As a timely reminder of the permits of unsafe sex, here writer and director John McCrite delivers a poignant tale that perfectly illustrates how in the heat of the moment, condoms are all too often cast to the wind.
And it all revolves around thirty-something Michael, single again following the death of his long-term partner from AIDS and who following a drink at a local bar succumbs to the charms of a stranger, only to end up having unprotected sex with him, fuelled on drink, drugs and images of hardcore sex. Yet when they both hit their sexual high, just what are they left with the morning after; a memory of a one-night stand or something far more pronounced?
For that is the crux of the story. One that sees Malcolm Gets of Adam & Steve fame give a compelling portrayal of a man desperately trying to escape the bitter loneliness and sheer relationship void that goes hand-in-hand with bereavement. It is a performance that is matched by Adam Bloch who is every inch the rampant stud of the piece, out of sex, if not a crystal induced high if he can get it.
That McCrite based his story on the loss of a close friend to AIDS, cannot help but make it an all the more personal work. And yet it gets weighed down in its storytelling, as one too many anecdotes distract from the serious point it is trying to make, namely the year-on-year increase in cases of newly diagnosed HIV infections.
Nevertheless it is well-shot throughout. For like the Robin Baker short Seafood, this is a work that takes delight in depicting the opposing desires of romance and sex of two gay men, only to add in the emotional mix a sermon on unsafe sex. And for that McCrite is to be applauded.
Was available on DVD as part of the dearly missed Picture This! catalogue - 'Boys Briefs #3' release
starring: Malcolm Gets, Adam Bloch, Paul Denniston, Edward E Cohen
As a timely reminder of the permits of unsafe sex, here writer and director John McCrite delivers a poignant tale that perfectly illustrates how in the heat of the moment, condoms are all too often cast to the wind.
