Handsome Harry is a feature-length narrative that recently played at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival. I enjoyed the film and would like to share my full thoughts.

(Stay tuned for my interview with Jamey Sheridan)

The film starts out somewhat lighthearted but the tone gradually changes. Do not let the title fool you. Harry (Jamey Sheridan) gets a call from his best friend from the Navy, Tom Kelly (Steve Buscemi) who is dying on the weekend of Harry’s birthday. This forces Harry’s son, who came to surprise Harry to go back home while Harry visits Kelly. When Harry visits, Kelly tells him that he needs forgiveness for what the two and 3 other Navy buddies did in the past (almost killed their Navy mate, Kagain).

Shortly after this, Kelly passes away and Harry cannot bring himself to tell Kelly’s wife what they did in the Navy. Harry then revisits his past…his Navy buddies to share the news of Kelly’s death. First, he visits Peter. It doesn’t take long for Peter’s unhappy wife to come onto Harry when Peter slips out of the house for a moment. Harry doesn’t fall for it then but he does after a dinner table argument. Next, Harry visits William who has become a Professor trying to deny his past. In their 20 minute reunion, we find out from William what he remembers of that disturbing night when they all almost killed Kagan. I found it very funny when William invited Harry to his home and Harry said, no, 20 minutes was enough. He didn’t want déjà vu.

Next, Harry visits the last Navy buddy that helped beat up Kagan. After that visit, a very surprising flashback is seen that brings everything that happened up to that point come together and it says a lot about Harry. The flashback made me think, no wonder Harry and his wife got a divorce. Other than whatever marital issues the two had, did his wife see what was in him before he could come to terms with his sexuality? Did he ever come to terms? Did Harry think not only about the betrayal of a himself, his true colors but of a friend that night or was he just worried about the pain he caused to another human being? In the end, I just do not believe that Harry still knows what kind of relationship he wants.

I also do not believe that he ever cared for his Navy buddies the same way again after that night because his visits to the men felt so cold, in the sense that, had Kelly not died then there would be no story. There would have been no reason for Harry to dig up his past and try to find a way to come to terms with the past. Anyway, Harry’s last visit is to see Kagan although he is not home, so Harry leaves a note.

Back home, Harry throws away his Navy memories, and tries to move on with the waitress that he had chemistry with in the very beginning of the film. Unfortunately, that does not work out but Kagan gets Harry’s note and meets up with Harry. This leaves the last 15 minutes of the film in the battle of forgiveness. Throughout the film, there are few scenes/flashbacks of young Harry and his young Navy buddies, which I found very helpful to the story. Each flashback showed a little bit more, each had meaning. Though I enjoyed the flashbacks, which really helped move the story along, and the story moved along, something about the whole film itself seemed slow and long. Although I did enjoy the film and hope that anyone who has seen it has enjoyed it, taken something out of it.

Credits:
In Memory of Lewis Cole May
Primary Cast: Jamey Sheridan, Steve Buscemi, Mariann Mayberry, Aidan Quinn, John Savage, Campbell Scott, Titus Welliver, Karen Young
Director: Bette Gordon
Screenwriter: Nicholas T. Proferes
Producer: Jamin O’Brien, Marilyn Haft, Eric Goldman, Jamey Sheridan
Director of Photography: Nigel Bluck
Executive Producers: Fred Berner, Elizabeth Kling
Editor: Keiko Deguchi
Composer: Anton Sanko
Sound Mixer: Skip Lievsay