When Brett (Goldberg) and Jackie (Alexander) fall deeply in like, they follow the logic that many couples do:

I like you a lot.

You like me a lot.

I like my best friend a lot.

You like your best friend a lot.

Conclusion: We should set our best friends up on a blind date.

However, as we watch Eli (Bucatinsky) agonizing over the date, trying on outfit after outfit in front of the mirror, then watch Tom (Ruccolo) get ready by rubbing a fragrance insert from a magazine on himself, we get the feeling that this may not be love at first sight. But although dinner is a disaster, sparks fly after another chance meeting, and soon the two find themselves in a passionate but rocky relationship.

The romance between Eli and Tom is definitely a case of opposites attracting. Neurotic and needy Eli collects Planet of the Apes action figures while commitment-phobic Tom is a connoisseur of martinis. When we meet the parents, it becomes apparent why each man is the way he is. Eli’s psychotherapist parents (Abatemarco and a hilarious Martin) made him point out the “vagina” and “penis” on Barbie and Ken dolls as a child, while the scenes with Tom’s cold, repressed alcoholic parents (Kerns and Surovy) are chilling.

Despite these differences and internal roadblocks, Eli and Tom’s on-again-off-again romance is kept moving along by their involvement in Brett and Jackie’s impending nuptials. One thing we learn is that it is OK for guys to be invited to the bachelorette party (complete with male stripper) as long as they are gay.

The scenes where Eli recounts his relationship with Tom thus far to the receptionist at the AIDS clinic (Roberts) are the most self-conscious, but it is a tribute to writer/producer/actor Bucatinsky that the fact that ALL OVER THE GUY is about a gay couple is practically irrelevant. This is simply a sweet, funny love story that will have you rooting for the two of them to live happily ever after.

—Sandhya Shardanand

hybridCinema Ratings Guide:

Take a pal and pay full price for both tickets.

It’s worth a full-price ticket.

It’s worth a matinee ticket.

Wait for video rental.

Check out the video from the library, if you must.

While we would never encourage anyone to destroy a video...