Erasmus and Paul have a rather extravagant lifestyle but argue and fight constantly. Everything is about to be flipped upside down when a ten-year old boy turns up at their door and just happens to be Erasmus' grandson.
Baring in mind he had no idea about a grandson as never really spoke to his son Beau. The pair must look after the boy though as his father had been sent to prison. This leads to some amusing moments especially when the boy won't even tell them his name. Mainly because he is embarrassed about being called Angel and would rather be known as Bill. They struggle to get him to eat anything but Taco Bell and having him around means they must make some changes.
I thought the film was a pleasant surprise as prior to watching it I had never even heard of it before. But anything with Paul Rudd and Steve Coogan together as a gay couple has my attention. I am therefore pleased I gave this one a shot. It was more than worth it. Mixing the funny and amusing moments very well with a hard-hitting storyline. The thing is though Bill manages to teach them so much in such a short space of time and they cannot cope when his father is released from prison.
Something I thought the film did very well was highlight how important it is for a child to feel safe. Even though Paul and Erasmus had plenty of problems they still made him feel a lot safer than his parents ever did. His mother dying of a drug overdose when he was younger and he witnessed the whole thing. So he had a tough start in life and was actually scared he would be taken away from his now new home.
Performance wise Coogan and Rudd really did work so well together and very believable as the gay couple. Conforming to some stereotypes but then totally getting rid of some as well. That was probably the best balance for this type of film. I thought Coogan took the camp nature of his character to a great level and was balanced out with Rudd and the tougher nature of his character. Jack Gore put in an impressive performance as Bill considering he had to remain straight-faced for majority of the film and that must have been tough!
I am classing this one as quite a hidden gem considering I had never heard of it prior to watching and was left pleasantly surprised with everything about the film. So if you like a good storyline mixed in with some humour then this is certainly the film for you. Steve Coogan is an actor who has really grown on me in recent years and I have been very impressed with his last few films (that is forgetting that Holmes & Watson exists). Obviously Paul Rudd has done so much since just being Mike in Friends so I always enjoy his films too! If you have seen this one, let me know your thoughts!
