In association with

Shortbus [2006]
from Universal Pictures Video
starring Yolanda Ross, Lindsay Beamish, Sook-Yin Lee, Paul Dawson, PJ DeBoy
directed by John Cameron Mitchell

Features:

• Anamorphic
• PAL

Editorial Review:

In his aim to make an honest film about sex, John Cameron Mitchell (Hedwig and the Angry Inch) has taken a somewhat documentary approach to Shortbus, a film describing various New Yorkers' sexual pathos. Framed by shots roving a homemade diorama of the city, Shortbus is comprised of vignettes featuring actors who helped craft this story of people's disconnect in sexual endeavors. Jamie (PJ DeBoy) and James (Paul Dawson), a gay couple experiencing a lull in their relationship, visit Sophia (Sook-Yin Lee), a sex therapist whose inability to orgasm results in her clients inviting her to a sex club after which the film is titled. Sophia's husband, Rob (Raphael Barker), is also willing to experiment, so the two independently embark on adventures in self-pleasure. Dominatrix Severin (Lindsay Beamish) plays a crucial role in Sophia and Rob's lives, as her search for real humanity overlaps with their desire for passion.

As each character's plot complicates, the viewer sees a similar melancholy bulldozing its way into these seemingly disparate lives. The depression is repeatedly used in comedic scenes, such as when James is asked on a date while still hospitalised for his attempted suicide. Yo La Tengo's score, which includes Animal Collective among others, lends this film a graceful ambience. Unlike porn, Shortbus has a resonance that encourages the viewer to consider one's own sex life as an important aspect of happiness. --Trinie Dalton

Customer Reviews:

• Avg. Customer Rating: 3.5 / 5.0

• a rounded view
  Ok the reviews this film has, that say it is 'bad' are perhaps fair and just.
  - but if you have read them and haven't guessed already then this film really does depend on YOU the viewer and your own experiences and MINDFRAME.
  This film is one of those that CAN really work because it can connect to members of its audience on a level much more personal that say a stereotypical hollywood blockbuster (which are aimed at appealing to the masses) thus earning this the title "Art" film.
  Despite my... more info

• Yawningly pretentious, moi?
  I bought this after reading all the rave reviews on this very page and, feeling rather duped, I now feel it is my duty to be one of the few voices of sanity.
  This is simply an arty-farty porn movie. A group of annoying characters with 'issues' talk a lot and indulge in hardcore sex.
  "What's wrong with that?" one may ask, but there is an awful lot wrong with it. Unable to identify with, believe in, or even LIKE any of the characters, it was difficult to care about any of 'em.
  "But what... more info

• Muck, muck, muck...oh no wait it's a good film too!
  So it begins with a man pleasuring himself into his own mouth - that pretty much sets the tone of the entire movie. It's a tale of love and relationships focussing mainly on sex. It pulls no punches and I found the characters all to be pretty realistic. I wonder if it had been made without the explicit sex scenes, would it still be a good film?

• Different.
  A interesting film,at three for a tenner a bargain.The sex is not as bad as people are saying and it is funny,what do you want for this price,an epic?

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