A gay journalist has attempted to explain why Billy Eichner’s comedy Bros underperformed at the box office.
As the first gay romantic comedy produced by a major Hollywood studio, Isaac Grafstein said in Common Sense that the film is a sanctimonious, self-indulgent garbage heap.
The two long hours are filled with political finger-wagging, laments about erasure, and Bobby’s (Eichner’s character) performative apologies for being a “cis white male.”
Earlier last month, Eichner effectively attributed his film’s failure on intolerance.
Billy Eichner, 44, expressed his satisfaction with how his film Bros played out and his disappointment with its box office performance earlier this month.
Luke Macfarlane, left, and Billy Eichner in a scene from their new film ‘Bros’
Despite premiering in more than 3,000 cinemas, being aggressively promoted by Universal Pictures, and costing $22 million to make, the film grossed less than $5 million on its opening weekend in North American theaters and has grossed $10.8 million to date.
Isaac Grafstein, a gay journalist, described Bros as “a pompous, self-indulgent garbage fire.”
“Unfortunately, this is the world in which we live.” Even with rave reviews, straight folks, especially in certain sections of the country, simply did not show up for Bros,’ tweeted Eichner earlier this month.
“That is unfortunate, but it is what it is.”
The film follows Bobby, a successful New York-based podcaster who says he is comfortable being single even as his friends begin relationships, until his life is altered by a meeting with a similarly commitment-averse attorney.
Movie is graded R for’restricted’ because it contains multiple sex scenes, including one in which four guys participate in group sex, and was filmed entirely with openly LGBTQ performers.
The film, starring and co-written by Eichner, is the first LGBTQ romantic comedy to have a wide release from a major studio.
At the film’s world debut at the Toronto International Picture Festival last month, Eichner stated that it was “absurd and irritating” that a major Hollywood studio had waited so long to produce a film like “Bros.”
There should be an abundance of these films by now. Nonetheless, I am quite appreciative that Universal finally decided it was time,’ he said.
Nicholas Stoller, the filmmaker of ‘Bros,’ stated that he hoped the picture would perform well at the box office to prove to studios that there is a large audience for this type of story, and not only an LGBTQ audience, but also a heterosexual audience.
This now appears less likely, although box office analyst David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research remarked that the film had a “good opening by mainstream romantic comedy standards,” as the once-wildly popular genre has been “under pressure for some years.”
Because there have been so few LGBT film narratives, there are no established guidelines. Those handful that came previously were often humorous gay jokes,’ he wrote.
Luke Macfarlane, on the left, and Billy Eichner are featured in a scene from ‘Bros,’ a film about two men with commitment issues who attempt to have a relationship.
Grafstein believes, however, that Bros is not unique and that there have been numerous other gay romance-themed narratives in contemporary popular culture.
Bros is certainly not “revolutionary.” Jack’s statement to Ennis in Brokeback Mountain, “I wish I knew how to quit you,” was revolutionary. Cam and Mitchell were the most beloved characters on Modern Family.
The feel-good romance film Love, Simon encourages homosexual adolescents to come out of the closet.
Orange Is the New Black focuses on a group of diverse, interracial lesbian inmates.
And what do you know? Countless straight deplorables across the nation devoured it.
All of these tales indirectly make the case for genuine inclusivity by depicting characters that are ordinary, tragic, humorous, and complicated individuals.
Grafstein says, “gay entertainment should not rely on trite identity-obsession, old grudges, or performative liberalism.”
“When I go to the movies, including gay romance films, I want irreverence, narrative twists, provocations, and an escape from politics and virtue signaling. And when it’s a comedy, I want it to be humorous,’ he adds.
The romantic comedy stars, from left, Eichner and Luke Macfarlane
Eichner stated in a series of tweets earlier this month that he had attended a showing of ‘Bros’ in liberal Los Angeles where the audience response was’magical,’ but that an unnamed theater chain had threatened not to show the film’s trailer ‘because to the gay material.’
“Everyone who is NOT homophobic should go see BROS tonight!” You’ll have a great time!’ he added.
And it is remarkable and impactful to experience this particular tale on the big screen, especially for LGBT individuals who may not have this opportunity frequently.
Grafstein disagreed with Eichner’s word selection as well.
“Racism is not responsible for the failure of Bros. In reality, the majority of Americans do not care who you sleep with (or marry!) and have been exposed to nuanced, three-dimensional LGBT characters for years, from Milk to Moonlight.
Eichner expressed satisfaction with the final version of the film.
According to him, the film did not garner sufficient support from “straight people,” particularly in some regions of the country.
He suggested that moviegoers give the picture a chance while it is still in theaters.