Nineteen-year-old Ari confronts both his sexuality and his Greek family. Ari despises his once-beloved parents, former radical activists, for having entombed themselves in insular tradition. Ari is obsessed with gay sex, although he does make an unenthusiastic attempt to satisfy the sister of one of his best friends. While all of this is going on, he's facing problems with his traditional Greek parents, who have no clue about his sexual activities.
The film's close is grim and ambivalent, a choice that would be commendable if the movie had not so stubbornly held the same dour tone for two hours already, and if Ari weren't as boring as he is bored.
– Jessica Winter,
Village Voice,
1 Jan 2000
rotten:
Strains so desperately for a tragic kitchen-sink realism that in several crucial scenes the movie loses its grip and escalates into strident melodrama.
– Stephen Holden,
New York Times,
1 Jan 2000
fresh:
Anyone of any generation who has ever felt at odds with his or her environment can identify with the characters in Head On.
– Kevin Thomas,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Feb 2001
fresh:
In a way, the film is a kissing cousin to the 1960s kitchen sink dramas of the British cinema and the working-class angst of German director Rainer Werner Fassbinder.
– Desson Thomson,
Washington Post,
24 Feb 2005
rotten:
Director Ana Kokkinos has an eye for local color but spends little time developing the supporting characters.