Fire Island Movie Review: A Slice of Paradise

Noah (Joel Kim Booster), Howie (Bowen Yang), and their outgoing queer friends spend another year embarking on their journey to Fire Island to escape reality. Noah and Howie don't realize that their friendship is about to go through the ultimate test.

Here's the scoop on the movie, Fire Island!

A Place to Call Home

Noah, Erin, Howie, Keegan and friends at Fire Island — Bowen Yang, Tomas Matos, Matt Rogers, Torian Miller, Joel Kim Booster, and Margaret Cho in the film FIRE ISLAND. Photo by Jeong Park. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2022 20th Century Studios All Rights Reserved

Spending time on an island with friends is a dream come true for Noah. Their yearly tradition of taking a boat to Fire Island is filled with adrenaline and excitement despite going their separate ways once the trip has passed. But their journey through the dense mass of palm trees is where they can be themselves. Once embracing the arms of their lesbian friend, Erin, Noah and his friends seem to fit right in despite only staying one week out of the year. Andrew Ahn and Joel Kim Booster bring to life the connection between people and a place. Although we don't learn about how Noah and his friends came together, Fire Island clearly conveys the group's strong friendship.

Friendships

Howie and Noah — Bowen Yang and Joel Kim Booster in the film FIRE ISLAND. Photo by Jeong Park. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2022 20th Century Studios All Rights Reserved

Even though Joel and Andrew have a group of queer friends who travel to Fire Island, the main pivot is the interactions between Noah and Howie. In spite of never seeing his friends, especially Howie, Noah wants to make the effort to find Howie a man. Drawing connections to Jane Austen, he eventually wins over Howie with his one-night stand plan. However, things start to become risky when Noah finds himself involved with the affluent boys on the island.

In his attempts to separate himself from the rich boys, he tears his own friendship apart with Howie. From the beginning of Fire Island, Noah appears to live in his own world and is closed off from accepting everyone else's world. But Will and Howie help him become more aware of others.

Romance

Noah and Will Fire Island — Conrad Ricamora and Joel Kim Booster in the film FIRE ISLAND. Photo by Jeong Park. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2022 20th Century Studios All Rights Reserved

Fire Island doesn't fall short when it comes to romantic moments as the movie not only focuses on the main character's romance but as well as Howie's. There is even a love triangle that turns from sexy to sweet. Since the plan was to find Howie a lover, most of the movie centers around Howie slowly falling for a charming doctor. But Noah finds himself stuck between two men with different thoughts on what it means to be 'romantic.' Fire Island is a place where romance can spark at any time.

Comedy

In between the drama and the hot romance, Fire Island offers enough comedy to last the whole movie, especially the hysterical Erin with her past relationships. The hilarious dialogue can be understood even if the viewer is not queer. The relatable romance and friendship lines help make the characters lovable and appealing till the very end.

Be sure to watch this rom-com on Hulu on June 3rd!

For the scoop on more movie reviews, visit these: