An art film from a queer distributor? That usually means a movie has subtitles. The English-language queer art film died with Derek Jarman. Until now.
Strapped was written and directed by Joseph Graham. It was made in San Francisco but that doesn't matter because it all takes place inside an apartment building, "the gayest building on the gayest street in town," on a dark and stormy night. You'll think of Sartre—if you ever think of Sartre—because there seems to be "no exit" from the building for the protagonist.
Ben Bonenfant stars as a hustler with no name/many names who enters the building with a trick, John (Artem Mishin), a man nearing middle age with little sexual experience. Trying to leave, the hustler finds dead ends in all the hallways but runs into Leon (Carlo D'Amore), who greets him like an old friend, although the youth obviously has no idea who he is.
Leon is having a little coke-fueled party with three of his friends. The hustler doesn't do drugs but does do one of the guests, Dirk (Raphael Barker) and flirts with another, Gary (Nick Frangione).
The hustler is good at his job—not only sexually versatile but able to introduce himself to each customer with a different name (Alex, Eddie, Max, Jeff) and a personality to go with it. Calling himself "an agent of desire" (a phrase attributed to Michel Foucault), he operates on a strictly cash basis and doesn't take repeat customers. His tricks are "random. Anonymous. I like adventures."
His adventures continue with a self-hating bisexual (Michael Klinger) who attacks him in the laundry room and a gentle older man (Paul Gerrior) who binds his wounds in the attic and says he shouldn't have trouble leaving: "It's an apartment building. It isn't purgatory." Or is it?
After casually engaging in all the activities we usually consider intimate, the only time the hustler gets performance anxiety is when a client wants to kiss him.
Peppered with references to people and things you don't hear about in lowest-common-denominator gay entertainment, but not intimidating, Strapped is a class act with plenty of sex. Your interest may flag at times but you'll no more be able to tear yourself away from the movie than the hustler is able to leave the building. The conversations are not always absorbing from moment to moment but the cumulative effect is powerful.
I can't wait to see what Graham does next!
While you're enjoying your Thanksgiving turkey, think of the poor cannibals, like Ivan in Scarce and Gus in Lynch Mob (both played by Steve Warren). They don't know who their next meal is coming from.
