I followed the twitter feed on this movie well before it finally arrived on my doorstep to review. David W Ross, the star and force behind the movie, has an engaging twitter presence – playing on his good looks and obvious talent, and witty banter.
David is a former member of ’90’s boyband Bad Boys Inc and no stranger to the spotlight. Here, he takes on the role of a Brit abroad in New York, living an almost ideal life with his brother, American sister-in-law and a good job/loft/sex life – basically, the good life.
This is shattered, and I’m not going into details as its one of the films best and most unexpected moments. The film then goes on to investigate what happens when your life is torn apart, only to have it further complicated by eminent deportation. It reviews the bureaucracy surrounding green cards, sham marriages and real love. What happens when your best lesbian friend agrees to marry you so you can stay in the country and shoulder your supposed responsibilities, only to turn jealous when you find true love in the shape of a gorgeous spanish architect?
The film isn’t a gritty docu-drama, it’s far to good looking for that, it doesn’t do a warts an all expose of sham marriages for green cards, it’s too engaging for that – David has managed to do a balancing act of making a film that highlights issues but is still a bloody good story, and cinematic too.
The film captures New York and makes it almost another character, the people, the streets, the apartments… for those of us this side of the pond, it all feels familiar enough but we can empathise with the “Englishman in New York” syndrome.
