What did you think of "Bedrooms & Hallways"?   Good 83% 48   Bad 9% 5   Somewhere in between 9% 5 Total Votes   58

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Verdict: A sunny look at a series of revolving bedroom doors in modern London.

Details: Starring Kevin McKidd, Hugo Weaving and Jennifer Ehle. Unrated, but contains nudity and sexual situations. 1 hour, 36 minutes.

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Review: "Go Fish" director Rose Troche expands on her buoyant first film with "Bedrooms & Hallways." The new comedy widens Troche's focus, from Chicago's lesbian dating scene to a view of sexuality (gay and straight) that's constantly in flux.

Set in contemporary London, Robert Farrar's cheerfully satiric script concerns an attractive bunch of young people whose love lives reflect the title: sex experienced as a constant mix of journey and arrival at a destination.

Leo (Kevin McKidd) is an affable gay man invited by his straight pal Adam (Christopher Fulford) to join his men's therapy group, which gives the movie plenty of opportunity to gently mock the "Iron John" aesthetic. Keith (Simon Callow) is the group's leader, sharing his home with Sybil (Harriet Walter), also a therapist; the two have ongoing discussions over who gets to use the Moroccan Room and the whereabouts of the Tibetan Singing Bowl.

It's at this guy-group that Leo admits that he's attracted to one of its members, an Irishman named Brendan (James Purefoy), who has just broken up with his girlfriend of seven years, Sally (Jennifer Ehle). Though it seems that the closest he'll get to bedding Brendan is in his dreams, which include a funny Jane Austen fantasy, Leo discovers that Brendan may be open to broadening his sexual experiences. (Brendan works at a bakery, leading to a discussion between Adam and Leo about the romantic implications of the extra ham and pickles Brendan has put in Leo's sandwich.)

Meanwhile, Leo's fey roommate Darren (Tom Hollander) is busy all over town, having an affair with real estate agent Jeremy (Hugo Weaving, of "The Matrix") in all of the properties Jeremy has keys to.

The story lines all converge when Sally starts to wonder who her ex is spending time with, leading to a small-world revelation that's no less pleasant for being contrived.

Like the recent "Relax ... It's Just Sex" — but without that film's unfocused meandering and Southern California self-absorption — "Bedrooms & Hallways" spreads its interest among an extended family of friends. In fact, everyone tends to be so genial and open-minded that you might be anxious for a dose of melodrama or a good jealous tantrum. But in the end, it's the movie's generous viewpoint that makes watching "Bedrooms & Hallways" a sunny experience. It finds in its characters' search for love a great deal of human fallibility, sweetened with forgiveness.

— Steve Murray, Cox News Service

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