In the Flesh

OK, so everyone has said everything about this film that needs to be said. if ANYONE is curious about the songs written exclusively by Wes Yoakam and Pop Cycle, but could never find those songs, anywhere... here is your answer. Wes had 2 bands; one was called "Catfish Jenkins" which towards the end of their run, had their name changed to "Pop Cycle" This was name of the band that recorded the songs for this movie. The other band is called "Big Atomic" and are still around. strangely enough, the songs from the movie have resurfaced on Big Atomic's "Wrestling the Dragon and the Rat" You can find it on itunes, amazon, etc.

The acting was good, especially the police chief, the sister and the girlfriend. I enjoyed the fact that the gay theme wasn't over powering. It was a love story that happened to be about two men. I would have liked to see more of the two other police, they seem to disappear for long periods of time. I loved the bar scenes with all the boys, they made you want to know more about them and their lives. All in all a good film worth seeing.

This movie certainly caught and held my attention. I didn't really foresee the way the movie would end. It was a good movie with really great acting.

Dane Ritter was superb as the "full-of-it" hustler with very low self-esteem. He portrayed an incredibly complex character and gave an honest performance. He became the character "Oliver" - confused, bright, beautiful, articulate, friendless.

Ed Corbin delivered another superb performance as the closeted police officer. What impressed me most about his performance was the way he went from being closeted to being completely open about his sexuality. He, too, plays a complex character very believably, and gave a nuanced performance. He and Dane played opposite each other very well indeed.

The story is a well-known story: a hustler's street life comes to an abrupt end when a tragedy strikes, making him unable to pursue his business. In comes the cop who takes a liking to the hustler. Then comes love. This particular movie shows more than the standard story: it shows that all people are complex with secrets they must hide. However, when the secrets come out - acceptance and forgiveness follows.

Very highly recommended.

This film is by no means perfect: the script is a little loose, some of the performances are uninspired, and some of the characters are a little flat. The cinemetography is barely more than functional. But you don't see a movie like this expecting quick cuts and wacky camera angles, special affects and/or lovingly photographed scenery and people. I'm not a big fan of gritty realism, but this movie was extremely intelligent and sensetive in its handling of potentially ugly people and a potentially vulgar, trashy scenario/storyline: that alone sets it apart from about ninety percent of the "gay" cinema that I have seen. Taylor handles his subjects well, and while this is no groundbreaking work of film, it is consistently and appropriately crafted throughout. Points to the women of the film for turning in excellent performances all around, and to Ed Corbin for the way he deftly handled the moment he asks Oliver if he can just hold him: it was totally believable, and you could see everything this guy had to go through to make such a request. Also, a fantastic, beautiful, haunting soundtrack that I really wish I could find on CD. All in all, a worthy effort, worth checking out.

But this film went on for almost 2 hours. The mystery angle and the love story are never integrated very well, as the former stops dead cold while the latter progresses.

Ed Corbin - jaw tightly clenched throughout - plays a 30-something cop investigating drug dealing at a gay hustler bar, and falls for a young male college student in his early 20's who hustles on the side. The young guy has major emotional problems involving a car accident which killed his former partner, and turns tricks as a form of self-punishment and longing for an emotional void. Good basis for a drama, but awkward execution.

The bizarre thing about this film is that it's a love story between the two male leads, but the only sex scene is one between the college student and a girl he works with at a record store (guess he was experimenting on the side). The two guys never even kiss once! Now that's something you'd never see (or not see) in a heterosexual love story. Bizarre.