Customer Reviews

Murder in Portland

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(18)

 

 

Notice that nearly every 5 star review of this comes from Kansas City, MO? And nearly every other review tells you this stinks? I failed to notice that, and based on all those flowery reviews coming out of Kansas City, I rented two of these RAF films (this and "Revenge in Olympia"). What a colossal waste. Thank goddess I didn't actually buy these stinking heaps of putrid plastic. These films are an insult to (...)audiences, and a scam on Amazon's rating system.

The film: The acting is truly horrid. Worse than a bad (...). The script is painfully lame. The characters were trite, cliche, two-dimensional stereotypes. There is skin, but it is pointless and the guys are no better than average looking. The video quality and editing look like it was done with a cheap K-Mart video cam by a talentless highschooler. Forget low budget. This looks like it was done for about $15 from beginning to end.

I've seen lots of gay-themed movies, and I'm willing to forgive a lot when I know earnest film makers are honestly trying to create a vision or art on a minimal budget. I know it's tough to get backing for a (...)film. But these films are really, seriously, the worst I've ever seen. Even that I could forgive, but I'm really incensed that I was conned into renting them based on scam reviews on Amazon. The scammers should be ashamed of themselves. Stay away from these rip-offs; far, far away. Not even worth a couple bucks to rent. I would give this zero stars if I could.

These films are not worth the plastic that they are packaged in...and, these five star ratings that I'm reading just baffle me. Are gay men so desperate for gay films that we're willing to pander such bunk to unsuspecting viewers? I try to view as many gay films as possible, as I feel that I owe it to those who felt the need to represent me and my fellow gay men in some way, shape or form. But, I surely won't praise or recommend a film simply because it is gay. I've never seen a film so over-estimated in my life. I've seen five star gay films...Angels in America, Soldier's Girl, Beautiful Thing. Murder in Portland SURELY isn't one of them.

I read a review that praised this film for what they were able to do with such a small budget($50,000). But there simply is not a point in the film where it isn't apparent that the budget was miniscule. The camera shots are sloppy. The acting is rank. The sound is of poor quality. And, I've read better scripts from my undergrad screenwriting students. Just because the producers of this film may have done more with it than the small budget would typically allow doesn't make this film good or worth watching. And...if the script was good and the actor's better than VERY SUB-PAR, would it really matter what the budget was?

As many have indicated, the lead "cop" was hot. I found him beautiful...but I can flip through any magazine or watch thousands of other good films and be much happier for it. A hot actor does not a movie make.

I crave good gay entertainment. We are a very misrepresented population in the big screen and the small screen. I praise actors and directors with the courage and gall to make their voices heard and produce gay work. But, gay or not, I'm not going to recommend this film simply because it is gay. We deserve better than that...and recommending it for it's sexual bent would only perpetuate mediocrity in a medium that has potential for so much more.

I just purchased (by reviews) the Olympia Trilogy..
This is the biggest money making joke I have ever seen.
The acting appalling.People stumbling over lines without editing.Completely inane plots(did I say plots?)
I got to Murder in Portland last and finally threw in the towel after the first 10 minutes.I now have three new frisbees for me and my dog to play with..
Please save your $$$$$$$ there are some really good gay genre films out now but trust me,these are not the ones!!!!

If it was possible to give a movie MINUS stars, that is exactly what I would have given this one. This movie is nothing but 99 minutes of bad acting and directing and should be removed from the market altogether. To charge $30 for such a piece of crap should be against the law.

Low budget movies does not always mean bad movie but in this case it's exactly what it means. (An example of a low budget movie that I truly love is "24 nights"). This movie has to be the worst gay themed movie I think I have ever seen and I would be too embarrassed to make it a part of my over 700 dvd collection, 50 of which are gay themed. So I will be putting it on the market SOON. There was not one aspect of this film that I liked. The acting was horrible, (I often felt like I was watching a school play) the actors were not particularly goodlooking, the directing sucked (My impression was that the director was in a hurry to get the film made and accepted the first take on every scene..seriously, it was THAT bad.), The cinematography was horrible, the sound, the picture quality, the soundtrack, etc. all was just AWFUL. Never again will I purchase another gay themed movie based on a hand full of reviews, especially not one that costs $30! It was bad, you guys, BAD. The worst of the worst...Sorry to sound so unenthusiastic and negative about the film but I just watched the end of the film just 15 minutes ago so it is all still very fresh in my mind. Hope this helps some of you make the decision NOT to waste your money on this dvd.

No- really... did i just sit through this? i'm afraid so. and i'd like to warn anyone who hasn't yet--not to. This was probably one of the first times i bought a dvd because of the reviews.And it will be the last. C'mon people! did we watch the same movie? All of the actors were unattractive, except for the undercover cop, the runaway looked 14 years old. watching him have sex with the store owner was brutal. And the editing was so choppy and noisy that i had a migrane 20 minutes into it.Forget about the fact that i spent 30 bucks on this. I am very bitter. How can anyone have the balls to sell this? let alone make this movie. i laughed outloud several times during this film, and not because it was funny but because i couldnt beleive the lack of talent involved with this. Really, it was that bad. sorry.....

What ever you do, don't buy this piece of CRAP! Don't rent it, don't even watch it. In fact it has been reported that the US government is now using this movie as a torture device in Guantanamo Bay

I've read several positive reviews about this film. Either the director keeps writing in giving himself 5 stars reviews, hoping to trick more innocent victims into buying this movie or there are a lot of people in the US smoking some serious crack.

I completely understand this is a low budget independent film; all gay movies are low budget independent films. However stop making excuses for movies like Murder in Portland. This movie was written by a chimp, and not one of those talented chimps. There seams to be 5 stories going on in the movie that have no connection to one another. At the end of the movie there were 5 separate unrelated endings. I didn't think this movie would ever end, I kept waiting then yet another end scène would appear. Why Murder in Portland? Why?!?

The production quality is poor at best. The movie is shaky, grainy, some times poorly lit, and sometimes too bright. I suspect it was shot on a camcorder. The actors (if you can call them actors), apparently took 1 or possibly 2 quarters of High School Drama. I've seen porn with better acting. Speaking of porn, where did they get the sound track for this film. It sounds like Ron Jeremy wrote it.

The only reason I finished watching this movie was to see the credits. In the middle of this movie is a wonderfully sensual strip tease preformed by a friend of mine. I couldn't believe David would have starred in this D-rate piece of trash. I mean come on gurl if you need the money I can let you borrow it. David makes regular appearances every weekend at Manray and R-Place, two local Seattle gay bars. I'm sure he would love to sign your copy of "Murder in Portland".

I don't know whether to do a Janice from Friends (O-H M-Y G-A-W-D) or a Miss Vida Boheme (Oh, what in gay Hell???). This has to be the absolute WORST piece of.....dreck is too good a word for what this is. The acting makes the worst of high school drama look like it belongs in the Globe Theatre. The sterotypes (does ANYONE have a friend as gay as Lester??) are not even ONE-dimentional. It's so bad I can't believe I'm even wasting precious time writing a review. DON'T EVEN SEE THIS MOVIE MUCH LESS BUY IT! (30 dollars?!?!?!? Amazon, you'd have to give ME 30 bucks to take a copy, and maybe not even then!).

It's enough to make a boi go straight.

(by the way, i gave it one star only because 0 was not an option)

by far the worst actors ever

The movie tried to tell us several different stories and ended up treating each one so superficially as to be meaningless. The acting ranged from over-the-top (the nelly queen Lester) to dull and listless (the business partner David), although there were certainly some decent performances too. The sound was horrible--the dialogue was so low you had to turn up the volume all the way but then the horrible music would come on and blast your eardrums. In some cases the wind noise on the microphone was so bad the dialogue was completely washed out. The movie tried to make up for the horrible plot(s) and production values by treating us to soft-porn eye candy, but that wasn't enough to redeem it.

Reviewer: Miles Fusco (see more about me) from NEW YORK, NY USA
All three of RAF's films take place in Olympia, WA. I watched "Murder" first and then, in a single afternoon, the first two as well. Their formula varies little, and includes: unusually cute young men (at least one of whom is troubled, new in town, and/or needs help); a sex scene or two (in the context of loving partners); a variety of characters of all ages and persuasions (their apparent use of street people is reminiscent of Gus Van Sant); a healthy dose of sex-ed and gay politics; good music. It works. The stories are interesting (even touching), the characters are winning (often beautiful), and the endings are positive.

"Murder" centers around a young and extraordinarily handsome 'straight' cop (not credited by role so I don't know his name, malheureusement), who is recruited to investigate the killing of two gay men. To say he learns MUCH about the gay community he infiltrates would be rather a zenith in understatement. Suffice it to say, he is dedicated to his work and goes 'under cover' in more ways than one to solve the crime.

All the RAF films have plenty to offer if you just look beyond their low-budget parameters and drink in the actors, characters, stories, and message. I can't wait for the next one, along with the pleasure of a sweet, funny, character-driven movie in this age of macho, jingoistic nonsense.