Customer Reviews

200 American

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

200 AMERICAN has many good things going for it, especially as a first film, made on a very low budget: the story is solid (written by Director Richard LeMay, the character development is good, and the acting is for the most part excellent. There are flaws (some of the worse editing ever attempted, a musical score that is inappropriate at best, and some evidence of shortcuts in the flow of the story that are jarring), but for the most part this film has a rather sophisticated appearance.

Conrad (Matt Walton) is an Ad Executive who has been deserted by his lover for being "controlling" and on a bored evening he decides to find sensual pleasure without emotional commitment via a hustler service, the hustler turning out to be one "Tyler" (Sean Matic whose actual name is Ian). Conrad beds Tyler, finds an attraction, discovers through questioning that "Tyler" says he is a straight man, newly immigrated from Australia, who is forced into hustling as the only means available to him for making enough money to marry his girlfriend! Conrad befriends him by giving him a job as an assistant to the photographer in his agency and there begin the problems of mistaken identities. Conrad's art director Michael eventually falls for Ian and the truth about Ian's hustling background is made clear in a way that impacts all of the characters in the drama.

The sensitivity in the film is the obvious need for people to be truthful in their relationships - at every level from acquaintance to commitment. Each of the characters is shown to be needy, to have dark sides, and capable of change. They are also likeable guys who just want to be happy.

For a film about gay relationships 200 AMERICAN is a positive lesson. Director LeMay tells his story with a minimum of on screen sexual acting out - to a degree that the animal appeal of the characters is minimized and that harms the film. But with solid actors with good screen presence and a script that for the most part minimizes cliches, this is a film worth watching. Grady Harp, December 2004

This is a well-done story of an Australian hustler in New York, and his involvement with an American advertising executive. A heart-warming script by producer and director Richard LeMay and outstanding performances by a cast of talented actors make this movie a real winner. It was made on a shoestring with "no budget," but the film nonetheless achieves the glossy look of a slick production that belies its low budget. This charming movie is a perfect example of what can be achieved with almost no money but with a great deal of talent and creativity. It's definitely worth a look.

This is an adorable movie. It's low-budget and the acting is not
spectacular, but nevertheless, it's a cute story with sexy characters and an impressive, unique plot.

Conrad is a successful, attractive man recently heart-broken. Venturing into the unknown, he hires a sex worker for the night. As it turns out, his hired man, Ian, is quite the catch -- a young, charming, sexy Australian trying to save money to stay in the country. Soon enough, Ian is in Conrad's life every day, though not as you may think.

As Ian moves into Conrad's social life, everyone's issues come to the surface. Love stories unfold and redevelop, problems at home collide with life at work, the truth behind Ian's need to do sex work comes out, and everyone is in for a wake-up call about life and what they need.

Basically, it's genuine, it's cute and charming, and it deals with real-life problems, most of which just happen to be gay, a definite plus in my book. So give its budget a break and sit back and enjoy a film well-worth seeing.

I enjoyed 200 AMERICAN. It's a nice gay film. It's about a series of characters starting with Conrad, who is a controlling man is having trouble moving on from a recent relationship that went sour. He hires Ian, an attractive guy from Australia, for his escort services. Conrad wonders why he is an escord and hires him for a job at the agency he works at. He soon meets Michael and the two start to date. Michael is falling in love with Ian but Ian has a secret about his escort past, and struggles with telling Michael about it. Conrad tries to win back his ex by showing him he's changed, but has he? A nice movie.

Ok, so I am rating this *slightly* higher than maybe it deserves (and I am in good company here). Maybe compared to all films it would rate 3.5 stars. I have a rule that certain films are judged not in comparison to all other films, but to others within the currently sparsely populated genre of gay drama.

The central problem facing a reviewer of gay, non-porn movies, as I see it, is there are not enough of them to make valid comparisons. There are maybe ten thousand hetero titles in existence, and maybe a hundred gay. Therefore a gay movie does not really have to be all that good to deserve watching. A radical affirmative-action concept maybe, but only a temporary one, which I will abandon when there is enough proliferation. The thing is, we don't want to poop on the up and coming gay writers and producers, if they show promise. Okay?

Four stars in this instance means this was an unpredictable, original, thought-provoking film that will please, though other reviewers are correct in saying it doesn't show much nudity. (Hey! that's not supposed to matter!) I like that none of the characters are stereotypes and all seem to be rather well-developed with their own distinct personalities. This was just as good as, I almost want to say better than, any of the *American* "Queer as Folk" episodes, just not as cheap, shocking and sexy as that Showtime product. "200 American" is more along the lines of thoughtful, mature and intelligent.

I don't think the limitations of the plot (hustling...yuck, not my cup of tea) could take this film to the five star level, even within the gay genre, but that's just my hunch.

The plot is promising while the dialogue stumbles. The acting, with the exception of the understated but well-executed performance by Sean Matic, is strained but not not entirely unpalatable. The story treats the subject of hustling with some sensitivity: the guy has been more or less driven to doing it by virtue of being an illegal alien and unable to find other ready employment, and he is treated sympathetically. The cinematography is acceptable. It's an entertaining 84 minutes but not a film I would add to my own collection. The bar is set a bit lower for this genre so true masterpieces are rare. All the same, it's worth a viewing, and avid collectors of gay-themed indie films would not be disappointed.

200 Americans portrays Conrad (Matt Walton) as a busness exec. for an advertising agency, who is out of a 3 year relationship and is just looking for a good time without commitment. Tyler is a hustler looking to make enough money to stay in the States and begin a new life. Michael who works with Conrad falls for Tyler and what ensues is the revealing of Tylers seedy dealings and how that threatens to destroy this fragile new relationship.

To many a surprise the acting is decent and not overdone as in many same sex movies and the men are very easy on the eyes. Director Richard LeMay to his credit prevents the movie from over indulging in sex/sex scenes which bolsters this film from being laughable and cheap. In addition, the script keeps the actors from being overly clingy and needy which helps move the movie along at a steady pace. Unfortunately for the director, the budget of the film affects it from the point of sound problems (alot of background noise), a soundtrack that is ill placed and ill timed, and haphazard slash and paste editting creates a clumsy collage effect of the story. In the end, the good outweighs the bad and worth 5 Americans as a rental.

200 American is actually quite pleasantly romantic gay comedy. Even though it looks like a no-budget episode of Queer As Folk or intended to be a gay version of Pretty Woman, it's got a pretty good story. It doesn't rely on fancy production and lighting or cinematography. Most of the actors are straight playing gay roles. I was surprised to learn from the special features material that the entire cast and crew volunteer for this show, something that I can certainly relate to. The acting is acceptable but not great, because most of the actors are not that experienced. I was surprised that there was no production and wardrobe designer! The movie has some kind of charm about it, perhaps it's because it's so sincere and gimmick free, and even the love scenes are very low-key. I was very touched by the romantic plotline between the hustler and his new boss. There is something about a straight guy doing love scene with another male actor, it's very captivating. Sean Matic did a good job with his light Austrilian accent by the way. It's worth rental fee for sure.

We viewers have been inundated with gay hustler movies lately, to the point where it's becoming a cliche. What is the endless fascination? Frankly, I'm sick of them. This movie did nothing to break out of the gay hustler cliche.

The acting is acceptable and the actors pretty to look at but the dialog is unbelievably bad. ("Hello! One Life to Live called. They want their dialog back.") I admit that I did chuckle at the stuck elevator scene. Sad that some seemingly talented actors couldn't have been given some better dialog.

The plot has no real story arc or climax, in fact seems to change focus halfway through the film.

The characterizations are sloppy. Even some of the minor characters such as Ted and Emily and the foul-mouthed models are as likable and funny as fingernails on a chalkboard. Ian is pretty well-developed but the screenwriter doesn't seem to know where he's going with Conrad. Is Conrad a jerk? Are we supposed to feel sympathy toward him because of his recent breakup? He comes across as petty and vindictive (the blanket incident described in the elevator) and that's a dangerous position to place a major character in. In any storyline, if you have an unlikeable character as a lead and you want to engage your audience, you'd better make sure s/he has some redeeming quality.
And Conrad has none. Maybe LeMay doesn't want to engage his audience.

The character of the grandfather was one of the few bright spots in the film.

In the end, the movie never really answers the question posed in its tagline: "What are you worth?" It would have been a much better movie if it did.

The only good thing are the actors..not for good acting but for hot!! Really handsome guys