I think that was important, especially for that moment at the end of the scene when they touch each other in a very intimate way.
They’re both shirtless, still coming from the underwear party. That’s emphasized in the setting, in the rain and even their costuming. But it was really important to me to find a real sense of vulnerability in both of the characters. Sometimes it just comes out of passion or the moment carries you away. ( Laughs.) Even if they’re not totally accurate. But I think it’s important as queer people that sometimes we have those come-to-Jesus moments. There are a lot of accusations, there are a lot of attacks. So I really love the desire to go to some dark places. I think that is part of the emotional process that a lot of people want to skip, but that I think is so important in the building of any sort of relationship. I think there’s something about the scene that, for me, feels like that moment where things have to get worse before they get better.
How were you thinking about exploring that in this specific scene versus your past work? Capturing emotional candidness and vulnerability between two gay Asian men on screen is not unfamiliar territory for you. Noah and Will are hearing for the first time what the other really thinks about them. I think that these characters wouldn’t be as truthful to each other, there wouldn’t be as much immediacy and urgency to say these words, if it weren’t raining during the scene. But Joel and I both felt very strongly about it because there is an emotional reason why the rain is there. At one point, the studio had suggested we lose the rain because it’s expensive. I think there’s something about rain that just ups the stakes. I think a big part of that is because of the rain. They’re finally articulating things they’ve held close to the chest throughout the film. I thought about the scene from a very emotional place, which was that these characters are finally telling the truth to each other. I love how that film brings out the modern qualities of Jane Austen’s writing. It’s one of the reasons I wanted to make this movie. I think it’s brilliant, and it’s one of my favorite movies. I picked up on the fact that Joel was referencing that scene. When I read the scene in Joel’s screenplay, it was scripted as a rainy meat rack fight, and I immediately thought of the moment from Joe Wright’s adaptation of Pride & Prejudice. What was your overall artistic concept or vision for this scene, including those references to the 2005 film, and how did it fit within Noah and Will’s larger love story? Speaking to THR, Ahn unpacked the creative choices around the gay, modern retelling, touching on everything from the writing and acting to sound and cinematography that helped deliver one of the film’s most vulnerable and striking odes to Jane Austen and queer romance. “The authenticity of their queer experience really lends itself to subliminally showing: this is queer. “I think it’s really important that we had an all queer cast so that, when they kiss each other, they’re not thinking about, ‘Oh, I’m straight and then having to play gay,'” the director told The Hollywood Reporter about the power of having gay Asian men play that onscreen during the Hulu movie’s most (dramatically) romantic moments. It’s certainly a product of the duo’s acting strength and chemistry, but also the authenticity of the shot.
Scenes between Booster and Ricamora’s characters - particularly this one, where they’re trading both barbs and embraces - are electric. 'Fire Island' and the Bechdel Test: Turning the Debacle Into a Learning Opportunityīut it does so through a distinctly queer lens, from its director to its writer to its leading actors, delivering a new (and refreshing) way of experiencing the familiar period rom-com.