Endgame (2001)

User Rating:

5.4/10   

Director:

Gary Wicks

Writer:

Gary Wicks (writer)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Plot:

Sex is currency. It commands power and can instill fear. Tom, a young man with a troubled past finds...

Plot Keywords:

Gay Interest | Male Prostitute | Hustler | Older Man Younger Man Relationship | Torture

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Daniel Newman	...	Tom
Corey Johnson	...	Max Bergman
Toni Barry	...	Nikke Bergman
Mark McGann	...	Norris
John Benfield	...	Dunston
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Adam Allfrey	...	Mark (barman)
Darren Bancroft	...	Det. Const. Worth
Perry Blanks	...	Det. Const. Clarke
Alain Bourgoin	...	French man
Julius D'Silva	...	Andy
Russell Floyd	...	Merchant
Rachel Izen	...	Tom's stepmother
Jeremy Legat	...	Jonathan Norris
Ben Macleod	...	Young Tom
Phillip Manikum	...	Farmer
Murray McArthur	...	Det. Const. Kenny
Kate McKenzie	...	Kathy Norris
John Peters	...	Tom's stepfather
Andy Smart	...	Heavy at the bar
Sam Smart	...	Det. Const. Wilson

Runtime:

109 min | USA:113 min (Palm Springs International Film Festival)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:MA (cable rating)

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company:

Various Films

Movie Connections:

Version of Endgame (2000) (TV)

Dreadful & Offensive

I recently saw End Game at the London Lesbian & Gay Film Festival. From the synopsis i was duped into thinking this would be a psycho sexual drama/thriller exploring the brutal relationship between a gangster and his rent boy lover.

What we actually have is a hammy, badly written, underdeveloped film which neither thrills, excites or convinces on any level. Which is a shame as the first ten to fifteen minutes of the film director/screenwriter Gary Wicks shows some signs of directorial flair. Unfortunately when he starts putting dialogue in his actors mouths and drenches the story in jaw dropping implausibility this soon becomes a painful experience.

Tom (Danny Newman) is a pouty rent boy living in stunning flat somewhere in West London which is financed by his gangster lover/pimp Norris (Mark McGann). Tom appears to do little else then sit around the flat chain smoking and looking moodily into space waiting for Norris to pop round, whiff a line of coke and start beating ten bells out of him.

Things get complicated, however, when Tom meets his neighbours American couple Max and Nikke Bergman(Corey Johnson & Toni Barry). For some inexplicable reason Max takes a shine to Tom and invites him round for dinner. Unfortunately for Tom his fist happy fella happens to pop round while he's out and menacingly waits for his return. Clearly we have some idea where this is heading....Tom accidentally kills Norris and turns to his new best buddies for help. Conveniently they have a cottage out in the middle of nowhere in Wales where they can all flee. This turns out, luckily, to be quite handy as corrupt policeman Dunston (John Benfield) is hunting Tom for some incriminating video tapes.

The eventual outcome of this scenario is so far fetched one can't help wonder what exactly Wicks was going for. By making his lead quite obviously queer it would have made much more sense for his character to form a relationship with Max however instead love blossoms between the gay boy and the American wife. This reeks of a cop out, as if Wicks knows there is no way a wider audience would stand for the idea of a straight man and a gay boy having a relationship that's based on anything other than money or violence.

In a failed attempt to add gravitas to Tom's plight we learn, from soft focused flashbacks, that all he really needs is some proper TLC which he clearly is unable to get from another man. By taking this stance Wicks renders his film completely absurd and manages to offend and alienate his target gay audience.

Performance wise there is no denying that the camera loves Danny Newman (especially his naked torso) however his acting consists of two styles.....moody and pouty...his final emotive speech is quite unintentionally mirth inducing.

Johnson is OK as Max and is perhaps the most likeable amongst a gang of completely unsympathetic characters while Barry is bland at best.

Production values are quite high on this film so at least everything looks nice and there are one or two touches of humour that work but that really is all the film has going for it. Thrown in some unnecessarily gratuitous violence and a denouement which is sign posted before the half way mark this really is a waste of time for all concerned. A massively wasted opportunity.

*