Film
Any Day Now
An unlikely gay couple strive for acceptance in late 1970s West Hollywood.
Paul (Garret Dillahunt) and Rudy (Alan Cumming) in Any Day Now.
Published: February 20, 2013
Any Day Now
Directed by Alan Fine
Now playing at the Charles Theatre
Any Day Now follows Rudy Donatello and Paul Fleiger, an unlikely gay couple (played by Alan Cumming and Garret Dillahunt, respectively), as they strive for acceptance in late 1970s West Hollywood. Extroverted Rudy (X2, The Good Wife) works as a lounge singer and part-time drag impressionist. He immediately attracts the attentions of the closeted Paul and, despite the pair’s conflicting natures, they couple off relatively early on in the movie.
Although it is understandable in context—Paul had lived a heterosexual lifestyle seemingly to this point and was still peeking through the closet at the point he meets Rudy—Dillahunt (Raising Hope, Looper) is less convincing in intimate moments compared to the exuberant Cumming. Eventually, some of Dillahunt’s stiffness melts away as the narrative shifts focus from the romantic relationship to the couple’s struggle to adopt Marco, a young boy with Down syndrome, recently made a ward of the state after his mother’s drug arrest. As a family, Rudy, Paul, and Marco gel, and the couple’s love for the boy feels genuine.
The suspicious and bigoted U.S. justice system plays the boogeyman in Any Day Now. The nature of Rudy and Paul’s relationship dictates that they must keep it a secret from the government or risk the custody of Marco, giving us the main conflict in the film, which has its charming points as well as some weak spots. Cumming performs decently enough, though he won’t be launching burgeoning singing career off of this one. (As a lounge singer, he’s got a couple underwhelming solos.) Some great impassioned speeches do service to the societal ’70s subject matter, but the overall execution of Any Day Now makes this compelling story even more tragic than it already is.
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