On the Bus

When I first heard about a reality show about six gay men traveling to Burning Man on a bus, I was very excited to see it. I am happy to report that it was even better than I imagined it could be.

What sets this film apart from other reality shows is the director's obvious love for his fellow travel companions (and the love they have for each other) despite the trepidation expressed by all at the beginning of the road trip. It is completely opposite from, say, an MTV reality show which purposefully creates antagonism in order to boost its ratings.

This was a clear opportunity for the director to use this film as some kind of vehicle for his own self-promotion, but instead he does the exact opposite, giving his new friends most of the screen time while he took a modest back seat. It isn't until the end that we find out exactly how much love and respect the rest of the cast have for him. And I got the feeling that this praise for the director (Lance) is only there because he couldn't figure out how to cut it out. And I'm really glad it's there.

The shots of Burning Man are great. Anyone who has been to this radical free expression arts festival in the desert will immediately experience nostalgia. And the style of film-making is fantastic. The use of split screen, the placement of still photos and the style of the subtitles makes this movie great fun to watch.

I found myself instantly caring for all six men: Jason, the beautiful, insecure and insightful 19-year-old porn model; Billy, the really hot and funny mother hen; Jimmy, the fey and fun Swedish diver; Charlie, the beautiful, masculine and sweet free spirit; Damon, the witty, caring and repressed composer; and Lance, the sensitive, sweet, lonely, adorable director.

Horrible documentary about a bunch of gay guys off to the Burning Man festival.

Even director Black hates this one! I was "lucky" enough to see it at a gay & lesbian film festival back in 2001. I want to point out something--I usually sit through anything but this was unbearable! I left before it was over! The characters are extremely annoying and incredibly uninteresting. The characters just talked on and on and ON about subjects you have no interest in. It was boring and just went on and on and on. The only enjoyment was one of the guys (I can't remember who) who was in GREAT shape and had frequent nude scenes--but that's not enough to sit through this mess. Black has proved he's a great screenwriter ("Milk" was fantastic)--hopefully he'll stay in that direction. Seriously--this is pretty terrible. A 1 all the way.

I actually enjoyed this--I had scene it on a recommendation list on Amazon.com, but I ignored it for years.

After Black's inspiring Oscar win, I thought I would check it out and I was pleasantly surprised.

I starts off well and keeps you thoroughly interested as the whole thing unfolds. You empathize with every one of these guys and you want to know more...even when the film is finished, you have more questions--I would love to hear about these guys now and what's going on in their lives.

That's the work of a good documentary.

This is a combination of all kinds of wonderful things: Dustin Lance Black, Oscar-winning writer of Milk, shows his skill here by salvaging a reality series and turning it into a documentary, and by demanding variety in the cast. With him is William (Billy) Kaufmann who later worked with Black on The Journey of Jared Price (2000). The footage in On the Bus is from 1998, even though it was released in 2001 after Jared Price.

Damon Intrabartolo, Ovation-winning composer of Bare, plays some of the music for us and speaks of his heart-felt motivation behind the musical, and his uncertainty whether it will succeed. The film is worth watching, even for that moment alone.

Fans of one former late-90s porn star may be interested to see him here under his own name. Or vice versa.

Burning Man itself is a sort of character. I've seen small portions before, but this does immerse you in one group's experience. It's an alien universe, all day, every day -- and the aliens want to have sex with you.

I think it's a fascinating and valuable peek into the personalities of all six men on the trip.