PIT STOP

Marcus DeAnda and Bill Heck

PIT STOP (2013). Director: Yen Tan.

In a small town in Texas, Gabe (Bill Heck), who is still close to his ex-wife (Heather Kafka) and children, has discovered that his male lover, still married, wants nothing more to do with him. Meanwhile, Ernesto (Marcus DeAnda) is waiting for his boyfriend, Luis (Alfredo Maduro), to finally move out even as he visits the nursing home where another ex-lover (who left him for another man) lies in a coma. Linda is clearly still in love with her husband, and goes on a date with a chubby but appealing fellow at work, Winston (John Merriman), to whom Gabe is a little cruel. Les (Corby Sullivan) is a gay teacher who goes on a date with Gabe, but is still pining for the married man who dumped him. Will Gabe and Ernesto get past their personal problems and ties and ever get together? Pit Stop, a study of pain, loss and loneliness, is low-key, well-written, and beautifully acted by the entire cast. Bill Heck has a beautifully-delivered speech in his car when he tells Les about the man he had been hoping to spend the rest of his life with and how it all went wrong. Some people see this as having a happy ending, but to me it was rather open-ended. In any case, it could have used another thirty minutes running time, the rare occasion when you think a movie is actually too short. The film is full of interesting and telling little details. Pit Stop may move a lot of people to tears -- either because they have no lover, or because they wish their lover looked like DeAnda or Heck!

Verdict: Notable independent feature with several excellent performances. ***.