Watch Easy

Daniel Laabs' loose, impressionistic, yet psychologically and thematically rich short centers on two close-knit Texas brothers. The older, Adam, is well on his way to maturity with an affectionate girlfriend and a thoughtful, self-confident manner. All of which is something of a mystery to Jeffrey, who is on the verge of adolescence and whose life centers largely around gymnastics, an outlet Adam once enjoyed, too, until he "discovered girls." Are those mutually exclusive interests? The taint of public homophobia often directed toward male gymnasts (like figure skaters) is something Jeffrey is painfully aware of, even if his own sexuality is hardly fully-formed. Full of youthful questions with murky answers, EASY is a skillful dramatic miniature that says little outright but reveals a lot. - Dennis Harvey