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Punks

  • 2000
  • R
  • 1h 31m
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
312
YOUR RATING
Punks (2000)
Punks Scene: Eight O'clock
Play clip0:43
Watch Punks Scene: Eight O'clock
7 Videos
3 Photos
ComedyMusicRomance

The tale of 4 gay African-American friends in L.A: shy, virginal photographer Marcus, outgoing Lothario Hill, hot-to-trot rich kid newbie Dante, and fabulous drag diva Crystal.The tale of 4 gay African-American friends in L.A: shy, virginal photographer Marcus, outgoing Lothario Hill, hot-to-trot rich kid newbie Dante, and fabulous drag diva Crystal.The tale of 4 gay African-American friends in L.A: shy, virginal photographer Marcus, outgoing Lothario Hill, hot-to-trot rich kid newbie Dante, and fabulous drag diva Crystal.

  • Director
    • Patrik-Ian Polk
  • Writer
    • Patrik-Ian Polk
  • Stars
    • Seth Gilliam
    • Dwight Ewell
    • Andre Johnson
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.0/10
    312
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Patrik-Ian Polk
    • Writer
      • Patrik-Ian Polk
    • Stars
      • Seth Gilliam
      • Dwight Ewell
      • Andre Johnson
    • 13User reviews
    • 3Critic reviews
    • 55Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 3 wins & 2 nominations total

    Videos7

    Punks Scene: Eight O'clock
    Clip 0:43
    Punks Scene: Eight O'clock
    Punks Scene: I Feel Love
    Clip 0:45
    Punks Scene: I Feel Love
    Punks Scene: I Feel Love
    Clip 0:45
    Punks Scene: I Feel Love
    Punks Scene: Jennifer Meets The Guys
    Clip 0:33
    Punks Scene: Jennifer Meets The Guys
    Punks Scene: Drama Backstage
    Clip 0:41
    Punks Scene: Drama Backstage
    Punks Scene: How Can You Tell If A Guy Is Gay
    Clip 0:14
    Punks Scene: How Can You Tell If A Guy Is Gay
    Punks: B-Roll
    Featurette 0:52
    Punks: B-Roll

    Photos2

    View Poster
    View Poster

    Top cast35

    Edit
    Seth Gilliam
    Seth Gilliam
    • Marcus
    Dwight Ewell
    • Hill
    Andre Johnson
    Andre Johnson
    • Chris' Boyfriend
    • (as Andre McClain)
    Rockmond Dunbar
    Rockmond Dunbar
    • Darby
    Jazzmun
    Jazzmun
    • Chris…
    Renoly Santiago
    Renoly Santiago
    • Dante
    Loretta Devine
    Loretta Devine
    • Health Counselor
    Vanessa Williams
    Vanessa Williams
    • Jennifer
    Devon Odessa
    Devon Odessa
    • Felicity
    Rudolf Martin
    Rudolf Martin
    • Gilbert
    Marc Avalon
    • Masseur
    Kevin Aviance
    Kevin Aviance
    • Miss Smokie
    Dustin Blair
    • Sexy White Guy
    Rainbow Borden
    Rainbow Borden
    • Wild Guy #1…
    Phillip Rhys Chaudhary
    Phillip Rhys Chaudhary
    • Rodney
    • (as Phillip Rhys)
    Rodney Chester
    • Alexis Carrington Colby Dexter
    Lamar Damon
    • Roger
    Shaun Earl
    • Monique Jeanville
    • Director
      • Patrik-Ian Polk
    • Writer
      • Patrik-Ian Polk
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews13

    7.0312
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    Featured reviews

    8lprdp1

    Risque sensuality and sensitivity from the 4 principal characters.

    I liked Punks -- from its edgy, in-your face "realness" to its touching romantic foibles. The acting and situations of the 4 main characters are believable, a modern-day "Cinderfella", in gay Black-face, a story of friendship and love. Excellent performances by the ensemble cast in general, particularly Rockmond Dunbar (Darby) Seth Gilliam (Marcus), and Dwight Ewell (Hil). Plenty of "fresh" and flesh to keep most viewers amused, while love and reconciliation blossom in a community of oft-misunderstood and marginalized gays. An eye-opener... Nice directorial debut by writer/producer Polk.
    tygar-2

    Wonderful :)

    Patrick, many, many kudos to you for a wonderful piece of work. The screenplay as well as the performance of the cast was great! The story was a real adaptation of much of Black gay life in most major cities. I'm sure many of us have a close inner circle of friends that could easily be any of the four main characters in the story (me personally, I'm Marcus-smile). I also liked the fact that each of the characters had their own separate identities, without one having to stand out as more tragic than the others. Each character was able to eventually recognize, and successfully deal with his own drama, resulting in a positive outcome for all. This movie also illustrated that true friendship is rare, whereas "lovers" will come and go. I think that's a point that many people in this lifestyle overlook. We sometimes get so wrapped up in searching for love, that we sometimes sacrifice the love of our friends for a few moments of temporary happiness.

    Overall, I look forward to the nationwide release of Punks, as well as it's video release-I'm definitely buying this one.
    5preppy-3

    So-so

    Not bad for a low-budget film, but not great either. It's about three black gay males and one gay Latino male searching for sex and/or love in L.A. It is good to see an (almost) all-black cast in a movie not involving drugs, guns or non-stop profanity. Also, this is one of the few movies dealing with GBMs. Still, it's acting is erratic--some of the guys play it too straight, others camp it up WAY too much. There's absolutely no complexity to the characters' motivation or desires; the plot is, to be nice, old and done to death; and the direction is horrid. Also some really bad sound muffled a good portion of the dialogue. I saw it at a gay/lesbian film festival with a mostly black/white GM audience, and even they weren't too thrilled by it. A few good lines and some cute guys help. Still the low budget hurts and the movies not as funny or as clever as it thinks it is. I don't like blasting a movie like this, but I really didn't like it. Still, it's one of the few of its kind.
    1blkman

    What I thought about Punks (2000)

    Hey folks, I saw the film here in Chicago and was more than pleased. But I went into this wanting to like it...and I did. There was only one problem I had with the film and that was that I didn't really appreciate how the Black guys seemed overly interested in chasing white men. That was my only BIG problem. Other than that I was quite pleased. It was really intriguing to see a movie with all the leads being of color, and they were gay on top of that. I kinda felt like I was a fly on the wall looking at all of this. I'm can't hate on the fact that the direction was off (I wasn't affected by it). I'm sure the script could have been punched up a bit, but you gotta start somewhere. I'm glad this brother got his chance to show his stuff. It was very intertaining to me and seemingly to all the other folk in the auditorium (the film even broke while showing, I still enjoyed it), so that can only be seen as a possible opportunity for some other (or maybe even that tall skinny black boy again) aspiring artist to get a chance. I say go see it and go with a good attitude. Don't worry about whether or not the scene was in total focus or not. Take it as a slice of black gay (even if they spent waaaay to much time chasing white boys) life. GO SEE IT, AND HAVE FUN!!!!
    mycalangelo

    A Pleasant Surprise

    When this movie began I didn't think I was going to like it at all. It seemed to be the same old tired and true gay story with all the exaggerated stereotypes. However, as I continued to watch, giving the movie a try, I found a pretty good, moving film. I identified with the main character in so many ways. I thought the acting was good too. I really felt the chemistry between the characters, emotionally as well as sexually. Kudos to the actors, producers, directors, etc for creating a decent movie about the life of black, gay men.

    I do have one complaint. I was disappointed with the climax. It was like a two yard dash. It was like, boom, bam, that's all folks.

    On another hand I must say that the Charlie's Angels reference in this movie made me laugh out loud for a long time. Good one.

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      This movie was the subject of a September 4, 2019, segment on the National Public Radio podcast "Code Switch," titled "Searching For Punks." The segment was provoked first by the fact that the film is now very difficult to find in any format or on any streaming service. The reporters interviewed the writer and director Patrik-Ian Polk, who said that despite the movie's success on the film festival circuit, because of the taboo nature of the gay black subject matter, only one very small company offered to distribute the movie. That company failed to purchase the rights to any of the music heard in the film. Consequently, the movie never received a real distribution.
    • Connections
      Featured in Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema (2006)

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    FAQ18

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • January 25, 2000 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Official sites
      • e2 Filmworks
      • Urbanworld Films
    • Language
      • English
    • Filming locations
      • Los Angeles, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Tall Skinny Black Boy Productions
      • e2 Filmworks
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $160,083
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $14,250
      • Nov 4, 2001
    • Gross worldwide
      • $160,083
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 31 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby

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