In the Flesh

I knew nothing about this movie other than the blurb I read at Netflix. I was intrigued by the promise of a relationship between a cop and a hustler. I must say that, overall, the film delivered.

In brief, a police department thinks that there might be some drug sales going on at a boy bar. While this premise is not enough to get excited about, when Philip (Ed Corbin) is sent as an undercover cop to discover what's really going on, he has to fight his attraction to one of the bar's boys, Oliver (Dane Ritter).

The suggestion of an intense sexual relationship between the two, that may or may not ever be consummated, keeps the excitement level high. That, with a murder, a heavy-duty alibi, a semi-tragic subplot and a left-hook-to-the-jaw surprise towards the end were enough to keep me on the edge of my seat.

There were a couple of cliché moments, a couple of unbelievable moments (when Oliver opens his front door without looking through the peephole) and for some reason the writer/director felt compelled to throw in a few humorous bits/lines, especially in the beginning, which really didn't work. But overall, I thought this movie was really worth watching. The two leads looked more like father and son, and it did take a while to get used to their relationship, but the beauty of it is that it seemed that it could have been real.

I applaud the producers for taking a chance on this film without big Hollywood stars and for really piecing together a story about a sad, tragic world which seems like it can only destroy all who inhabit it.

The scale is small and the results not especially impressive but this earnest, thoughtfully-made movie has a sure grip on its story and characters and never loses its focus. I would have preferred the sex between the hustler and the cop to be a bit more explicit, and it would have helped had Ed Corbin (the cop) not relied so much on that deer-caught-in-the-headlights expression, but the overall effect is respectable enough to make me look forward to the writer/director's next project.

This movie certainly caught and held my attention. I didn't really foresee the way the movie would end. It was a good movie with really great acting.

Dane Ritter was superb as the "full-of-it" hustler with very low self-esteem. He portrayed an incredibly complex character and gave an honest performance. He became the character "Oliver" - confused, bright, beautiful, articulate, friendless.

Ed Corbin delivered another superb performance as the closeted police officer. What impressed me most about his performance was the way he went from being closeted to being completely open about his sexuality. He, too, plays a complex character very believably, and gave a nuanced performance. He and Dane played opposite each other very well indeed.

The story is a well-known story: a hustler's street life comes to an abrupt end when a tragedy strikes, making him unable to pursue his business. In comes the cop who takes a liking to the hustler. Then comes love. This particular movie shows more than the standard story: it shows that all people are complex with secrets they must hide. However, when the secrets come out - acceptance and forgiveness follows.

Very highly recommended.

OK, so everyone has said everything about this film that needs to be said. if ANYONE is curious about the songs written exclusively by Wes Yoakam and Pop Cycle, but could never find those songs, anywhere... here is your answer. Wes had 2 bands; one was called "Catfish Jenkins" which towards the end of their run, had their name changed to "Pop Cycle" This was name of the band that recorded the songs for this movie. The other band is called "Big Atomic" and are still around. strangely enough, the songs from the movie have resurfaced on Big Atomic's "Wrestling the Dragon and the Rat" You can find it on itunes, amazon, etc.

After a very disheartening beginning this story moves quickly (but not quickly enough) towards what it is really all about: trust between men. Ben Taylor chose a stalking killer as a plot device, unfortunately the identity of the killer is not much of a mystery. Nevertheless the main focus really is the two male leads and their coming together is explored in ways you don't often get to see in gay-themed films. High praise to Taylor for making an effort to present us with something a little bit different. The two male leads (Ritter and Corbin) are very good together and their performances are far better than I ever expected them to be. Sometimes the script-director is to be thanked, but very often it seems to be the determination and commitment of the actors who pull the film up by its boot straps. Dane Ritter is rivetting. He seems to hit every mark that the story sets for him. All in all, a film that is well worth seeing ... if you can get past the first several minutes.