Jess and James

Jess & James is a captivating movie. It follows the line of a road trip film, divided into chapters, but it often goes off road into strange places–a herd of cows on a dirt road, for example, a cemetery, a large estate seemingly occupied only by one woman with a chapel, ripened citrus fruit, sheep, and a ghost child also part of it, the under pass of a bridge as a train crosses it above the two young men, and so on. In one town, the two young men meet a third. They become a trio of sorts and a part of their courtship, the courtship between Jess and James, but also a courtship among all three, Tomás included, is for two of them to dance on a narrow promontory as the third watches. Tomás is merely teaching each of the other two in turn how to dance while the other one looks on. But the moment, with its movement, its implications of both jealousy and adoration, takes on some of the rhythm of a rite. None of these moments is, in a way, driven by plot, though there is a narrative underlying the movie. The heart of it, in every sense, is the developing, deepening love between Jess and James. That is what the trip is about. But this is a film clearly influenced by the Latin American admiration, even love for magical realism, both in literature and film. That influence means that the movie is more given to what happens in and through its images, however strange or inexplicable, than in either character development or a driving plot. Its meanings are more lyrical than narratively logical as they might be in an artwork created from a stricter, more rational understanding of 'realism.' Magical realist film is hardly new. It has been an important part of Spanish and Latin America film making for decades. What is new is how Jess &James uses it for a gay love story. Or I should say it is almost new because Marco Berger has made use of it in several of his remarkable movies, too, though subtly, with less of an emphasis placed upon it. And there are others, many as good. Jess & James is wondrous, but in any work of magical realism, one ought not emphasize the magic at the expense of the realism. This film does not. Its feel for the real, what is true and necessary in all of its three main characters, keeps it grounded as well. It is in many ways a movie following the path of an archetypal road trip, one of the oldest narrative conventions in the world. Think Gilgamesh or Odysseus. But this is no epic. It is a gentler film, quiet, subtle, poignant, lovely, arresting. It is about love found and thereafter deepening in ways that are mysterious without being entirely inexplicable, in ways that are clear while also being, in a sense, miraculous and strange and imaginatively generous. It is a way of seeing love opening into its reality, a reality which includes love's lyric overflowing, its happiness.

This one really rings true. While you wonder what will become of the boys as they make their way through life, as a road movie, representing a brief portion of their lives, it works. And they are so polite and have good manners in dealing with all the folks they meet along their journey through the Pampas of Argentina. Having some time where you don't have to be somewhere or do something specific all the time, there's time to just explore where you and make the most of it. And that's what they do. Would be interesting to see if they make a sequel of the movie, this time 10 years later, where the guys have moved to Buenos Aires and have jobs and a life together. And I really liked the music in the film. All the discordant notes seemed just right for a road picture.

To be honest I dislike artsy movies--I view to be entertained not to challenge my intellectual insights of the hault culture of modern film making! In part this movie is confusing and unreal in scenes that make no sense (one viewer called it magical realism[whatever that is!] in the context of the overall narrative! (Some viewers were quick to point out these scenes as brilliant strokes of artistic development of a plot line!)! Meech! The acting was o.k. but I blew a fuse when this director virtually blanked out the sex scenes of the trio having a menage a trois. 90% of these sex scenes between a gay couple are almost censored in that they film them in dark rooms loaded with obstacles covering the bodies so all you get is some head movement and possibly a hand moving over a torso! If its a str8 couple, you even getting the guy 'muffing' her (you know what!) and humping her to a climax! Why? It seems like they are constrained by the sexual mores of straight society? All in all, it is a watchable movie.

This is a dreadful movie. It makes no sense. There is a road trip to nowhere. There is no character development. It is hard to tell the two lead actors apart. Other than some nice visuals of the Argentine countryside, there is nothing, absolutely nothing to recommend this movie. Save yourself the money and the time. Watch "Love, Simon" or "Alex Strangelove", instead!

Confusing story line. Two main actors look so much alike that their roles are difficult to follow. Mediocre cinematography -- erotic night scene too dark to see what is going on, with no compensatory sensory quality. Overall unsatisfying experience.

This movie is not for everyone since there is a lot of simulated sex.. HOWEVER it is a nice film with a great storyline. It's not for everyone but whom it is for will love it.

Very well filmed, but some of the scenes were a bit dark so it was hard to see. The music really sucked; it was way too loud and had no focus, but everything else was gorgeous. Well directed, and the acting was superb, all the actors were believable. I agree with James though, the old lady was creepy. A very good 4 stars for such an unknown.

Story was OK, but took too long to tell. I consider stopping several time but thought some good or meaningful would come along. It didn't.

Ho ricevuto questo DVD nei tempi indicati,ben impacchettato e corrispondente alla sua descrizione.

Nadie se acuerda del mercado hispanohablante, tan dificil es, no ya traducir, que no soy muy partidario, pero si de colocar subtitulos en español en la infinidad de peliculas de tematica gaylesbica que existen, no entiendo como no aprovechan un negocio seguro para este colectivo

"Jess & James" is a road trip movie through rural Argentina, with two gorgeous leads, and it's an absolute joy. The boys have various adventures along the way, encountering eccentrics and, yes, homophobia. And they also meet a third boy, Tomás, leading to a steamy (but not gratuitous) ménage à trois. The soundtrack is odd, like a 1970s "Doctor Who", but it's pleasing, not jarring or intrusive, and a welcome departure from the irritating Indie warbling often favoured by arthouse productions. Better yet, "Jess & James" doesn't end with one (or both) of boys murdered in an act of homophobic violence. Thank you for that, writer and director Santiago Giralt. And thank you for an absolute gem of a film, one I'll be sure to return to, often.

Mala calidad y mal volumen la tienes que escuchar a tope... Pensé que era diferente, no la puedo recomendar muy lenta y sobretodo la calidad. Me costó tres arranques verla. Demasiado cara.

Jess is described as ‘a Bohemian youth’ who is struggling, in Argentina, to live up to the expectations of his parents and wants to be who he really is – and that is gay. Then there is James who is a disgruntled waiter and is fed up living with his yoga loving and judgemental mother. The two guys hook up – and after some graphic, if simulated, rutting they decide to go on a road trip. This is the story of that trip and the good and bad times that ensue including meeting Tomas and what he brings to the relationship. Now this is a small budget affair – they even have a Citroen for the road trip and the music is a bit electro annoying in places and for me was the least enjoyable part of this film – others may disagree. Despite that this is still an accomplished effort. It is though fairly stylish and depictions of sex and the emotions that are evoked are all done extremely well. A relatively unknown cast did not show any limitations by their lack of experience and all manage to do convincing performances. It is also very beautifully shot with a keen eye for an arty angle and very good use of colour and texture to add to the mood and depth of the scenes. It is in Spanish with OK sub titles and runs to around 92 minutes. This is for those World Cinema fans who don’t mind a bit of sex but also want the story to be the main pull and enjoy a smattering of arthouse on the side.