Testosterone

I do not know the novel. So , I can not compare with original a dark, decent film about loss, secrets, searches and romance, revenge and roots of succes. Sure, it seems have the sins of low budget films. The story is not always coherent, the actors , their name and their bodies are the main attraction, the story is not the very convincing one but, after its end, this mix of love/ obsession story, film noir attempt seems, for very subjective motives, just decent. The flavor of leaves ash in fall - like is, maybe , the best virtue.

Testosterone started as a gay novel written by a gay author suffering from depression. It's a VERY grim, dark tale of Dean who is deserted by his lover Pablo. But it seems Pablo has left him a gift--an HIV infection. He spends the entire novel driving around Los Angeles meeting various dark, disturbing characters and circumstances to track Pablo down. The ending is very bleak.

This movie took the basic story, threw out the HIV angle completely and has Dean tracking Pablo to Argentina to seek closure!!!! There he encounters various hot men while trying to see Pablo. It ends (almost) the same as the book--but this version seems to be a light-hearted black comedy! I know that sounds strange but the tone kept shifting around. I was never sure how to take this. The script meanders all over the place, moves VERY slowly and (more than once) I wanted to hit Dean and tell him to get over it! As an adaptation of the novel, it's worthless. But on its own it's not that good either.

I'm giving it a 5 because David Sutcliffe was very good (and very hot) as Dean; it was great seeing Sonia Braga again (looking fantastic); it was fun to see Antonio Sabato Jr. out of his clothes--he can't act but has a great body (and has a brief frontal shot!); and has a real HOT Latino guy (Leonardo Brzazicki). Also the frequent shirtless shots of Sutcliffe are nice and there's some real hot man-on-man kissing (Sutcliffe and Sabato are straight but they seem very at ease in the kissing scenes). But the meandering script does everybody in. And Sabato is hardly in it (maybe 10-15 minutes).

I really can't recommend this film. I am wondering what they intended--if they weren't going to be faithful to the novel why bother? As it is this film is bombing. I saw it opening night in Provincetown during Mens Weekend--including me there were THREE people in the audience!

This film was certainly flawed and missed some great opportunities to be a lot better but it really wasn't that bad. I watched it from start to finish and that says a lot about a movie to me. It was not art, but I was certainly entertained. The ironic part of this film was that Antonio was really not that interesting on the screen. All the other actors and actresses were far more intriguing and Antonio's character was probably more important than the actor himself. This movie's only true downfall was that it didn't really capture its "theme" well enough to give the movie an overall point. Also, it was probably just a tad bit too convoluted. It's worth the 90 minute time investment, though, cause it's at least entertaining..

Reading these reviews has intrigued me enough to post one.

I truly feel that those who did not like/get/understand this film have never read a comic book from start to finish. This film IS a comic book.......a story, visually told, verbally disjointed....ON PURPOSE.

There is nothing in this adaptation that smacks of the original written work....and that's OK......it would have been MUCH darker with the HIV angle...more like the twisted film "24th Day".....

This was silly fluff, and nothing more than a fun little ride through a comic book. Those that were looking for a cohesive through line.....nope, not there....and that's OK...since when do all films NEED to be told in a strict linear fashion that fits into a societal mold.

The actors gave their roles a great film noir bite, and I must say that the banter was some of the smartest written for a "gay" film in a long time (or have you all forgotten the inane babble from "Eating Out"). Each character was a grotesque caricature...and I loved this movie for that...even the brother/sister relationship.....true ugliness done up right.

The DVD did offer a not so satisfying alternate ending, wherein Dean is conversing with the ACTUAL head (the cooler lid is off) and ASjr. is responding....not so good...much better to have him drive off into the sunset with our imaginations doing the gruesome dirty work.

Finally, the "meandering" storyline everyone is bitching about.......are you kidding......101 minutes...BLAM...flew by....and I've seen this film maybe 20 times...always show it at dinner parties.....those in our circle who get film noir, and who "get" the comic book mode...LOVE THIS MOVIE!!!

Lots of things don't make sense in this film, which irritates. But it's so homo-erotic that a lot can be forgiven. Sonia Braga in full dragon mode, and lots of partially- or fully-naked hunks sucking face. Jennifer Coolidge has the funniest lines in the film, and I love her deadpan delivery in this one. It has the makings of a camp classic, but the premise of the film is irretrievably flawed. Given the final resolution, there is no reason any of the characters would have put themselves and each other through all of this. And the final shot (was that meant to be a twist of some kind?) makes absolutely no sense. Most tragically, no one ended up with the adorable bell-hop! I'd have taken him home in a heartbeat! ;-)