| Men Shorts: Expect the Unexpected |  |
Date: Wednesday, 10/18/2006
Time: 9:00 pm
Venue: Lincoln Theatre
Tickets: $9 
Type: Collection of short films
Metro Weekly Rating: 
(4 out of 5)
by Sean Bugg
A GOOD RULE of thumb when you're told to ''expect the unexpected,'' is to take it with a grain of salt.
With those clichés out of the way, the films that make up the shorts program ''Expect the Unexpected'' involve varying degrees of surprise and success.
Attack
(
) starts with the aftermath of what seems to be a hate crime --
a man in skinhead-like garb lies bloodied on the ground, while his
alleged victim, a young black man, huddles against a wall. Told in
reverse, the film effectively delves into a morass of racism and
homophobia.
Likewise,
Implication (
) uncovers something unpleasant, but this
time through a funny-at-first moment when a well-dressed businessman
is approached on the street by a woman who recognizes him: ''You're
that famous gay guy.'' His protestations of mistaken identity spiral
to a deserved conclusion.
Probably
one of the most disturbing films in this year's festival, Bugcrush
(
) focuses on gay teen sexuality in a way that feels less like
Eating Out and more like River's Edge. Small-town gay
boy Ben finds himself with a crush on new-kid-in-town Grant. A
classic juvenile delinquent, Grant is naturally hot and compelling,
although Ben's best friend and fag hag warns him, ''You're going to
get your ass kicked by a bunch of tweaker fucking freaks.'' But it's
not gay bashing that Ben has to worry about. It's something a lot
worse and just all around creepy as hell.
You're not going to see this one coming, and you won't forget it when it does.
guy101
(
) is a story about a Internet-savvy bear and his online
relationship with the narrator. It quickly becomes apparent that the
setup is actually for a joke, the punch line of which you'll see
coming from a mile away.
In
Soft Spot (
), an expectant French woman fantasizes about
the clandestine -- and extremely hot -- gay sex her husband is having
on the side. One of his sexual fantasies goes horribly wrong (always
remember that you can't say a safe word when your mouth is stuffed
with sock). Then the wife tries to bring all three of them together.
And then everything gets very, very French.
Supposedly,
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Funeral (
), but
actually it didn't. And A Sorta Sin (
), which details a
priest taking a confession about gay sex from a teenage boy, is so
totally predictable you should schedule any bathroom breaks during
its run time -- you won't miss anything.
Push
It (
), though, shouldn't be missed, mostly because the
exuberant and totally uninhibited performance by a bear (the gay
kind, not the wild kingdom kind) as he gets himself ready in the
morning while listening to the radio is a gem that will make everyone
smile as they recognize a little bit of themselves on-screen. -- SB
| More information |
Film Links:
· Reel Affirmations details
Festival Venue:
Lincoln Theatre
1215 U Street, NW; Washington, DC 20009. (202) 328-6000. (map)
Directly across from Green Line Metro / U Street-Cardozo station.
Tickets:
You may buy your tickets or passes in advance: Online at BoxOfficeTickets.com
or by phone at (800) 494-TIXS (494-8497). Or you may visit the Lincoln
Theatre (1215 U Street, NW, WDC); the Landmark's E Street Cinema (555 11th Street, NW);
or Lambda Rising (1625 Connecticut Avenue, NW, WDC).
|
For more info visit the official Reel Affirmations website. |
