DVD Dish: The Groovy Gay World of 'Manhattanites'

Well, I hope there is a sequel in the works or I'll be very disappointed. Last night I watched Manhattanites, a film adapted from Roger Newcomb's popular online radio soap opera, Scripts & Scruples. It's a sudsy saga of love triangles, dramatic confrontations, shirtless hunks, and romantic couplings (both gay and straight)--there's something for everyone to enjoy!

I won't ruin any of the delicious plot twists and turns, but here's a rundown of the major storylines and characters:

Marilyn Marsden is an entertainment lawyer who discovers at the beginning of the movie that her fiance, Blake Whitney, is having a secret affair with another man, the handsome Matt Malone. Of course, this revelation devastates poor Marilyn, while Blake is very uncomfortable being in a gay relationship--especially since he's the editor of Family Focus, a conservative magazine.

Meanwhile, Marilyn's sister, Gretchen, dreams of becoming a famous news reporter while working at Wilson's Diner as a waitress. She serves many customers, including the gorgeous and egotistical Kyle Carpenter, who is living the life she wants as the top reporter for Channel 6 News.

And then there's Matt's brother, Todd Malone, who is engaged to marry the sweet Hannah Richards, but while she's planning their perfect wedding, he meets someone new and, of course, life gets kind of complicated.

Usually with a soap opera, it takes awhile to get to know all the characters and their relationships to one another, but screenwriters Newcomb and Gregori J. Martin (who also co-directs with actor Darnell Williams--All My Children's Jesse Hubbard) do a great job of connecting all the dots for us in quick fashion. And an excellent ensemble of actors are featured in the film, including the fabulous Ilene Kristen, whom most people should remember from her devious days as the delightful Delia on Ryan's Hope and who now plays Roxy on One Life to Live. She delivers yet another superb performance as Marilyn Marsden, making us care and root for the betrayed lady. I also enjoyed All My Children's Aiden Turner, who shows us another side to the cocky Kyle later in the film. I only wish he'd shown us a bit more skin, but don't worry, Manhattanites doesn't skimp on the beefcake as both Forbes March (One Life to Live's Nash) as Matt and Matt Martini as Todd remove their shirts like good soap opera studs are meant to. And even better, the two guys can act, which is not always the case on a daytime soap.

Another soap star, David Fumero (One Life to Live's Christian), plays Juan, the diner's cook, but I was disappointed that his role wasn't larger--and that he kept his clothes on in the kitchen. I was hoping to see his character make out with a waitress in the walk-in freezer as was mentioned in one scene--but maybe in the sequel. Jill Larson (All My Children's Opal) also makes a cameo appearance as a crazy customer, while Alex McCord, one of The Real Housewives of New York City, has a small but amusing role as Kyle's assistant. And co-director/writer Gregori J. Martin wins the triple crown as he even shows us his impressive acting chops as Charlie, Gretchen's boyfriend and Blake's brother.

Manhattanites might be a low-budget film, but it certainly delivers high drama. Although I was surprised by the cliffhanger at the end, any drama worth its weight in soap has to have such a hair-raising finale. My only complaint is that the movie isn't 10 or 15 minutes longer, since its 100-minute running time flies by far too fast. So I'll repeat again that I'm hoping there's a sequel in the near future that will give a hunky new love interest to Kristen's Marilyn and that will allow Turner's Kyle a chance to shine without his shirt. That's not too much to ask for, is it? So if you're a soap opera fan, I highly recommend that you check out Manhattanites. To purchase the DVD, go to the film's website, manhattanitesthemovie.com.