Genre: Drama
Runtime: 1 hr. 26 min.
Plot: When Vincent finds himself a victim of outing in his high school, he must accept to live with the drastic changes it provokes, and redefine his relationships with his friends and family.
MPAA Rating: Not Rated. (Contains both male and female full frontal nudity)
Distributor: Picture This! Entertainment
Starring: Julien Baumgartner, Julia Maraval, Francois Comar, Jeremie Elkaim, Patrick Bonnel
Directed by: Fabrice Cazeneuve
Produced by: Herve Chabalier, Claude Chelli, Christophe Chevalier
"This fast-paced, well-acted film brings emotional integrity to a familiar tale."
-- Chuck Wilson, L.A. WEEKLY
"You can see the emotions of the characters pass through the actors' faces and bodies. Mr. Baumgartner shines brightest, perhaps because his character is the most conflicted."
-- Matt Weitz, DALLAS MORNING NEWS
"There's a naturalness to the entire cast, yet there is considerable depth to the portrayals, and the interplay between the characters is exceptionally rich and nuanced."
-- Kevin Thomas, LOS ANGELES TIMES
"While Cazeneuve's story is about gay love, it also charts universal truths about adolescent romance and high school politics with great aplomb."
-- Joshua Katzman, CHICAGO READER
"A well-done version of an old tale - they manage to make it interesting and Julien Baumgartner makes it feel like his personal story."
-- Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone, THEMOVIECHICKS.COM
"A sensitive coming-of-age story that, while not trailblazing in terms of originality, manages to be quietly affecting."
-- David Noh, FILM JOURNAL INTERNATIONAL
"Resonates with earnest truthfulness and packs a surprising dramatic punch."
-- Gabriel Shanks, MIXED REVIEWS
"Couldn't be more honest or compassionate in depicting the handsome sensitive teenager's coming out story."
-- Dennis Schwartz, OZUS' WORLD MOVIE REVIEWS
"Even if [it] has a slightly mustry, afterschool special message to impart...the picture delivers it with sufficient charm and complexity."
-- Frank Swietek, ONE GUY'S OPINION
"Sensitive and uplifting."
-- Ken Fox, TV GUIDE'S MOVIE GUIDEYOU'LL GET OVER IT (2004)A good student and star swimmer, 16-year-old Vincent (Julien Baumgartner) seems to have it all; he's attractive, well liked, and has a pretty girlfriend named Noémie (Julia Maraval). But he's also keeping a secret from everyone - he's gay. Day after day Vincent lives a lie and continuously has to keep making up stories for when he meets his lover, Bruno, for their rendezvous across town. Every day he wakes up telling himself that today he's going to tell everyone his secret, but every day he doesn't have the courage to go through with it. Then he meets new student Benjamin (Jeremie Elkaïm, of the popular gay film
Come Undone) and the two keep crossing paths. Finally the two end up sharing a moment, which happens to be seen by a few kids at school, and the next day Vincent comes to school to find graffiti labeling him a "fag." Now that his outing has been done for him, Vincent is faced with having no choice but to confront who he is.
Coming out while still in school wouldn't be easy at all and I wouldn't recommend doing so. I didn't and that's a good thing because otherwise I would have been making my life harder while in school. While people are more accepting now, especially younger people, there are still going to be people that would tease you and constantly call you names like "fag." Even some of the ones that didn't even care would likely do it. That's just how kids are. People (both guys and girls) I see from school now and that know I'm gay will say stuff like, "Why didn't you come out then? It's not a big deal." But it would have been a big deal then. Kids are cruel for no real reason, and it would have been too much to take. If I had to face some of the things Vincent did in the movie, like most of his swim team rejecting him and treating him terribly I probably would have wanted to die. I don't think I could have taken it. And for me it likely would have been worse than how it was for him in the movie because it's a movie and they can't spend a long time showing a bunch of different people treating him horribly. It doesn't matter how popular you are, when you come out in school you'll be in for a really rocky time. Even though it can be incredibly hard having to live a lie and not being able to be yourself, it's best to wait until after school or when you're in college, which is what most seem to do.
Newcomer Julien Baumgartner was excellent as Vincent. He was really likable, not to mention pretty cute. I also really liked François Comar as Stéphane, Vincent's best friend. I liked how even though Stéphane was straight, he still remained a very loyal and caring friend to Vincent after Vincent was outed. He was just a little hurt that Vincent didn't feel he could tell him and he had to find out by seeing it written in graffiti at school, because they're best friends and are supposed to be able to tell each other everything. Stéphane's attitude reminded me of how my best male friend, who's also straight-as-an-arrow, acted and how he simply didn't care at all and it just wasn't a big deal. It didn't change anything with us. It seems to me a lot of straight guys are like that, at least that I've seen. Maybe not younger teens though, like 15-year-olds, but older more mature ones anyway. The reaction we get from Vincent's girlfriend Noémie is one we usually don't see. She's actually mad at Vincent, and while she always had a feeling he was gay, she's in love with him and can't be just friends with him, and ultimately tells him they shouldn't see each other at all anymore. Although considering how things could have been for Vincent, he has it pretty easy and even his parents come to be accepting overall.
Great gay-themed movies are few and far between, but "
You'll Get Over It" is one of the best of them. It's interesting, fast-paced, truthful, and sexy. It also looks great for a smaller movie and the performances are all really good. Other than the main character's coming out being just a little too uncomplicated (I'm sure there are some like that in real life, in fact, it's obvious there are, but for the movie it just seemed a bit too easy), I definitely recommend "
You'll Get Over It." It's a small gem and a very good and well-made coming out story.
Grade: 8/10 (B+)
