Stonewall is the perfect example of a film whose subject I knew very little about going in (I welcome any scorn or derision aroused by this statement and deflect it with my proud shield of historical ignorance). Coming out of the film, I felt like I hadn’t learned much. My minor due diligence (Wikipedia to the rescue) reported that Stonewall was historical hallowed grounds; a staging area for the first major gay rights protests in the late 1960s. Positively glowing with awards potential, the Stonewall plot could have made for one of this year’s celebrated historic biographies. Rather, the film is decidedly more Newsies than Milk.

Stonewall is dedicated to the unsung heroes of the Stonewall Riots, the homeless scamps and street-walking vagrants whose violent acts proved a turning stone for the LGBT movement. In the telling of this historic event, pretty boy Danny, an All-American poof ejected from him hometown for administering a very nicht nicht man-on-man hummer, is our innocent eyes and ears on the ground. Danny (Jeremy Irvine of War Horse) is so innocent, so brazenly untainted, that he may as well be swinging from the city lamp-poles, whistling “Seize the Day.” There’s moments where you want to throttle him, and not in that kind of way.From when he first sets foot on Christopher Street, Danny is dipped in a bubbling cauldron of civil unrest with new friends egging him on to join their cause. Caught between political parties – the patient politicians and the angry activists – Danny becomes the living embodiment of “Let he who hast not sinned cast the first stone.”

Newcomer Jonny Beauchamp is a standout as Danny’s confidante Ray, a down-on-her-luck street hustler with eyes for our protagonist. Much like Jared Leto lit up the stage in Dallas Buyers Club, Beauchamp gets the option to dig his teeth into the meaty role and dig he does. Canines first. And here be the saving grace of Stonewall – it’s packed with above-the-bar performances, sometimes frustratingly so. The cast cares and their commitment is palpable. Unfortunately, it’s not enough to keep the film from feeling just so blah.

Stonewall is by no means a genuine docudrama. In fact, it’s about as much a docudrama as Across the Universe is a Beatles biopic. Stonewall’s mild tick is poppy and melodic, dipped in grime and drag. The result is in itself cross-dressed; a self-serious effort hiding behind blithe filmmaking. More often than not, it’s a drag to behold.

In 2011, German director Roland Emmerich sought to prove to the world that he could do more than bring forth the reckoning with Shakespearean conspiracy thriller Anonymous. Anonymous was received with a faint critical turning up of the nose and requests for the director to turn back to blowing up historical plots. In 2015, it appears that he has done just that.

CONCLUSION: General audiences will find things to like in ‘Stonewall’ but the fact that the LGBT community will not embrace the historically inaccurate account spells certain death for this light-hearted drama.