Partners

Actually, I was not the least bit suprised to find no messages on this board as I know very few people who saw this lame comedy about a police officer (Ryan O'Neal) who is assigned to go undercover as a homosexual to solve a series of murders and is assigned a new partner (John Hurt) who really is homosexual and in the process supposedly learns a lot about manhood, homophobia, and sexuality in general. The film is to be admired for trying to tread new ground in hat was still a pretty taboo topic for movies at the time, but it sacrifices real lessons for cheap comedy and perpetuates a lot of unfunny gay stereotypes. I saw this film in the theaters during its original release and being gay, I felt it was my duty to go see it, not to mention the fact that I have always had the hots for Ryan O'Neal. But I found this film to be a big disappointment on almost every level...juvenile script, stilted direction, and wooden performances, even the usually reliable John Hurt just looked uncomfortable here. This comedic variation on CRUISING laid an egg at the box office and for good reason.