Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Well worth a closer look, 29 April 2006
Between them, PPR and TLA seem to have cornered the market in gay films, and Circuit is yet another highly-recommended gem from the PPR stable (see also 'Summer Storm', 'Krampack', 'Sugar', 'Close to Leo' and 'You'll Get Over It').
I was delighted to have my preconceptions about this film proved wrong. I had my doubts as to how deep a drug-fuelled LA circuit-party movie could be, thinking that perhaps the basis of its attraction would simply be a few half-naked sweating bodies and some high-octane sex. Well, Circuit definitely offers these things - having managed to assemble not only a hot-looking cast (Andre Khabbazi and Paul Lekakis in particular) but also some talented actors - but it additionally offers a tumultuous journey into the lethal attraction of drug use, and a stark examination of the gay obsession with youth and beauty.
After a homophobic incident, John, a closeted and uptight small town policeman, transfers to LA, where he is immediately seduced by the laid back, anything-goes environment. From the moment of his arrival in LA where we see him cruising down Sunset, laughing in amazed disbelief at the openness of the gay couples holding hands in the streets and the unrepentant brashness of West Hollywood, it is clear that his repressed soul is about to explode out of the closet with a vengeance. A chance meeting with a stunning hustler (Andre Khabbazi) becomes a friendship that will unalterably turn his life, and his principles, into something unrecognizable. So begins the descent into a mindless whirlwind of pumping muscles at the gym, pumping drugs into his body, pumping his body to the beat of the party circuit, and frenzied pumping with various strangers.
Inevitably there are consequences to John's conversion, and a toll will be borne on his old friendships and his physical and mental well-being. Less predictable, however, are the many other elements to this film - the ruthless movers and shakes behind the party scene who will do whatever it takes to reel in an extra dollar, the suggestion that it is possible (for some at least) to build a substantive life outside the drug/party circuit, and addressing the primordial status of youth and beauty as the sine qua non of a meaningful gay existence.
This really is an excellent film, and the only reason it didn't get 5 stars was because it did not have that heart-wrenching factor that I, personally, look for. Nevertheless, I have watched it several times now, and highly recommend it. Well-acted, thought-provoking, harsh and occasionally disturbing (wait and see how Paul Lekakis's character prepares for a performance - ouch!!), this is definitely a film that you will want to watch again.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Misguided and vacuous , 20 Feb 2008
I expected a really good film here and got a confused and strangely empty experience instead. Certainly it looks great, the actors are chiselled, buffed and pumped up within an inch of their lives so there's certainly no lack of eye candy. Unfortunately the acting skills do not match the visuals, the script is really weak and as such the film just becomes a series of ineffective montages. It lacks coherence and depth. One scene where the dj listens to music, purses his lips and watches as an ex couple fight - the camera technique is laughably cringeworthy and cliched. None of it rings true. We are not given enough to believe in or empathise with any of them and as for the main character's misplaced attactment to the pretty hateful and misogynistic hustler, that just serves to make him seem all the more shallow. I was completely lost as to why the character making a documentary was even included other than a facile and misfired technique to try and get beneath the characters flawless skin, that and why on earth he would need so much money up front to just carry a camcorder around? Dont get me wrong, I was desperately trying to root for them all and get into their psyches, but the film meanders along without any plot intrique to pull you in. Its a big "so what" really, nothing new is uncovered, we know drugs and endless partying can be soul destroying, dangerous and time limited, we dont need a really long film like this to tell us. Alot rests on the main character and he really does not have that skill - his acting is far too self conscious and lacks conviction. It's all like watching a poor dress rehearsal - and the women are strangely one dimensional. I got far more from the documentary on the same topic "When boys fly" which was powerful, involving and effective. Try that instead, this really offers nothing more than temporary eye candy.
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