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Special Features
- Commentary by the filmmaker and cast
- Deleted scenes with commentary
- "Gifted and Talented: The Making of Shortbus" featurette
- "How to Shoot Sex: A Docu-Primer"
- Trailers
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
In his aim to make an honest film about sex, John Cameron Mitchell (Hedwig and the Angry Inch) has taken a somewhat documentary approach to Shortbus, a film describing various New Yorkers' sexual pathos. Framed by shots roving a homemade diorama of the city, Shortbus is comprised of vignettes featuring actors who helped craft this story of people's disconnect in sexual endeavors. Jamie (PJ DeBoy) and James (Paul Dawson), a gay couple experiencing a lull in their relationship, visit Sophia (Sook-Yin Lee), a sex therapist whose inability to orgasm results in her clients inviting her to a sex club after which the film is titled. Sophia's husband, Rob (Raphael Barker), is also willing to experiment, so the two independently embark on adventures in self-pleasure. Dominatrix Severin (Lindsay Beamish) plays a crucial role in Sophia and Rob's lives, as her search for real humanity overlaps with their desire for passion. As each character's plot complicates, the viewer sees a similar melancholy bulldozing its way into these seemingly disparate lives. The depression is repeatedly used in comedic scenes, such as when James is asked on a date while still hospitalized for his attempted suicide. Yo La Tengo's score, which includes Animal Collective among others, lends this film a graceful ambience. Unlike porn, Shortbus has a resonance that encourages the viewer to consider one's own sex life as an important aspect of happiness. --Trinie Dalton
Product Description
From the director of ‘Hedwig and the Angry Inch’ comes SHORTBUS, an exploration into the lives of several characters living in present-day New York as they navigate the comic and tragic intersections between love and sex. Male and female, straight and gay, the characters find one another – and eventually find themselves – when they all converge at a weekly underground salon called "Shortbus," a mad world of art, music, politics, and polysexual carnality. One of the true sensations of this year’s Cannes Film Festival, presents sex and sexuality as never before seen in mainstream entertainment, and promises to be one of the most talked-about films for months – and years – to come.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
272 of 293 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I will admit, One of the main reasons I wanted to see this movie was because of the buzz about it being one of the most sexually explicit movies ever made in the non-porn industry. I didn't really expect to find the movie interesting, I just wanted to see what everyone was talking about.
The first minute or so was nothing but explicit sex and I almost turned the movie off thinking it was going to be pointless, that this was all there was to the movie, but I had nothing better to do so I kept watching.
This movie is not porn, nor is it erotica. This movie IS an uncensored look at the truth about love and sex, and is probably one of the best movies I have ever seen. It is brutally honest, thought provoking, intense at times, and funny at others. These are characters that we can relate to, because they are real.
I can not say enough positive things about this movie, it is art, it is truth, it is exceptional.
It will definitely be a part of my DVD collection.
The first minute or so was nothing but explicit sex and I almost turned the movie off thinking it was going to be pointless, that this was all there was to the movie, but I had nothing better to do so I kept watching.
This movie is not porn, nor is it erotica. This movie IS an uncensored look at the truth about love and sex, and is probably one of the best movies I have ever seen. It is brutally honest, thought provoking, intense at times, and funny at others. These are characters that we can relate to, because they are real.
I can not say enough positive things about this movie, it is art, it is truth, it is exceptional.
It will definitely be a part of my DVD collection.
134 of 150 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
"You've got to pull the bus over . . . You're not riding safely . . . Park."
March 20, 2007
Format:DVD
Strange as it seems, I watched "This Film is Not Yet Rated" and "Shortbus" in the same day. And some part of me wondered ... did John Cameron Mitchell even bother to submit this to the MPAA? Not, of course, because he expected to receive a "passing-grade" from the prudish parents (and the two members of the clergy) that run the ratings and appeals board ... but simply to force the cloistered collection of puritans to watch couples attempting to negotiate their sexuality.
The fantastic ensemble cast is phenomenal at arousing laughter, compassion, and perhaps a few tears. Moreover, in a weird way, watching Sofia navigate the Shortbus haven is kind of like a return to high-school parties: everyone is making out, someone is crying in the closet, a couple of people are watching television, a group of desperate goofs are playing "spin the bottle," and your boyfriend (or girlfriend) is bored. Ohh, and you never leave very satisfied:)
What surprised me was how this film could have been painfully predictable, but was not. For instance, in the film's introduction, Sophia expresses that she has never climaxed with her husband. When she explores Shortbus, she meets Severin (a tortured dominatrix). When the two women bond and become intimate, the viewer is convinced that satisfaction will come from another woman. Not so (thank goodness!). In fact, she is betrayed by Severin's greedy lust. This is an unexpected, painful, and realistic turn for the film. I applaud the fact the Mitchell complicates sex ... there are no easy answers for Mitchell (Thank you!!)
Unlike some of the reviewers here, I do not think "less is more." We have lived with "less is more" for way too long. We Americans think sex is shameful ... and if any films include it, they better be hidden in back rooms ... behind ugly beaded curtains. These films invariably degrade both sexes and they degrade sex itself. This film shows Americans loving-couples (in many cases real-life couples) engaging in consensual sex. It illustrates the complications and beauty of these relationships. Never does it condescend. Instead, it graceful allows its viewers to become welcomed voyeurs ... we learn as we watch. We experience the joy and frustration of these characters. It is ... quite marvelous.
If you are tired of films that ignore the pleasures of sex for women (ignore, or as we learn from "This Film is Not Yet Rated," simply are not permitted to show WOMEN enjoying sex), if you are searching for a film which treats the sex-life of gay men with playfulness and respect, if you are desperate for a film which makes sex "sexy," messy, and complicated, then give Shortbus your attention.
But if films with gay men pleasuring each other and women finding pleasure at all, turn you off ... well, you may as well return to the area behind the beaded curtain. The rest of us will hope that Mitchell continues to build upon his ground-breaking works!
Thank you, Mr. Mitchell!
The fantastic ensemble cast is phenomenal at arousing laughter, compassion, and perhaps a few tears. Moreover, in a weird way, watching Sofia navigate the Shortbus haven is kind of like a return to high-school parties: everyone is making out, someone is crying in the closet, a couple of people are watching television, a group of desperate goofs are playing "spin the bottle," and your boyfriend (or girlfriend) is bored. Ohh, and you never leave very satisfied:)
What surprised me was how this film could have been painfully predictable, but was not. For instance, in the film's introduction, Sophia expresses that she has never climaxed with her husband. When she explores Shortbus, she meets Severin (a tortured dominatrix). When the two women bond and become intimate, the viewer is convinced that satisfaction will come from another woman. Not so (thank goodness!). In fact, she is betrayed by Severin's greedy lust. This is an unexpected, painful, and realistic turn for the film. I applaud the fact the Mitchell complicates sex ... there are no easy answers for Mitchell (Thank you!!)
Unlike some of the reviewers here, I do not think "less is more." We have lived with "less is more" for way too long. We Americans think sex is shameful ... and if any films include it, they better be hidden in back rooms ... behind ugly beaded curtains. These films invariably degrade both sexes and they degrade sex itself. This film shows Americans loving-couples (in many cases real-life couples) engaging in consensual sex. It illustrates the complications and beauty of these relationships. Never does it condescend. Instead, it graceful allows its viewers to become welcomed voyeurs ... we learn as we watch. We experience the joy and frustration of these characters. It is ... quite marvelous.
If you are tired of films that ignore the pleasures of sex for women (ignore, or as we learn from "This Film is Not Yet Rated," simply are not permitted to show WOMEN enjoying sex), if you are searching for a film which treats the sex-life of gay men with playfulness and respect, if you are desperate for a film which makes sex "sexy," messy, and complicated, then give Shortbus your attention.
But if films with gay men pleasuring each other and women finding pleasure at all, turn you off ... well, you may as well return to the area behind the beaded curtain. The rest of us will hope that Mitchell continues to build upon his ground-breaking works!
Thank you, Mr. Mitchell!
144 of 168 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Any supposedly straight (as opposed to a soft or hard pornographic film) that begins with a montage of sex scenes featuring both men and women in full disclosure is alright with me.
That I was witnessing this montage in a suburban multiplex (ok albeit an "art house") eating popcorn popped in Canola Oil and sipping a diet Sprite, sitting next to two blue hairs (who promptly exited, only after it might be noted, the completion scenes) only added to the surrealism of the situation.
Jamie (played by PJ DeBoy with a hang dog expression and tear welled eyes of which you soon grow weary) begins the film totally nude, filming himself auto fellating but blows the scene by doing just that too early.
Jamie is gay and a former street hustler and lives with James (Paul Dawson) in a decidedly one-way relationship: James loves Jamie and Jamie loves himself and says that he "feels nothing, nothing at all."
Jamie and James consult a sex therapist, Sofia (Sook Yin Lee) for help and guidance and during their first session, Sofia blurts out that she has never had an orgasm.
The solution? All three hoof it out to Shortbus: a sort of Plato's Retreat in which all manner of sex is performed in every position by every conceivable combination of men and women. Not all participate, no one is pressured, many just watch pretty much as we in the audience are doing: mouths agape, wondering how did Mitchell get the money to make this movie and more to the point: how did he get it released?
Justin Bond (played by himself), manager/chorus master/drum majorette of Shortbus describes and dissects the Club's ethos as "like the 60's but with less hope."
Director John Cameron Mitchell (the brilliant "Hedwig and the Angry Inch") wants to titillate of course but he also wants to illuminate. And most of his characters do come out the backdoor better, smarter more self aware than when they entered. Not everything works. Some scenes are awkward and silly but Mitchell infuses the film with energy and social and emotional weight that cannot be denied.
Redemption through the cleansing and illuminating properties of Sex? Revolutionary.
That I was witnessing this montage in a suburban multiplex (ok albeit an "art house") eating popcorn popped in Canola Oil and sipping a diet Sprite, sitting next to two blue hairs (who promptly exited, only after it might be noted, the completion scenes) only added to the surrealism of the situation.
Jamie (played by PJ DeBoy with a hang dog expression and tear welled eyes of which you soon grow weary) begins the film totally nude, filming himself auto fellating but blows the scene by doing just that too early.
Jamie is gay and a former street hustler and lives with James (Paul Dawson) in a decidedly one-way relationship: James loves Jamie and Jamie loves himself and says that he "feels nothing, nothing at all."
Jamie and James consult a sex therapist, Sofia (Sook Yin Lee) for help and guidance and during their first session, Sofia blurts out that she has never had an orgasm.
The solution? All three hoof it out to Shortbus: a sort of Plato's Retreat in which all manner of sex is performed in every position by every conceivable combination of men and women. Not all participate, no one is pressured, many just watch pretty much as we in the audience are doing: mouths agape, wondering how did Mitchell get the money to make this movie and more to the point: how did he get it released?
Justin Bond (played by himself), manager/chorus master/drum majorette of Shortbus describes and dissects the Club's ethos as "like the 60's but with less hope."
Director John Cameron Mitchell (the brilliant "Hedwig and the Angry Inch") wants to titillate of course but he also wants to illuminate. And most of his characters do come out the backdoor better, smarter more self aware than when they entered. Not everything works. Some scenes are awkward and silly but Mitchell infuses the film with energy and social and emotional weight that cannot be denied.
Redemption through the cleansing and illuminating properties of Sex? Revolutionary.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
LOVE IT
Raw, moving fun gritty. Great music. I even bought the soundtrack. John Cameron Mitchell amazes me. This is one of those movies you put in when you're having a bad day and need... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Raymond E. Jarvis
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great!
I really like this movie. It has great sound and visual quality. It will be watched time and time again
Published 3 months ago by al
5.0 out of 5 stars
oddly wonderful movie
This is not a move for everyone, this is more of an art house type of film. We all have issues and baggage and the characters in Short Bus certainly have theirs. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Michael J. Burton
4.0 out of 5 stars
short
Not really sure of
I gave this is a gift
Reasoably price Will have to ask the receiver of this gift what they thought of it
I gave this is a gift
Reasoably price Will have to ask the receiver of this gift what they thought of it
Published 4 months ago by Jerry D. Mills
5.0 out of 5 stars
TOP 5 MOVIES TO OWN
THIS MOVIE IS SO FUNNY AND WEIRD AND AWESOME I CANT EVEN EXPLAIN IT BUTITS IN MY TOP FIVE FAVORITES OF ALL TIME AND I SUGGEST YOU BUY IT AND WATCH IT ASAP
Published 5 months ago by kenna
5.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome film!
This movie is NOT for children, but if you are an adult who enjoys sketchy comedies, this movie is for you! Read more
Published 5 months ago by Christian Grubb
2.0 out of 5 stars
Joyless sex plus amateur acting equals...not much
With Shortbus we have sex as therapy and obsession. The story centers on a group of young New Yorkers who are ambivalent to commitment, find sexual satisfaction difficult, and who... Read more
Published 8 months ago by C. O. DeRiemer
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great movie
This is an excellent movie. I would absolutely recommend it to anyone part of the queer community, or a friend of.
Published 10 months ago by Kurtis
4.0 out of 5 stars
Direct and Realistic
Shortbus is a film about sexual relationships that takes both a humorous and very direct almost documentary approach with none of the falseness of commercial porn. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Rob Same, author
5.0 out of 5 stars
loved this movie
this was such a good movie. I let a friend borrow it and they never returned it to me. But this was still a really good movie.
Published 14 months ago by sean
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