GOOD LOOKING MEN THAT LOVE TO LIVE  (AND LIVE TO LOVE) IN NEW YORK CITY

 

An entertaining and fun-to-watch series about gay men in their mid-40s and 50s living in Manhattan. Starring Neil Patrick Harris (Michael), Tisha Campbell (Suzanne), Marcia Gay Harden (Claire), Brooks Ashmanskas (Stanley), Emerson Brooks (Billy), Tuc Watkins (Colin), André  De Shields  (Jack) and Neil Patrick Harris’ real life husband David Burka.

The aftermath of a birthday celebration takes us to the separation, after a 17-year relationship, between two gay men that own a nice apartment at Gramercy Park.  Shallow storytelling has a special interest from the Baby Boomers generation on,  since it shows how things have changed out there from one age group to another,  from the must of using condoms to PrEP (no comment on Sexual Transmitted Diseases -STD- and Monkeypox, nowadays), from personal interaction and direct glances to chat houses, Smartphones, and text messages, about dating app culture (Grindr and others),  the fluidity of genders, youth and aging… all garnished with festive champagne coups for double or triple Belvedere vodka Martinis.

A range of stereotypes of gay characters doing well interact, sharing a little or more of themselves and their struggles. Tisha Campbell and Marcia Gay Harden stand out and provide a fragrant and necessary balance to the male protagonists.  

As Neil Patrick Harris says to Daniel Spielberger in an interview*: “Uncoupled is a great addition to a giant patchwork quilt of representation”.  Thanks to Netflix, the far-reaching platform, for helping the LGBTQ+ visibility in TV and films.  

And finally, to creator Darren Starr, who also wrote Sex In The CIty who gets to have his very gay scripts performed by gay men for a change

 

 

Review by José Mayorga , Guatemala, Central America  lawyer and notary public, visual artist, and editor of
El Azar Cultural,, lives and works in Guatemala City. Cinema lover, curious about the possibilities 
life brings and eager to live the experience.