Three
Reel Affirmations 2011
Drei
Review by Sean Bugg
Rating: 
(4 out of 5)
Thursday, 10/20/2011, 7:00 PM
Feature presentation, $25 at
German with English subtitles
HANNA IS A chain-smoking television host who feels somewhat adrift in her long-term relationship with Simon. Simon is dealing with his mother’s sudden succumbing to pancreatic cancer, not to mention losing a testicle to his own cancer scare. Adam is the genetic researcher, choral singer, sailor, swimmer and all-around renaissance man who inadvertently captures the hearts of them both, although Hanna and Simon don’t know they’re each having an affair with the same man.
Three is the complicated story of that uncertain and ambiguous love triangle. It’s also one of the few truly bisexual festival films I’ve seen over the years — at least, truly male bisexual, since Hanna’s focus is on the two men. But the German film, from Run, Lola, Run director Tom Twyker, is an interesting take on modern sexuality and love, as well as a demonstration of the old Schoolhouse Rock tune, ”Three Is a Magic Number.”
While the story begins like a Germanic version of Terms of Endearment, after a while it settles into triple plotlines, watching each character move closer to the emotional Mexican stand-off that’s inevitable once they discover the truth. For the most part, the journey to that point is engaging, although at times it threatens to become another movie entirely: 300 Ways to Look Pensive.
Thirty minutes too long, Three still stands out as a compelling story that ultimately ends on a note of grace, with plenty of stops for sly humor and wry commentary along the way. Be sure to catch it with your two closest friends.
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