38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An unexpected pleasure, October 27, 2003
At first "The Sum of Us" seems like a familiar variation on the bossy parent-rebellious child theme, albeit a fairly entertaining one. The twist here is that the child (Russell Crowe) is a strapping gay man and the parent (Jack Thompson) is a widowed father entirely sympathetic to his son's lifestyle and need for romance. The early, farcical going has plenty of low-voltage laughs, as the well-meaning Thompson inadvertently breaks up a planned hot evening between Crowe and a new potential lover, and Thompson utilizes a dating service to meet an attractive divorcee. The two principals address the camera in knowing asides a la "Shirley Valentine." Halfway through, though, the story takes unexpected, darker turns and "The Sum of Us" attains a new level of profundity, becoming a moving meditation on the enduring strength of love, both familial and romantic, in the face of adversity. Crowe, caught here before the calcification of Hollywood superstardom, is loose, just buff enough, and charming; Thompson's turn as the father, by turns overbearing, loving and finally dependent on his son, is superb. Their fully-formed, utterly convincing relationship is what carries the picture. Highly recommended.
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41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Great Father's Day Movie, June 20, 2002
This review is from: The Sum of Us [VHS] (VHS Tape)
I saw this movie again around Father's Day this year. What a great movie to celebrate the love between fathers and sons. Would that more fathers had Harry's attitude towards their gay children and that children, gay or straight, were as caring as Jeff is for his father. It would please me no end to know that the father is this fine movie is based on someone the playwright David Stevens knew in his own life.
Jeff, played by Russell Crowe, lives with his widower father Harry Mitchell played by Jack Thompson. Much of the movie is about Harry's concerns that Jeff doesn't have a boyfriend. The repartee between father and son will make you laugh; the scenes of Harry's mother and her Lesbian lover shot in black and white will make you cry.
There is no much to like about this movie. Russell Crowe does a terrific job of acting in the intimate scenes between him and a man he brings home from a bar. The fine acting here should convince anyone-- should they need convincing-- of just how awful Will Smith's similar scenes were in "Six Degrees of Separation." No man as macho as Smith would dare to kiss another male on screen.
I read recently that Crowe years ago played Frankenfurter in an Australian stage version of "The Rocky Horrow Show." Now wouldn't that have been something to see!
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34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Warm father-son story, July 2, 2001
This review is from: The Sum of Us [VHS] (VHS Tape)
This movie is very hard to find in the United States, and I cannot understand why it has not been re-released. I would think that someone would want to cash in on Russell Crowe's post-Gladiator success by making this film available again. I mean, they re-released his atrocious "No Way Back", for crying out loud. But alas, it appears that no one has caught on to this little gem (or that a re-release is being deliberately suppressed--that's the conspiracy theorist in me coming out).
In any case, I was lucky enough to rent this video a couple of years ago, before it was stolen from my local video store and never replaced. What a delightful surprise it turned out to be. "Sum of Us" is, at it's heart, the story of a boy and his dad. Jeff (Crowe) is looking for love in Sydney's gay bar scene. He desperately wants someone with whom he can share his life, have a beer with, cuddle up to... "Is that too much to ask?" His father, Harry (Jack Thompson), doesn't think so. He desperately wants his son to be happy, and to find true love.
Much of the film is hilarious, due in large part to Harry's keen interest in his son's sex/love life, and his openness to discussing it in front of other people. Harry is too supportive, you see, to the point of embarrassing Jeff beyond all hope. The young man whom Jeff fancies is not accustomed to such candor. In fact, he is keeping his own homosexuality a secret from his judgemental father. In the meantime, Harry is looking for love himself, now that he's nearing retirement, which causes its own comedy and drama.
In "Sum of Us", Crowe and Thompson break the fourth wall, and speak directly to the audience. This actually works for this film--it does not distract the viewer or take them out of the story. In fact, I felt the same little thrill one does when hearing a good piece of gossip. These little asides to the audience also contribute greatly to the humor. But it's not all fun and games. Jeff is a very sensitive young man, who's been deeply hurt by lovers in the past. Jeff wears his heart on his sleeve, and all of his insecurity, excitement, disappointment, longing, and adoration play across Crowe's face in a heartbreaking, uninhibited performance.
Thompson plays off Crowe perfectly, and vice versa. Their relationship is completely believable--you would think that they really were father and son. Getting on each other's nerves, pushing each other's buttons, knowing each other's weaknesses. This is a relationship rarely seen on screen--a close, loving, warm relationship between a parent and child. Dysfunctional family relationships are more volatile, dynamic, and therefore more dramatic in the minds of most screenwriters--normal people are boring. Jeff and Harry are anything but boring, and they take the viewer right along with them. You'll find yourself caring deeply about both Harry and Jeff, hoping, hoping, hoping that everything will work out for each of them in the end. This is a very engaging story, due in large part to the performances of Crowe and Thompson, and the chemistry between the two.
Don't miss it. I just purchased a used copy from, and it was worth it. This is a movie that I'm sure I'll watch over and over again, the kind of movie you dust off once a year and discover something new about it each time.
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