Zerophilia

This one's an odd one that's actually oddly enjoyable.

"Zerophilia" imagines a world in which a communicable disease exists that causes sexual partners to suddenly change gender.

The change is triggered in macho Heath Ledger lookalike Luke, who promptly transforms into sexy babe "Luca" after a backseat tryst with a gal played by "Weird Science" hottie Kelly LeBrock, whose star has clearly fallen so, so far.

What's charming about this movie is the way the characters so awkwardly navigate their male and female selves. Some humor is tossed in as their friends struggle to deal with these abrupt changes.

The "odd" comes in at, of course, the premise, as well as how expertly the casting director matched the male and female representations of each character. Their physical similarities made the film's low-budget transformation SFX seem like straight-up magic.

It's not as laugh-out-loud funny as you might expect, but is a lot more enjoyable than you might expect, too, thanks to some endearing performances and a sensitive script.

This film is an affirmative coming of age film for a teenage man with a condition that makes him change sex when he has sex.

The plot is very original and innovative. I have never thought about anything remotely like that before! On the surface, it is a film about an imaginary genetic condition called zerophilia. It explores self discovery and self acceptance. Luke finds out that he in fact like guys, tries to change this but fails. Then he accepted himself as who he is, and starts a relationship with Max. This very much mirrors the sexual discovery of adolescents.

This film brings a positive message about self acceptance, as highlighted in the symbolic scene of Luke given a light blue top for ladies. It's OK whoever you choose to be.

The positive message is portrayed in an entertaining way. I hope this message can reach a wider audience!

I was walking down the street when I... anyways I met the director and got tickets to see the world premiere of it at Rebel Fest in Toronto. It should have been in the TIFF, but it didn't meet the deadline.

The movie is "so creative" as my friend put it and I haven't seen anything like that for a long time. Both of us are taking film courses in college.

The premise is the main character has a disease that changes his gender in minutes when he gets turned on. My only complaint is that it's hd quality and not widescreen.

I think most people would enjoy this film's quirky subject, and comedic dialogues. Unlike most films, Zerophila isn't predictable and not conservative. Also there's also some sort of frog motif going on in there.

Great concept, good performances Very original. I saw the film at the Deep Ellum Film Festival in Dallas 21- Nov 2005. Great movie, Funny and a little deep. The film underlies a message of finding your true self. If you have a chance, see it. This film is funny, entertaining and bizarre. Enjoy a look inside a young man finding himself in a way you will not believe. Martin Curland has a feature he should be very proud to show. I hope it is picked up for distribution. Try to find Kelly LeBrock in the opening sequence. Don't hate her because she's beautiful. In this rare coming-of-age comedy that combines elements of magical realism with edgy humor

Without dropping any spoilers - though if you're reading this you probably already know too much ;) - I'd sum the point of this movie as "before you can find your soul-mate, you have to truly know your own soul". It playfully & non judgmentally deals with gender roles, and desires. It's cute, at times contrived - but I'll cut them lots of slack, because this is an unusual plot and moving the story along sometimes takes some real contortions. The cast is all wonderful & likable - even those who could be deemed 'villains' have their own understandable logic. In a world of teenage comedies about finding sex, recreational substances, or adventures involving large amounts of toilet humour, this is anything but a mainstream movie. Still, for those who took the effort to seek it out, it's a worthwhile, and heartwarming watch. Does using the term "heartwarming" constitute a spoiler? ;)

See it at least twice. Once with fresh eyes, and again with wisdom.