Sebastian (1995) User Reviews

Older story, a little dated, sweet, but not much to it

[billy_dana · 6/10 · 4 December 2015]

This is a innocuous little tale of growing up and coming out. The teen characters do a pretty credible job of carrying off their roles, but the two parents seem thin at points. The story in general is thin - not much to hang onto except in some of the exchanges between our two young men who are the primary characters.

Just needed more "umph", more depth of story. Things resolve well enough, but I'm not sure I gained anything in the watching... I will look for other work by this director. I suspect the book was better reading than the movie was watching. And as I said in the summary this is an older story, and some slack should be cut for that as well...

A missed opportunity, perhaps.

[Olhado · 22 March 1999]

Only our friends in Scandinavia and Holland handle the topic of sexuality so well. I would have liked this film more if one or both of "the parents" had been somewhat more negative, making the film more realistic.

If you liked this one, try "Doing Time On Maple Drive", an American attempt at a similar plot, but I have to say, with more depth.

Pathetic beyond belief

[Teach-7 · 2/10 · 27 October 1998]

A problem picture without recognizable problems has got a problem! "Sebastian" is nauseatingly coy, with unbelievably nice and politically correct actors telling us it's OK to be gay, you know - REALLY!! Come out, come out, wherever you are! The script is so superficial that it presents the (naturally!)pretty and likeable Sebastian with no real obstacles, and our hero emerges squeaky clean and happy from his "outing". Even gay activists reacted to this "painting-by-numbers" picture when it was shown in Norway. It doesn't even have the guts to show us any decent sex. As a propaganda piece for the easily bothered, it has its merits, as drama, forget it.

Yuck!

[Kim17 · 1/10 · 11 July 1999]

Wam & Vennerød have produced quite a lot of gay films over the years, and this one proved to be like its predecessors, it was so bad that it was entertaining, and not in any way managing to send out the message it was supposed to in a fashionable way.

To make it short, the plot is realistic, but it is carried off with an extremely superficial and cliché-ridden screenplay. The acting is not in any way credible, except if we are supposed to believe that the mother is psychopath. The cinematography is nice, but there are so many scenes that doesn't have anything to do with the story, and should have been edited away, but on the other hand the film would probably have been half an hour long or something like that. I guess that says it all; a very weak story, but the whole thing is very entertaining if you choose to watch it with such an attitude.

As a serious film with a serious message, it's worth nothing, but if you want to have fun, see it! If not, see "Beautiful Thing" 100 times before you dare laying your hands on this one!

A pleasant film to watch, if not a dramatic one

[pyotr-3 · 9/10 · 31 December 2010]

I found this film very delightful to watch. It brought back many memories of my youth, which was not so different from that of Sebastian. Some reviewers give the film bad reviews due to the lack of drama in the film, and I can see how some people would expect much more from the film, but I still enjoyed it. True, at the end I was thinking "Is that all there is?" But the 2 main characters were so very, very appealing that I didn't mind. And the scene of them taking a bath together is definitely a must-see!

Nicolai Cleve Broch is one of the sexiest actors working today. The main drama of the movie is waiting to find out whether or not Broch's character is gay, too. I will not tell you whether he is or is not.

Sometimes too sweet is OK

[Havan_IronOak · 8/10 · 7 March 2010]

This film has been criticized for being unrealistic and saccharine but I found it a pleasant change.

This is the story of a beautiful young man who decides that he's gay and is in love with one of his circle of friends.

Admittedly, the film doesn't seem to be very realistic by American standards. The two beautiful young men play at being rock stars, make and eat some waffles and then try some body painting and doing each other's make-up. Afterwards they share a Bolero-scored bath scene and yet Ulf is surprised when Sebastian kisses him.

Somehow Sebastian is having difficulty coming to terms with being gay, despite two of the most accepting parents on the planet. Perhaps the Jim Morrison, Clockwork Orange and My Own Private Idaho posters on his bedroom walls gave them some advance clues.

Sebastian is accepted by his parents, his circle of friends, his ex-girlfriend and even the guy he kissed; and they all seem closer as a result of his coming out.

Perhaps this film doesn't have enough troublesome issues to make it a spicy chili, or enough meaty problems to make it a hearty stew but it has enough sweetness to make it a nice vanilla ice cream of a movie. Sometimes I enjoy vanilla.

Now available on video in the Netherlands (English subtitles)

[Stefan-59 · 10/10 · 5 March 1999]

I was looking for this movie for more then a year. Now (1999) it is available in the original language with English subtitles in the Netherlands.

It is an excellent movie, especially for teenagers, which shows homosexuality as a natural choice or option when you are growing up. This is far closer to the real life then the image you often get from movies or TV. You can easily identify yourself with the 16 year old Sebastian and his friends. This movie will give you a good feeling if you are dealing with your sexual orientation.

Light-weight no doubt, but not as bad as some say

[Cellguy · 9/10 · 31 January 2009]

OK, so there was no gratuitous sex in this coming out story. And too, there wasn't even any male on male kissing. If that's what you're looking for it can be found abundantly in some other coming out stories like Beautiful Thing and Edge of Seventeen (both of which I highly recommend). To me this story WAS sweet, and pleasantly so. It was kind of like a Norwegian after-school special--Remember those from the 1970s?

So I'll grant that it wasn't overly realistic. But at least it did provide a positive resolution. That's something many a gay teen in the 80s didn't think was remotely possible. In essence it was a squeaky clean feel good take on coming out. I'm sure there have been at least a few of those in the past and likely more and more up to the present.

So to sum up, in my opinion Sebastian is not nearly as bad as some would have you think. It's nothing deep, nothing profound--but still enjoyable in my book...There's definitely some fun 80s kitsch going on too!

Very shallow and unsatisfying

[smoothhoney1265 · 3 July 2004]

Basically I watched this movie because there was nothing else better on TV and because of pure curiosity. It sounded like a nice coming of age story, taking place in the summer and I thought it would be rather enjoyable. I was wrong.

Sebastian, the protagonist, is a teenager growing up in a Scandinavian idyll: His family is intact; he has a younger sister, a bunch of friends who love him and leads a normal life. Sebastian is about to become a man and as it is often the case with boys going on men he often locks himself in his room, thinks about the meaning of life and nearly drives his parents mad with his behaviour. One day, Sebastian finds out that he's gay. I don't want tell how this goes on because one more sentence and there you have the really stupid rest of the movie. Let me express it this way: Unlike other teenagers, Sebastian will not face any difficulties with his coming out and I suppose that even when he made a big poster having written "I am gay" on it and would parade with it through his village wearing a pink boa, still nobody would bother or say anything.

Being a teenager is sometimes hard enough – being 16 and facing the fact that one's gay is definitely not that easy. I don't mean to be dramatic – maybe there are enough gay teenagers whose parents and friends don't have a big problem with them being gay. But I know that in most cases it's a painful and difficult process – I speak from my own experiences. Therefore I think it's a shame how easy this process is portrayed in the movie – it is trying to imply that it's OK to be gay and come out with it – nobody will hate you for that and nothing will change. I mean of course it's OK to be gay, but you can't tell me that everyone will take it as if you tell them that the sky is blue. "Sebastian" is shallow, hypocrite, definitely not a big help for a teenager who comes in terms with his sexuality because it's unrealistic. I would even go so far and prevent them from watching it, or if they do, they just shouldn't take it seriously. Nice performances by the young actors, though.

It is like comparing Coca Cola with some no name coke drink. Both look the same, smell the same and taste sweet. But no other drink gives you the refreshing effect of the original. Same it is here: It seems to be a movie that shows a teenager coming in terms with his homosexuality. But there are much better movies dealing with this topic – I especially recommend "Beautiful Thing" and "Edge of Seventeen". Compared to those movies, "Sebastian" is the no name product – tastes too sweet and leaves no impression at all.