Mango Kiss (2004) User Reviews

Just because you know the bow from the stern doesn't mean you are ready for the high seas.

[lastliberal · 6/10 · 25 July 2009]

Light and trippy. This film never takes itself seriously. it is colorful, with some very good music, and characters that make it worth watching.

Two friends, and I really mean friends, Sassafras (Danièle Ferraro) and Lou (Michelle Wolff) move from flyover country to the lesbian section of San Francisco. They are lesbians, but "baby dykes." They are trying to find themselves in an era of role playing.

Eventually, they decide to become lovers, but leave the door open to other relationships.

Sassafras' mother (Sally Kirkland) tries to tell her that "open marriage" works in theory, but is messy in practice. They soon find that out. Despite their establishment of "rules" to guide the relationship, they soon fall into jealous traps.

I must say all this "Daddy" and "Princess" business got a little tiresome, but maybe I am not supposed to get it.

What I did get was that non-monogamy does not work. They got it too eventually.

I have to admit that San Francisco looked like a really fun city at the time.

Fine performances by Dru Mouser, Tina Marie Murray, and Shannon Rossiter, in addition to those mentioned.

Worst movie I have ever seen

[gelbel · 1/10 · 15 August 2005]

I wish I could give this movie a zero, or even lower, because sadly that's what it deserves. I honestly never walk out of a movie, but this one was so dreadfully awful that I couldn't stand another minute of it. Please,please, please- for the sake of mankind- skip this movie. If you want a hot lesbian movie that you can really delve into, this isn't it.

It has unattractive, unappealing leads, choppy structure, ridiculous dialog, and it is absolutely unconvincing in every imaginable way. On an absolutely basic level, it fails to entertain. Everything about "Mango Kiss" is so stagey, it is WORSE than any student film I have seen.

As if that weren't enough, the entire movie relies on constant (and I mean CONSTANT) voice over narration. The script writer may as well have written a novel, because they insisted on TELLING everything, instead of SHOWING it. We are just supposed to assume that Lou and Sassafras are the best of friends and have a special connection, even though there is no character development to illustrate this. Also, this film continues to introduce to new characters after the first five minutes, and not in a natural way, but in a freeze-frame of the characters with their name written over the screen. There is no introduction, no development of any of the characters. We don't really get to know any of them.

This is the most amateur movie I have ever seen.

I am a gay woman, who watched this film with my roommate (another gay woman) and we both found this movie to be a depressing representation of queer cinema. I am beginning to think that lesbian and gay movies are a lot like Christian rock - it doesn't matter how atrocious it is, people will still flock to it, and champion it, no matter how poor the quality is. Please don't rent this!! Instead, let's encourage the production of QUALITY gay and lesbian movies by renting "But I'm a Cheerleader" or "Fire" or "Heavenly Creatures", instead of swallowing whatever mindless tripe they aim at the gay community (i.e. Queer as Folk).

Could not even finish it

[Fiona2020 · 2/10 · 9 December 2005]

I borrowed this movie because not only because its gay theme but the thought of role playing really intrigued me. I was pleasantly surprised that it was shot in San Francisco since I live near SF. And of course it was nice to see shots of the Castro district (although the castro to me really caters more to gay male than female). But other than that I can't really recommend this movie. The characters aren't really developed for me to care and when they finally started to get to the "role playing" I was already bored out of my mind. And the role playing scenes that I did see were a bit embarrassing to watch. The acting leaves something to be desired. Needless to say I didn't finish the movie. I'd skip this one.

Does it come with drugs?

[sorcia_m · 1/10 · 22 September 2005]

OK, my girlfriend and I rented the DVD and about 30 minutes into the movie, we'd exchanged a lot of "ehhh, what IS this movie about and more importantly, do I care to find out what it ends with" glances and decided we either needed drugs to keep us interested in the "plot" or just end the pain right there and then and watch something else. We opted for the latter.

I liked "But I'm a Cheerleader" a lot, but Mango Kiss is too silly and surreal for my taste, sorry! I definitely prefer "D.E.B.S", "Better Than Chocolate", "Fucking Åmål", "Goldfish Memory" and "Fire".

-Sorcia

stylish and funny

[shanakins · 9/10 · 24 October 2005]

This is definitely the best lesbian movie I've seen this year. It's witty, stylish, doesn't take itself too seriously, and refreshingly unsentimental compared to so many lesbian-themed movies. Great cinematography, cute editing and just generally high production values for what the DVD commentary said was a low-budget film.

If you have fond memories of the craziness of the roleplaying scene that was all the rage before genderqueer became the next big thing, you'll probably enjoy this movie.

If you're just tired of painfully boring lesbian movies with bad sound this will feel like a welcome vacation.

Plus, I now have a huge crush on the actress who played Lou (Shh, don't tell my girlfriend!)

Surprisingly Good

[jrwrtr10 · 10/10 · 30 December 2004]

I must admit that when I first went with a friend to see this film at our local GLBTQ film festival I was afraid it was going to be another bad lesbian movie. However I must admit this film was great. Very few movies deal with the issue of role playing or polyamory (sp?), but this is a fairly accurate portrayal of what can and does happen within the lesbian community, any community to be honest. It did show the good and bad of what the characters go through and I must say it was funny. It had its serious moments but it was also very entertaining and light-hearted.. I loved it and will be buying it very soon. I highly recommend this film. If you were a fan of "But I'm A Cheerleader" then your going to love this movie.

A great romantic comedy with some hot leading ladies!

[vickeylove123 · 10/10 · 30 July 2003]

This film revealed a world to me that I was not very familiar with, the world of role playing. I jumped on board with the story line right away, and I have to say I thought the ride was pretty awesome. It was a lot of fun. The lead actresses were totally hot, and very talented. The DP was amazing. There are not enough quality lesbian films out there, and it is sooooo refreshing to see a new director on the scene bust out with such an amazing piece of work for her first film! I commend the whole crew... I was fortunate enough to see this film at OutFest, and I hope it gets the opportunity to hit a wider audience!

Sugary and funny at the same time....

[kathylanham-1 · 8/10 · 24 December 2005]

After purchasing the DVD I find myself watching it at least twice a week! The actors/actresses were just great and they really seemed to enjoy making this movie. The production was great, even on an extremely small budget, and you can tell a lot of love, along with some sweat, went into making this. Movies like this is why I am prone to purchase Indie films over mainstream. The only thing I am disappointed in is that most of the actors/actresses have not done much since making this movie. I do hope to see more of them as-well-as writer's/director, etc. Though I have not done "role-playing" in a relationship I do admit that my eyes were opened a little more with this film.

A very well crafted film.

[minadog10 · 9/10 · 27 August 2003]

This film is extremely well crafted. The talent of cast and crew shines through. The story is fresh and unique. It achieves a seemless intertwining of stylized fantasy scenes and bold reality.

While the plot focuses on a specific social group the themes are wide reaching. I saw this film at the Frameline film festival and I would go see it again in the theaters!

Gorgeous grotesque movie!

[angelinakatc · 10/10 · 27 December 2020]

Realy enjoyed watching! Colorful, pop-artic, beautiful ,a great filming of a lesbian community.

A simple light hearted lesbian comedy

[meganweinand · 8/10 · 30 July 2009]

I thought this movie was a funny portrayal of lesbian sub-culture of role playing, ultimately ending with a good message about human nature. The lead characters are lovable and chemistry is pretty good! As a lesbian I thought it was a good film for a slow night but I'm not sure if others would enjoy it as much. I'd recommend it for a light evening! Quite funny and moves fast! Also I thought the lead "butch" was pretty cute, and it covers a lot of the stereotypical lesbian "roles" and "roleplaying" and the greater context of what can happen if we are not ourselves. Quality is good but the plot if a bit simple. Also it reminds me of the 80s. I also liked how accepting the mother was of the gay relationship-and that she could see how much the lead loved the other main girl.