There is a preciousness that we hold around kids, because we are afraid of screwing them up. If you ponder the countless films about people who suddenly have tykes enter their lives, you will find a collection of stories that people hold quite dear. Look no further than this year’s Club Kid by Jordan Firstman–hell, even Raising Helen has has its fans! Apart from Firstman’s directorial debut, you won’t find a lot of titles about gay people taking care or watching over kids, but Roman Němec’s Out of Checklist makes the case that some youngsters just might be on the right track. Some might be in a better headspace than the adults around them.
I don’t think that 12 year-old David thought that he would be meeting any of his father’s new boyfriends any time soon. Well, maybe boyfriend is a strong word…right before David arrives on the scene, his is ending a hook up with Michal, who is kind enough to bring his own cop uniform for their roleplay session. David shouldn’t even be there in the first place, but the poor kid’s expression doesn’t show any signs of surprise or disappointment. As David’s Father tries to untangle the mess over the phone, David tells Michal, ‘You look better than the last guy.’
Out of options, David’s Father asks Michal if he could watch his son until he can get away from work, and he reluctantly agrees. When Michal realizes that they don’t have much to do or talk about, he agrees to take David to Plzeň so he can visit a dinopark and photograph a statue of a ferocious monster for a school project. Since we don’t know much about Michal or his family life, we can assume any number of reasons as to why indulges David. Maybe he feels bad that he is as stuck as he is, or maybe he didn’t have an adult to take him to the places he wanted to when he was David’s age. The lad is particular with how he manages things by organizing his dad’s refrigerator and speaking articulately–maybe Michal simply wants to come through for the kid to pass the time.
A mishap on the race home leads to Michal being late to an event, which leads to one of the most charming moments of Němec’s film. Kids and young teenagers know more about the world than they let on–they at least observe and take in more than we even realize. I’d like to think that Checklist offers us adults a bit of comfort with how their level of understanding. If we speak honestly or don’t try to pull the wool over their eyes, they can showcase empathy and compassion in an instinctive way.
“My dad is gay,” David says towards the end of the film–he doesn’t hide it or sugarcoat it. Letting him speak matter-of-factly at a young age might help him more than we will ever know.
Out of Checklist is currently playing as part of Out On Film’s online streaming programming.
