http://www.theonionavclub.com/avclub3837/fttf3837.html October 9, 2002 films that time forgot
The Gay Deceivers (1969) The year is 1969. As the war in Vietnam rages in spite of mounting objections at home, young men wishing to avoid the draft have only a handful of options. They could flee to Canada, where they would experience guaranteed health coverage, better beer, and most of America's freedoms, but they would be forced to watch football played with unfamiliar rules. They could feign insanity or mutilate themselves, risking their long-term futures. Or they could follow the lead of the young heroes of _The Gay Deceivers_, and pretend to be lovers. Like so many college-educated, upper-class white kids with well-connected parents, Kevin Coughlin and Lawrence Casey desperately need to avoid the draft. So when they're summoned by their local draft board, they demand to appear together. "What are they," asks the colonel in charge, "a couple of Siamese twins?" "No," his assistant replies, "but I get the feeling that they're joined together from time to time." But fooling the draft board requires more than a swish-and-run act, and before long, Coughlin and Casey are under investigation. Needing to keep up the façade of their alternative lifestyle, they move to an all-gay Los Angeles apartment complex overseen by Michael Greer. Both men are forced to make tremendous sacrifices. Ladies' man Casey discovers that an apartment decorated with sculptures of nude men doesn't exactly scream "bachelor pad." Coughlin finds it difficult to explain his new living quarters to his family and his stewardess fiancée. On the other hand, Greer makes delicious omelets and throws campy parties at the drop of a hat. At one such party, the farcical mishaps reach their climax: While Casey unwittingly makes out with a drag queen, Coughlin gets the boot from his fiancée, and the whole web of lies unravels. "You'll never be able to hold any kind of job requiring a security clearance," Coughlin's father explains. "Did you ever ask any of your fairy friends what it's like to have a stigma like that attached to them?" Chastened by this threat, Coughlin tries to sign up for Vietnam, only to find that it's too late to undo the damage to his reputation. "This thing'll all blow over," Casey says. "I doubt it," Coughlin responds, contemplating a grim future devoid of security clearances. —Keith Phipps