Customer Reviews

Frisk

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

When "Frisk" debuted at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Film Festival it was met with outrage and shock by filmgoers. Viewed as homophobic in it's content and portrayal of gay men, the movie has gotten a bad wrap, but forget what people say and pick up this hot flick for mature audiences and see it for yourself.
A gorgeous cast of hot guys who do nude scenes (most notably handsome adult film actor Michael Gunther in the lead), some tight, if not artsy camera and lens work, as well as a more cohesive storyline that pulls together the arguably complicated tale as penned originally by author Dennis Cooper, make this a noteworthy film.
Not for the faint of heart, content includes controversial portrayals of BD/S&M, underground leather and fetish culture, as well as homicide, suicide, snuff and carries a generally moody atmosphere from the get go.
Interestingly enough, there is some humor to be found, but admittedly it's pretty dark, and while I wouldn't consider this film to be a black comedy per se, it does carry certain elements unique to the particular genre
Cast also includes Craig Chester and Parker Posey in supporting roles, and a cameo from Alexis Arquette as a punk for hire.
It needs to be said that the physical content of the film is largely symbolic to the plot and events (more so here than in Cooper's world), and comes down to a simple theme of sexual exploration.
If you collect art house erotica on DVD, this is a highly reccomended film.

This is an excellent film. I think it is also a tough film for people to judge the real merits of, because the subject matter is difficult, and the word of mouth has been that it is a gory film, that also gives the gay community a black eye. I think all this prevents people from properly appreciating the film.
Its drama folks, its about murder.
In truth it is not as gory as many slasher or recent war films are. And it certainly is not an attack on the gay community in any way.
So get some courage, get the film, don't prejudge it. I think if you do you will see it is a much better film than the(very incorrect!) buzz would have you believe.

This movie is very intense to watch. I orginally got this movie was to see what all of the "hipe" was about when it was released. I am very glad that I did purchase it because it was one of the first movies to come out that didn't revolve around the AIDS issue. When you are gay, you don't have to hear about it everywhere you turn. It becomes part of our lives.

I found this movie to be pretty interesting and welcomed change from the typical gay movie themes. It was dark, gritty and somewhat disturbing at times. The sound and acting were not always the best. I think that the flaws made it much more interesting. It was great to see someone who was brave enough to step outside of the box. I'm glad that there are movies like this one. How many movies can we watch with drag queens, circuit boys, gay men with HIV and hustlers? Great movie. You may have to watch it a few times to really understand everything in it.

Everyone whined when it came out - said it was gory and bloody and slapped the gay community in the face (um, didn't Cooper do that in writing it?) If you watched the movie you would note that there is very little blood shown in the movie - most of the 'violence' takes place in voice over's - two scenes offer 'gore' and not much at that. Changes made to the book are women added to the storyline, and its ending leaves you wondering if it was made up at all. The whole point of fiction is that it can be real - there is nothing wrong with crossing a few lines. It is hard to understand why the book gets consistent five star ratings while the movie gets such a low rating. It would appear that people like reading fiction about fiction. If nothing else watch a movie that makes you think you are seeing something you are not. Obviously if you watched the movie and were upset - really upset - then it did its job - it got a response out of you. How many movies can you say that about - certainly not Jeffrey or the Birdcage.

I love Dennis Cooper stories...i loved this movie. Not for the faint of heart or probably even the Dennis Cooper purists....

the story follows our main character through his strange and dark desires and what might or might not have happened...

the soundtrack has many tunes from Coil and is a highlight for me as well as much of it was never released elsewhere...

my one big complaint was Parker Posey and her cohort....i love Parker Posey, but she substitutes in here for a character in the book who is a skinhead being used by the main character for some muscle and getting dirty work done...Parker Posey is not that person....

overlook that one (big) distraction and you might enjoy this twisted story....

Yeah, it's not a great movie, but Craig Chester's character, Henry, stays with you long after it's over - his sadness and longing for love in all the wrong places resonates. See the movie for Craig, cause everyone else is pretty bad and he's the only three dimensional character. You actually care about him and you just want to jump into the screen and save him! Hard to believe it's the same actor from Kiss Me, Guido and Swoon.

Storyline: Morbid tale of a gay male's obsession with pornography at an early age to what develops into a journy through the subconcious mind of an S+M freak. Blood, descriptive accounts of murder and mutalation. Not for the weak at heart or guts. Comic points are Parker Posey and her hetosexual lover, but still very black comedy. I enjoyed it, but I am a little wacked out myself, so...when and roam. If you dare this movie...enjoy it.

This movie missed the boat at every turn. Frisk was a rough alienating novel where the main characters used S&M sex as a balm for their feelings of alienation. The woefully miscast actors were not up to the task of the complex emotions that should have guided this piece. Parker Posey always wonderful was reduced to playing a stand-in for some of the more nefarious characters in the novel the sadistic germans who assisted the lead in their dangerous sex games that ended in murder.
There's little skin on display for the voyeur crowd - was anyone really dying to see Alexis naked?

All-in-all infuriating and dissatifying.

Call me old-fashioned, but the book is so much more intense than the film..... I rented this movie after wanting to see it for ages but never had access to such movies. I was let down. Parker Posey and her lover were great, but the other actors including the lead man semmed like they had read the script only hours before filming. The book is better, (...) read it. xo