Too much of everything

Pretty Good

It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

I've always been fascinated by films dealing with the afterlife, ranging from "A Matter of life and Death" to "City of Angels". Like those, romance has a central part to play here. Mark is a hopeless romantic, HIV positive & is obsessed with death and remembrance. He is indulgent of his partner, Simon's, desire to sleep with other men. Simon has a troubled background and has locked away his emotions. However when Mark dies, failing to reach heaven, he haunts Simon in a possessive manner. This leads to comical and embarrassing situations. More humour is provided by their drunken neighbour and her inept, politically correct, fiancée. It also forces both lovers to re-evaluate their relationship, with highly emotional scenes. (So avoid if you're not into sentiment.) I loved the ending, which made me cry. Both actors are fantastic. Fans of these themes will not be disappointed.

I love watching disconnected movies with parts of hilarity intersperced. However, this movie was so serious and about a guy dying from AIDS and then the hilarious things that occur as he comes back from the dead to help his lover grow up. The supporting story line was much better than the cable guy/drag queen story line. Maybe that's why I continued to watch this. I just could not get the seriousness/comedy going between the two main characters. Maybe because I know people who have AIDS and those who have died. The ending was purely GHOST and was a good ending but still, I was more interested in the relationship between the neighbor and her beau.

The box for "To Die For" suckered me in -- a shirtless hunky guy and the promise of some laughs and sex. There was plenty of Thomas Arklie (Simon), who's easy on the eyes, but no laughs and little sexiness.The couple, Mark and Simon, have allegedly been together several years, but neither character is interesting enough to care about, so it's hard to imagine that they care about each other. The fault seems to lie in the script, not the performances; both actors do the best they can with what they're given. The ending is sappy and unaffecting (well, not totally unaffecting; I felt relief that it was over). If you're looking for a movie about gay relationships and AIDS that's funny, "Parting Glances" is far better.

Mark, a drag performer and Simon, a cable TV installer, live together but have an open relationship. Mark is dying of AIDS and Simon is sleeping around. Simon has always been the undemonstrative type ever since a coming out fight with his father years ago. While Mark tolerated Simon's sleeping around while he was alive, he won't have it now that he's dead. Simon thinks he's ready to move on, but how can he with Mark interfering? This film has an interesting premise and does touch upon some valid points but it is a bit lightweight and we don't care for the couple or their relationship as much as we should if this film is really to work. If films were desserts this would be Jell-O, its colorful and not repulsive to the taste but it certainly leaves room for more. If you're in the mood for something more substantial, I suggest you try something else.