''Finding Mr. Wright'' is a 2011 American

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a sub-genre of comedy and Romance novel, romance fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount all obstacles. Ro ...

film directed by

Nancy Criss Nancy Criss is an American producer, awards director and actress. She host and produces the entertainment news magazine show ''On the Road Weekly'' on ION television. By the age of 13, Criss began her career in show business, with a role in the ...

. It was produced by Matthew Montgomery and Nancy Criss, and written by

Jake Helgren Jake Helgren (born November 28, 1981, in Elgin, Texas) is an American film producer, director and screenwriter. Helgren studied creative writing at St. Edward's University in Austin, Texas. Helgren has thrice been nominated for GLAAD Media Awa ...

. The film stars Matthew Montgomery,

Rebekah Kochan Rebekah Kochan is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Tiffani von der Sloot in the '' Eating Out'' franchise. Biography Kochan has been acting since she was nine years old. Her first role was in a Las Vegas production of '' ...

, David Moretti,

Jason Stuart Jason Stuart (born January 13, 1969), also known by his real name Stuart Ted Greif, is an American actor and comedian. He first won notice on ''Star Search'', where he lost to Martin Lawrence. He came out publicly in 1993 on the syndicated daytim ...

, Scotch Ellis Loring, Rasool J'Han and Evan Miller. The film had its premiere at the

Philadelphia QFest Philadelphia QFest was founded in Philadelphia as the Philadelphia Gay and Lesbian Film Festival by TLA Entertainment Group in 1996. It was given its current name, QFest, in 2009. One of the festival's founders and current Artistic Director, Raymon ...

on July 13, 2011. It then moved on for a screening at

FilmOut San Diego FilmOut San Diego, also known as the San Diego LGBTQ Film Festival, is an annual film festival in San Diego, California. History Michael McQuiggan has been the festival programmer since 2003 and the venue locations include the North Park Theat ...

on August 20, 2011.

Plot

Clark Townsend is single and gay, along with being a successful Hollywood talent manager. His client, and best friend Eddy Malone, is a popular TV actress who is a booze loving party girl. Her constant partying is making Clark and his cross dressing secretary Goldie, increasingly high strung. Eddy's publicist TJ is fed up with the constant drama as well. So TJ invites Pearce Wright, a life coach and counselor, who also happens to be gay, to a party to try and straighten Eddy out. After witnessing her antics at the party, Pearce suggests a weekend wilderness therapy retreat to bring her back down to earth. Pearce also has a ulterior motive for the retreat, because after meeting Clark at the party, he is attracted to Clark and wants to see if there is a possible relationship to be developed. The whole crew, and a few tag-alongs all decide to go, and when they arrive, Pearce begins the task of leading this unusual and diverse group of characters to a new outlook on life. In the end, Clark and Pearce finally get together and begin a relationship.

Cast

* Matthew Montgomery as Clark Townsend *

as Eddy Malone * David Moretti as Pearce Wright *

as Phillip * Scotch Ellis Loring as Geoffrey * Edward Gusts as Cooper * Rasool J'Han as TJ * Keye Chen as Goldie * Evan Miller as Gage * Cameron Cash as Sam * Ryan Anthony as Steve

Production notes and release

Both Montgomery and Driss served as executive producers on the film, and both of their production companies, Montgomerys' Proteus Pictures, and Driss' NANDAR Entertainment were in charge of production for the project. The movie was filmed on location in California, with select filming at

Arrowbear Lake Arrowbear Lake is an unincorporated community in San Bernardino County, California, United States. Its altitude is in the San Bernardino Mountains. It is located east of Running Springs along Highway 18 in the San Bernardino National Forest ...

and

Castaic Lake State Recreation Area Castaic Lake (Chumash: ''Kaštiq'') is a reservoir formed by Castaic Dam on Castaic Creek, in the Sierra Pelona Mountains of northwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States, near the town of Castaic. The California Office of Environm ...

. The film premiered at the

on July 13, 2011, and was then screened at the FilmOut San Diego LGBT Film Festival on August 20, 2011. It also had a screening at Central Florida Film Festival on September 2, 2011. The movie was released to DVD in 2012.

Critical reception

''Out in Jersey'' gave it a positive review saying "the characters are real, in depth and totally believable and inevitably remind us of people we know in our own lives. This is a charming movie and a lot of fun". ''This Week in Texas'' was also pleased with the film, stating the wilderness setting was "beautiful" and had an "attractive cast and constant awkwardness", which made the film an "enjoyable retreat for its viewers". David Hall of ''Gay Celluloid'' was generally satisfied stating, "not all of the thick and fast jokes hit the mark, but there's equally no denying the overwhelming fun of the piece". He said the actors performances were "somewhat uneven at times", but overall, "Criss undeniably knows her market and her feel good approach shows in this cinematic medley of one-liner styled laughs and emotional observations on life and love". ''Edge Media'' said that although the title of the film was lame, this "gay indie is a cut above the standard fare, with decent writing, good direction, and even some talented acting". They also pointed out that director Criss did a good job with limited resources, saying "with her at the helm it's become all it can be". ''Reviews by Amos'' was impressed with Criss' directing, saying she "handles the whole thing with great skill and directed the entire film beautifully". He also praised the talented acting, the cinematography, and a "story that captures the viewer from the first frame". The Dutch LGBT ''Cinemagazine'' said some of the scenes were bland, but actors Montgomery and Moretti were "convincing and serious in their roles". They noted that technical details, like the sound and picture quality were "somewhat disappointing", but they recommended the film because "the passion with which this film was made does come across".

References

External links

* *
Finding Mr. Wright
' at

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*
Finding Mr. Wright
' at

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