The Other Five Percent

Anderson (Action) explores important social issues at the expense of a compelling romance in this lackluster contemporary. Recent Rutgers graduate Logan Vanderveer proclaims himself to be “95% straight” and wears suits to his advertising job on Brigantine Island, N.J., in an effort to feel grown-up. An unexpected encounter with forgotten college flame Ellis Floyd triggers intense emotions that Logan pushes away, revealing his immaturity and internalized biphobia. Ellis is shocked by Logan’s denial of their past relationship, and fears additional hurt if he tries to resurrect their romance. Unfortunately, Logan’s lengthy processing around his orientation overwhelms the plot; both characterization and romance suffer. Logan and Ellis’s contrasting personalities don’t generate romantic intensity or transcend the feel of an after-school special, and their emotional and sexual payoffs fall flat. Bisexual invisibility should be addressed more often in fiction, but this example fails to entertain as it instructs. (July)