Friday, October 13, 2006

Get On The SHORTBUS

By all means, you have to see John Cameron Mitchell's new film, Shortbus. It's an exhilarating cinematic experience exploring sexuality, love and life. Set in post 9/11 New York, mostly unknown actors (the best kind) engage in graphic sex scenes that help tell the story of their characters. It's an astonishingly beautiful film, intimate and engaging. I highly recommend it.



I love JCM's Hedwig & The Angry Inch and was more than a little worried that he planned to follow it up with "The Sex Film Project", as it was known for the last several years. But Mitchell delivers the goods here. It is explicit, but not in a titillating way, you become invested in the characters and the journey they are on. I can't really articulate exactly what I think of the film quite yet... In some ways, I feel like I have never seen a movie before in my life. I have definitely not seen anything like this before and it excites me to think about the ways this film will alter the cinematic landscape in years to come. In an age where people are obsessed with reality shows that are unrealistic, I think that the impact of Shortbus will be huge. Rarely are films so heartbreakingly funny and truthful. It moved me. It made me what to be one of the "special" kids. It made me want to ride the shortbus, all the way home...

5 comments:

Dale said...

I've been a bit anxious about this film also but will see it because it sounds intriguing and for the mere fact that it came from JCM.

It got a fair bit of press here during the film festival and local talent Sook Yin Lee is on the cover of Toronto Life this month. She also played a tiny part in Hedwig.

It's great when you can't immediately slot something in with everything else isn't it? Sounds like it bears some more thinking about.

Saviour Onassis said...

Who has time to think about bears?

Dale said...

You do.

Saviour Onassis said...

Oh, yeah...

Tumuli said...

I, too, have been clamoring to see this film. Even without a "label" or category it can illuminate. The medium needs more filmmakers like JCM.