For Eli and Tom, instant undying love isn't a given, as their first get-together is disastrous, and both carry emotional baggage from dysfunctional parents which makes them terrified of relationships.

This script has interminable stretches of repetitive padding and hopelessly sitcommy dialogue, which the cast spews at panicky speed. Director Julie Davis further dampens the more carefree moments by wallowing unnecessarily in family melodrama.

Still, Bucatinsky and Ruccolo are appealingly ingratiating enough to sustain interest and amusement, making this a likeable if lightweight romantic comedy.

Queer content: Adapting his own stage play about a straight couple, Bucantinsky has rewritten the two leads as gay, painting a picture of a gay relationship not defined by a homophobic or stereotypical gaze.

The homosexuality of Eli and Tom is almost a moot point, though, as the script is simply a gay variation on the generic hetero "boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy wins girl" romantic comedy formula. Also, openly gay executive producer Don Roos coaxed his The Opposite of Sex stars Christina Ricci and Lisa Kudrow into playing small roles.