In the hands of a less skilled cast and creative team, the new film Spoiler Alert (based on Michael Ausiello’s memoir Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies) could very easily fall into this cliché. Fortunately though, the film is able to rise above these stereotypes to tell a beautiful, life-affirming story about the soaring thrills of same-sex love and the unbearable agony of a partner’s death. Spoilers for “Spoiler Alert” below (pun intended)***** As TV-obsessed Ausiello, many scenes feature Parsons imagining his childhood through the lens of a TGIF-style ’80s-style sitcom (complete with a studio audience and a cast of over-the-top actors playing his family). While very funny on the surface, these moments also subtly reveal traumatic aspects of Ausiello’s youth that influence his behavior as an adult. It’s a reminder of how closeted queer children sometimes disassociate into worlds of fantasy when growing up in a homophobic culture. If there’s any criticism to be directed at Spoiler Alert, it’s that perhaps too much time is devoted in the first act to Michael and Kit’s courtship. The film hits the ground running once the two men begin dating and their relationship’s nuances begin to unfold.
A shoutout must also be awarded to Nikki M. James, who plays Kit’s extroverted best friend and coworker Nina. James, a Tony winner for The Book of Mormon and recently featured on Apple TV’s Severance, is utterly delightful in her limited role and delivers many of the films laugh-out-loud moments. One hopes that Hollywood will finally take note of this talent and offer her a plumb leading role in a film or series. Herein though lies the charm of Spoiler Alert, which showcases that all relationships (queer and straight alike) can be equal parts messy and loving. Just because their relationship wasn’t perfect doesn’t mean that it wasn’t beautiful. As Michael remarks at the film’s conclusion, “I was always afraid the Kit would break my heart. And he did. He broke it wide open.” Opening yourself up to love is opening yourself up to the possibility of heartache. Some may tell you that there’s a way around that, but…spoiler alert: There isn’t.
