Like San Pedro. Jonah Markowitz's "Shelter" is a Sundancey made-for-cable coming-out story from the here! network, which bills itself as "Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender Television." In 1974, "Shelter" would have been run as a Movie of the Week, but the two San Pedro surfers would not have kissed. Prime-time man-kissing (seriously, romantically) on prime-time "network" TV wouldn't come until 26 years later, on the WB's "Dawson Creek" in 2000.
But back to Pedro (PEE-droe), which "Shelter" renders with an attentive, insider's eye, from the run-down, graffiti-tagged neighborhoods in sight of the Vincent Thomas Bridge to the posh McMansions across the tracks. Zach (Trevor Wright) is the de facto live-in baby-sitter for his trashy sister Jeanne (Tina Holmes) and his beloved 5-year-old nephew Cody (Jackson Wurth). Like the abominable mother played by Oscar-nominated Amy Ryan in "Gone Baby Gone," Jeanne knows exactly how to manipulate others into taking last-minute responsibility for her kid. So Zach doesn't get out much, even to see his longtime girlfriend Torie (Katie Walder), who is frustrated by his lack of physical attention.
Zach is a young man with dreams, but who is weighed down by his responsibilities. His best friend, Gabe (Ross Thomas), parties all the time at the University of Santa Barbara and wants Zach to join him, but Zach wants to go to art school. He's a serious guy, delaying his own future for the sake of Cody.
One sunshiny day, he hooks up with Gabe's older brother Shaun (Brad Rowe), whom he's known since childhood. Shaun is a writer, taking a break from the pressures of L.A. to hang out for a while at the family homestead by the beach. For local color, Shaun and Zach go surfing. Glossy photospread montage sequences ensue, set to poppy tunes ("happy fun"), tender ballads ("falling in love") and melancholy folk-rock ("estranged"), depending on the status of their relationship at that point in the movie. A friendship develops that ripens into romance. Zach learns ... guess what Zach learns?
Suffice it to say that "Shelter" is a coming-out, coming-of-age movie that is mediocre and very well-intentioned. Zach's main problem is not that he's overburdened and conflicted about his responsibilities or that he's gay or that his ambitions are being thwarted, it's that he lacks a personality. We recognize the archetypal Good Boy, the repressed kid who conforms to others' expectations because he feels trapped. To Zach, it may be easier to stay in his rut than to take the risk of climbing out.
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