“I Do,” a dramatic comedy by filmmaker Glenn Gaylord (“Eating Out 3”) explores the machinations of a gay British immigrant’s struggle to stay in the U. S. in the absence of marriage equality. Jack (David W. Ross), who has lived in New York City for years on an artists’ visa, suddenly finds his stay in The United States has come to an abrupt end. Upon advice that he should get married if he wants to continue to live States-side, Jack convinces his American lesbian best friend Ali (Jamie Lynn-Sigler, “The Sopranos”) to marry him. The arrangement goes smoothly until Jack falls for a wealthy Spanish architect ready to nest and build a family of his own. Having met the perfect guy, Jack must decide whether remaining in the States is a good idea after all.
“I Do” mines the legal, social-economic and emotional complications which immigration issues introduce into the LGBT community. Loving LGBT couples are often torn apart by expired visas while heterosexual couples may simply marry to overcome such hurdles. The tragic effects of marriage inequality, as “I Do” shows, often extends to close friends and the community at large. Ali, in marrying and moving in with Jack, risks incarceration for going along with the sham marriage. She also develops a co-dependency with Jack that borders on romantic feelings.
The film, which is told from Jack’s point of view, does not fully develop Ali as a lesbian character. Nor does it fully address the turmoil Jack causes Ali. He barely notices her suffering and does not help her rehabilitate herself. This oversight in the story – despite the loving face Jacks shows both his new Spanish lover and his deceased brother’s wife and child – makes Jack’s character unsympathetic in the end.
“I Do” garners sympathy for the plight of LGBT couples. But it also highlights an issue that requires further exploration, namely the tension between lesbians and gays or women and men, as each group struggles to define and assert their own social and sexual roles as they mix with each other within the LGBT community.
“I Do” screened at Outfest 2012.
“I Do”
US, 91 min, Color, 2012
Director: Glenn Gaylord
Writer: David W. Ross
Producer: Stephen Israel
Cast: David W. Ross, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Alicia Witt, Mickey Cottrell, Pollyanna McIntosh