reversal: now it is normal to be gay and grossly distasteful to be a straight breeder. Even his parents are gay with breeder hosts for procreation purposes. Brad sees reverse discrimination now, is sought after by the high school jock Roland (Tim Hammer), enjoys the freedom of being openly gay, but meets the now new Julie and is strangely attracted to her, having to hide his new 'straight alliance' in a new closet. And the resolution of this new dilemma is the message of the film.Everything about the idea of the film makes the viewer want to love it, and it is a sweet little diversion of a film with some thinking material about prejudices. It is rough and hampered by many technical and casting and scripted errors, but it does give newcomer Marc Moody a strong grounding for making further films about gay life that seem to appear like seeds of ideas throughout this film. It needs polish but it is a good time and offers a wide audience a better perspective on what it feels like to live a life as an outsider. Grady Harp

wally-46 I liked this film because it brought a unique view to prejudice and misunderstanding. Here being gay is normal and straight (breeders) is not. The length and breadth of this perspective makes it quite persuasive. You get a chance to see life from the other side. Brad is 40, gay and not partnered. On his way home to attend his dysfunctional parents' 45th Anniversary an accident lets him go back in time to high school where he sees himself as straight and "alone" in a school where all the "normal" boys like boys and the girls like girls. The first time in school he fancied the star of the basketball team and knew he couldn't get him. Now he's there and the star is hoping to make it with him. Brad couldn't fix a car or do lots of other "straight" appearing things. Now he can and it makes him different. He doesn't like it. He comes out as straight in high school during the second visit and is attacked for it. The boy he wanted as a boyfriend turns out to be his friend and the girl he wanted as a friend turns out to be his girlfriend. Handled with humor and sincerity by a cast that handled the job well.