This romantic comedy is basically 'Pride and Prejudice' with gay men. And it's delightful

“Fire Island,” Andrew Ahn’s romantic comedy that is basically “Pride and Prejudice” with gay men, is an utter delight.

Part of that has to do with the story, of course. The tried-and-true battle of the classes has proved surprisingly flexible; take “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies,” for instance. But a bigger part has to do with the cast, led by Joel Kim Booster, who also wrote the screenplay, and Bowen Yang, best known for being one of the more interesting performers on “Saturday Night Live” in years.

It’s not that “Fire Island” is a great movie, though it is certainly a good one. It’s more that it offers such an inviting, warm and friendly vibe that it’s just a pleasure to hang out with (most of) these guys, even when things go sour every now and then.

Jane Austen, but with some major alterations

Of course alterations have been made. The opening line of Jane Austen’s novel — “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife” — doesn’t hold much sway in this telling. Noah (Booster), who is struggling financially, just wants to hook up on the annual retreat to Fire Island he and his friends undertake.

His best friend is Howie (Yang), who has moved from New York to California to work for a startup. But like their other friends (Matt Rogers, Tomás Matos and Torian Miller), he never fails to make the pilgrimage.

The point, Noah repeats incessantly and annoyingly, is sex. But Howie has never even had a boyfriend, so Noah makes it his mission to find someone for something considerably shorter than a long-term commitment for his best friend, putting his own plans on hold.

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They gather at the home of Erin (Margaret Cho, who is really good), a mother figure to all of them who fell into some money and bought the place years ago. She greets them with sobering news: Financial woes will force her to sell the home. This will be the last gathering.

Noah, brash, cocky, so full of himself and sexual confidence, takes this news harder than the rest. That's because, of course, deep down he’s a sentimental sweetheart masking his insecurities. This is not a spoiler. This is a standard character in … everything. But Booster sells it with authority.

Characters you can't help but fall for

Howie meets Charlie (James Scully), a doctor who is on the island with rich, incredibly snotty friends. Charlie’s a nice guy, but his obnoxious buds have nothing good to say about Howie, or anyone else who isn’t part of their clique.

For instance, Will (Conrad Ricamora), a rich lawyer who owns a fabulous LA spread, looks down his nose at Noah and all of his friends — especially Noah.

Hello, Mr. Darcy.

Not everything plays out exactly like you’d expect if you’ve read the novel or seen other adaptations. And of course there are some elements that Austen didn’t imagine, like a grab bag of a drug buffet before heading out to Underwear Night.

But the spirit remains. And the cast is uniformly outstanding. Even when they face some difficult moments, and they do, the gang’s camaraderie and support for each other is not just touching, it’s infectious.

So is “Fire Island.” There may be only so many stories under the sun, as they say. But Ahn’s film is a reminder that there are endless ways to tell them.

'Fire Island' 4 stars

Great ★★★★★ Good ★★★★

Fair ★★★ Bad ★★ Bomb ★

Director: Andrew Ahn.

Cast: Andrew Ahn, Joel Kim Booster, Bowen Yang, Margaret Cho.

Rating: R for strong sexual content, language throughout, drug use and some nudity.

Note: Streaming on Hulu June 3.

Reach Goodykoontz at bill.goodykoontz@arizonarepublic.com. Facebook: facebook.com/GoodyOnFilm. Twitter: @goodyk. Subscribe to the weekly movies newsletter.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: 'Fire Island' is a fun gay adaptation of 'Pride and Prejudice'