With what seems like a minimum of effort, gay filmmaker Marco Calvani, writer/director of “High Tide” (Strand), manages to avoid many of the overused clichés and pitfalls that plague so many of the current wave of queer movies. That’s not to say that we don’t see some immediately recognizable characterizations, but even those are less annoying in Calvani’s skilled hand.
Lourenço (hot Marco Pigossi, who also happens to be in a relationship with Calvani), is an undocumented Brazilian gay man whose Provincetown summer is coming to an end on various levels, beginning with his visa. The season is also ending, as did his relationship with Joe, who is suddenly ghosting him.
Living in a coach house on the grounds of a larger house owned by widower Scott (Bill Irwin, playing a very convincing older gay man), who also happens to be friends with the elusive Joe, Lourenço works for Bob (Sean Mahon) cleaning vacation houses and doing other odd jobs for cash. Bob is clearly taking advantage of Lourenço’s undocumented status, something that becomes apparent when he meets Bob’s newly queer ex-wife Miriam (a wonderful Marisa Tomei), who disapproves of the way he’s treated.
Most days, Lourenço finds his bliss at Herring Cove Beach, swimming in the open water or sitting on the sand gazing at the waves. It’s there that he meets Maurice (James Bland), a gay, Black nurse from Flushing who is in Ptown for the week before relocating to Angola on a fellowship. There is electricity between them, and Maurice asks Lourenço out on a date. Back at the coach house, Lourenço is sexually cautious with Maurice after a potentially risky encounter he had a few days earlier.
Meanwhile, Scott wants to introduce Lourenço to his new neighbor Todd (Bryan Batt), a lawyer whom Scott thinks may be able to help him with his visa situation. Lourenço also hangs out with Maurice’s friends – Crystal (Mya Taylor, who you might recognize from Sean Baker’s “Tangerine”), Leslie (Todd Flaherty), and BJ (Karl Gregory) – serious partiers who approve of the hot Brazilian.
However, a dark undercurrent is lurking. Lourenço is shocked to discover that Scott is a racist after Maurice has an unpleasant encounter with him. Lawyer Todd is as sleazy as he is over-opinionated. An unexpected revelation about the missing Joe, something Scott had already been aware of, sends Lourenço into a tailspin, leading to a missed opportunity with Maurice. But don’t be discouraged, as “High Tide” is awash with surprises, including a necessary phone call between Lourenço and his religiously conservative mother in Brazil.
As I previously mentioned, “High Tide” is a different kind of gay movie. The Provincetown setting, which Calvani captures beautifully (and may make booking a place to stay there next summer nearly impossible) and authentically rendered characters (even the predatory older and drug-fueled younger ones) make this a movie not to be missed.
Rating: A-
