Now streaming on: Hate Crime is set in motion with the murder of a gay man, but the title refers to more than one kind of hate and more than one kind of crime. At the end we re left with good and evil in a bewildering tangle. The story is sometimes overwritten, often overwrought, includes an overheard conversation on the Nancy Drew level, and yet holds our attention and contains surprises right until the end.
The story begins with Robbie and Trey (Seth Peterson and Brian J. Smith), a long-established gay couple. A new neighbor moves in next door: Chris Boyd (Chad Donella). He makes it clear he hates homosexuals: You re going to hell. A few nights later, while Trey is walking their dog in the park, he is beaten to death with a baseball bat.