Black Sheep Boy (Gay shorts)
Picture:
C+ Sound: C+ Extras: D Shorts: B-
The new
DVD Black Sheep Boy features the work of Michael Wallin and continues
the trend of film shorts in the format, many of which we have already
explored. Some have dealt with Gay
issues, but this is the first DVD we have come across that is exclusively Gay,
though others exist on the market.
Michael
Wallin’s 1995 film Black Sheep Boy offers
much male nudity, but it is in reflection of homosexuality, not unlike Andy
Warhol’s films. Images that could have
been exploitive and obnoxious suddenly have context, and yes, it is a rare Gay
work with guts enough to deal with the AIDS crisis. That is the high watermark of what Gay cinema
that can be taken seriously, and this deserves respect for that and being
consistent. A little of the sexuality
may go a long way for some viewers, though, but the written voice-over is
always smart enough. It also boldly
explores why boys are such an attraction for Gay men, fetishistic scopophilia,
the desire for a controllable plaything and all. This is a bold and honest film, even if it
seems undermined by a series of young men undressing themselves and even
playing with their bodies. It runs 35
minutes.
Decodings (1988) is a Wallin monochrome
short that also has thoughtful voiceover.
This film looks at the crushing expectations and more disturbing results
of masculinity gone wrong in civilization and society. This includes castration politics and female
roles, made mostly of stock footage and film clips more scholarly persons will
recognize on site. This does not include
any sex or nudity, but there is a graphic shot of chest surgery that remains
so, despite being (or maybe because it is in) black and white. This is about 18 minutes.
The Place Between Our Bodies (1975) is set in the pre-AIDS era
about a man in voiceover who reflects on how he wants to be with men and may
never find what he wants. This shows old
sex shops, vinyl record stores and some nudity.
The latter part of the short involves obtaining that happiness outside
of the for profit thought-police images of gayness that act as a prison for
lonely Gays with nowhere to go. The
young boys in pictures at the beginning are from the 1970s for certain, looking
absolutely under-aged. Footage from that
segment includes graphic masturbation and orgasm, but it is in context to what
the speaker is questioning about Gayness.
It is the most sexually explicit and graphic of the three, as it reveals
the most personal side of its director.
This runs 32 minutes.
Wallin
has, in all, questioned Gayness and its representation in society instead of
just having people show up and be “happy & Gay” with no point. I expected the worst, as I do with all shorts
collections, but this is a serious filmmaker who is far outside the mainstream
and has accomplished an important record of being this kind of person and
living this kind of life since Gay liberation into the Reagan era. Too bad this is an exception in this field of
the art, especially today.
- Nicholas Sheffo
