There are many different types of love and ending of relationships. As opposed to what Hollywood would have us believe. Maybe that is what a large part of the problem is with the romance genre, the uniformity. It is all vanilla. It all looks and unfolds the same way. What saves us from falling into a dark pit of hating the whole romance genre is films like Michelle Ehlen’s (S&M Sally, Butch Jamie) Maybe Someday, which is screening now as part of the Cinequest Film Festival.
This is a different kind of relationship film. One about a relationship coming apart at the seams and how one half of the couple goes about moving on. One, while it is no way near being a good film, that is highly relatable and often interesting to watch. It brings about different viewpoints and plenty of food for thought.
Lily (Jeneen Robinson – appeared in episodes of Betrayed and My Crazy Ex) has decided she needs space. That is not such a bad thing, but for one detail – she is married to Jay (Michelle Ehlen – appeared in episodes of Ugly Betty and Glee). So they are going to separate. Jay is devastated. So she decides she needs a change. A drive across the country to California, where Jay will look to start her life again.
Halfway through the drive, Jay stops at the house of childhood friend, Jess (Shaela Cook – appeared in episodes of The Replacement and Not Now John). Being together brings a whole bunch of memories flooding back to Jay. Jay used to be secretly in love with Jess. While dealing with this and her breakup, Jay becomes friends with an extroverted gay man named Tommy (Charlie Steers – appeared in episodes of The Mindy Project and The Face of Evil) while working through all she is feeling – recovery, heartbreak, change, and independence.
This is obviously a very personal film for Ehlen. She wrote, directed and stars in it. There are plenty of delicate moments to watch and feel. You actually feel it coming through the screen. That makes up for the uneven acting and low production values. The nuance of what is happening is affecting. The tangled web of love and breakup. The time it takes to recover and the rollercoaster of emotions felt while you recover.
Many watching will totally be able to relate. Queer men and women remembering falling silently, privately for straight people. The confusion when they were nice. Was it love or not? Examining all this without having the lead character have even a moment of self-hatred. Just go through the typical emotions associated with love and heartbreak, just filtered through a queer lens.