[Review] Groupers Is Bondaged Dark Comedy

Is homosexuality a choice? Of course not. It’s a notion passed around as an excuse by small-minded people to bully others. Writer/director Anderson Cowan made Groupers to put the theory to the test in a story as absurd as the question itself.

Psych student Meg (Nicole Dambro of Pitchfork) kidnaps the two jocks who bully her gay brother. She ties them up in an empty swimming pool connected by their dicks through a pair of Chinese finger traps (dick traps, really).

That’s right, for the majority of the film, two homophobic friends are connected at their dicks. That should be the litmus test for whether or not you’re interested in seeing this.

Meg records the whole thing as a study because Brad (Peter Mayer-Klepchick) and Dylan (Cameron Duckett) believe homosexuality is a choice, which somehow gives them the right to bully “fancy pants.” If it is a choice, she theorizes they can choose to achieve simultaneous erections while staring into each other’s faces, thus freeing themselves. Meg, and the audience, know it’s not a choice and so she’s proving the opposite in grand fashion.

Meg is a badass with a dry wit, but Dylan is the break-out for me, in part to Cameron Duckett’s performance. On the page, he shouldn’t be so endearing, but his dimwitted, puppy-dog like portrayal feels genuine.

While the plot focuses on the boys’ poolside dick predicament, Cowan complicates the narrative by adding layer after layer of new characters in reverse onion storytelling (a phrase I just coined). This doesn’t quite go into Roshomon territory, but Cowan routinely stops the story to shift back to an earlier moment and catch up to the present following a different character. It’s a fun way to keep the audience guessing without pulling too much attention from the central conceit of the film.

While the humor is dark, Groupers never feels like it’s punching down. Cowan worked for seventeen years on Loveline with Dr. Drew, which may explain the frank openness in which characters discuss sexuality, and he’s written this as a gay ally. The humor lies in the outrageous characters, often directed at straight white men who abuse their power. But it’s not such a clear-cut portrayal of “good guys” versus “bad guys.” The boys’ victim turns out to be an Adderall addicted jerk. It’s a bold move to make him unsympathetic, but one that pays off.

This is an issues movie, but I’m not sure of how many minds it’ll change. Perhaps there’s someone who just doesn’t know any better, and this will give them a little food for thought. But really, Groupers feels like it’s more interested in preaching to the choir, and as a member of the choir, I sure enjoyed the ride.