I was rather surprised that I didn't see this film when it first came out more than ten years ago, because it's on the level of compelling drama as My Own Private Idahol(River Phoenix). Having recently worked with Lukas Haas in The Stillborn(a horror film kind of like The Sixth Sense), I was quite eager to check out what he was like in terms of acting when he was 19 years old. I didn't quite expect to see David Arquette play a hustler, but it's convincing enough because his character is straight and he's "gay for pay". I must say that overall, this film is more touching than My Own Private Own Idahol, but it's kind of lower-budget and has a documentary feel to it.
Lukas Haas plays Donner, a ranaway/disowned wealthy son of a businessman. He's down and out in L.A. and befriends a more experienced street hustler John,played David Arquette. Donner goes through "dates" that John had seen many times before and they share a strong bond dispite their different sexual orientations. Donner eventually considers leaving the street life, but he must save enough money to buy his ticket. John wanted to go with Donner, but his hope for a new life gets jepardized when he got picked up by his last date, a homophobic trucker....
I was quite surprised that Arquette was willing to do a lot of sexy scenes like kissing and seductively dancing, and simultated oral sex with other men. Lukas Haas' role is less challenging compared to Arquette, but his performance was still very real. I loved the scene when he got picked up by elderly client and he got smacked until he was nose-bleeding. He had more dramatic and moving moments at the end of the film. I noticed that even Terence Howard Stamp played a supporting role as a gay pimp. |
Johns [Region 2] dvd movie.![Johns [Region 2]](/pictures/Johns-Region.jpg)