"Three to Tango" - A Review by 'Light House Shines'

If you're like me, you may have noticed a recent rash of gay themed, or gay friendly films. What with films like My Best Friend's Wedding, The Birdcage, the excellent Gods and Monsters and a great deal many others, successfully tapping into what has for the most part has been a largely untapped market as it were. As I guess research studies have shown that a great deal of homosexuals go to the movies, well duh, I could have told you that?! Anyway the latest studio to try and cash in on this latest of trends is Warner Brothers with their film, Three To Tango. A romantic comedy about mistaken sexual identity, staring Neve Campbell (yummy as always), Matthew Perry, Oliver Platt and Dylan McDermott from David E. Kelly's The Practice (I am a huge Alley McBeal fan myself)

As Matthew Perry plays Oscar Novac, the straight partner in a (really, really small) two man architectural firm. While Oliver Platt plays Peter Steinberg, his openly, though no one seems to know it, gay business partner. A relationship that works out fine for the both of them, as they have been long time friends as well as business associates for some time now and have never had a problem. Until now that is, as things get slightly confused when they vie for the chance to get the design job of their professional lives. When their firm goes up against a hated rival for a historical restoration project that would literally make or break their careers, by redesigning a monumental building owed by Charles Newman (Dylan McDermott), financial magnate and would be Donald Trump. Who only entertains hiring them both because he believes Perry's character is gay, and wants to hire him to spy on his mistress and industrial artist Amy Post ( nicely played by Neve Campbell). For Charles is a very, very paranoid and distrusting man, as he believes that everyone is after his precious little Amy.

Which is partially true, as Perry's character almost instantly falls in love with her at first sight (naturally). Something all his friends and business partner warned him would happen (As his character apparently has a habit of falling head over heals for all the wrong women, though in this ase Amy Post/Neve Campbell just happens to be the right woman for once). Still before the inevitable happy outcome can rear it's stereotypical happy go lucky head, there is the usual though still funny series of comical mishaps and misunderstandings. As more and more people wrongly assume that Oscar Novac is gay.

(Minor Spoilers Begin) Especially after he is mistakenly identified as gay on the front page of the New York time, much to the shock and dismay of his friends and family. As his father has totally loses it, while his three closest football watching slacker friends are all suddenly very afraid of him ( They all think he wants to have sex with them). Which made for some extremely funny scenes, especially since one of the friends is that short weird spaztic guy who use to do the old Mtv promo spots (The ones about the crazy guy wanting so much starch in his collar that it would make his neck itch and give him a boily rash, you will know him when you see the film). An increasingly bizarre situation that gets even more surreal as Perry's character is constantly hit upon by various gay men who read about him in the paper or heard he was chosen by the gay and lesbian urban professional association to be the gay business man of the year. A situation that makes for a lot of pretty funny scenes, especially since Perry's character is expected to give a televised speech about being a gay business man, when in fact he is not. Alas he cannot say that for fear of losing his companies big design job, or the love and respect of Amy. Who in still under the impression that he is indeed gay, which is the only reason why Charles Newman continues to let them hang out in the first place.(Minor Spoilers End)

Now I really, really liked this film, but if I had to complain about anything in this film , besides the fact that there weren't any really big, big laughs like the kind in There's Something About Mary (just a lot of smaller though much ore consistent laughs). Is the fact that Matthew Perry is sadly still playing his Chandler Bing character from Friends (which is something he has to work on if he wants a continued career in films). Only now he's just doing it on the big screen, something he has done in pretty much all of his films made after getting his Friends gig. As his character Chandler on TV is often mistakenly thought to be gay by his friends and coworkers, a longtime running joke on the show ( which is still funny). So playing Oscar Novac wasn't much of a stretch for him, though none of this really truly bothered me. As I was too busy watching what was going on on the screen. Especially between Perry and Neve Campbell, as they really did have great chemistry together ( Which surprised me a little). So as such you tend to forgive the film for it's few and miniscule failings, such as they were. Especially since the film did a good job of making fun of a lot of stereotypes one may have about homosexuality or gay people in general, as this film was a prime example of one of those "The shoe's on the other foot," kind of scenarios. For Oscar Novac got a chance to see what it must feel or be like to be a gay man or gay professional in the 90's and subsequently you assume that he is a better man for the experience. Or at least a better friend to Oliver Platt's gay character, as was illustrated in a rather nice scene betweem the two of them half way through the film (Platt did a wonderful job in the film, as his caharcter was very, very funny. Look for the Bitch slap comment scene). Hence any shortcomings the film may have really didn't interfere with the quality or the enjoyment of the film overall, especially since everyone in the theatre was laughing the entire time. just as I was.