Customer Reviews

Trick [VHS]

5 star:		(135)
4 star:		(56)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(12)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

What do you get when you mix an aspiring musician working as an office temp with a hot go-go boy? The answer is "Trick" a charming movie that proves that looks aren't everything. Christian Campbell (brother of Neve) stars as Gabriel, a composer of showtunes who meets the man of his fantasies dancing atop a counter at a gay club in New York. J.P. Pitoc, who plays Mark, is the go-go boy with a body to die for who finds himself and Gabriel trying to locate a place where they can fool around. Due to several mishaps, both men get to know each other's interests and friends, and eventually they discover each other's inner beauty. Pitoc is probably the best looking actor I have seen on film in recent years and his torso inspired me to work out even more. He provided enough eye candy for everyone. Campbell is great as Gabriel, however the two scene stealers in this are Clinton Leupp who plays the bitchy drag queen that confronts Gabriel about Mark's past and Tori Spelling, who plays Gabriel's best friend. Personally, seeing that her father had no role in producing this film gave Ms. Spelling more credibility that she was casted in this film for her talent and not because of neptotism (e.g. "House of Yes"). An excellent soundtrack of dance music will keep you in the mood, and the interesting characters in this film will give those who have never stepped into a gay/lesbian club circuit an idea of what goes on after the sun sets. Except for a kiss between the two main characters and a brief encounter beneath a piano, there are hartdly any references to gay sex. I encourage anyone to watch this film in what I consider a gay version of the "Pick Up Artist".

It is nearly impossible not to fall for this sunshiny movie, with its adorable leads and delightfully romantic and sexy premise: where and when can we finally DO IT? I found myself laughing out loud at the antics of Tori Spelling, who, with surprising comedic skills, nearly steals the movie away from its mostly male cast. This breezy and somehow old-fashioned gay romance is hard to resist.

In the splendidly delightful film "Trick", two young gentlemen succumb to the forces of nature and try to find a place to engage in their lusty mating rituals, only to discover that gold lies underneath the nice wrapping paper. I purchased "Trick" on DVD without viewing it in a theater first, a rare thing indeed, and pleasantly surprised I was. The two leads, Christian Campbell and JP Pitoc, pull off tremendous acting performances by underplaying their parts perfectly. This film could have easily been the usual gay campy fodder, but it manages to walk the line in remaining true to gay life in the 90's and avoiding the stereotypes that plague gay-themed films. Oh sure there is your standard drag queen and older flaming lounge-singer, but they break out of their two-dimensional molds and shine as complex characters. At times, the film is uneven, but you can overlook that when you begin to fall in love with the tale. Even Tori Spelling's performance, as an over-the-top, talentless Broadway actress fits in the groove of the film. Overall, the film's endearing message encourages us to look past the glitz and the glamour of the gay subculture to find the true person inside. I highly recommend "Trick" for your viewing pleasure.

I saw this movie during the summer while visting in Provincetown, MA. I really did not have high expectations because of the quiet marketing. Although you do not recognize the stars in this movie, Tori Spelling was pretty good. She played the leads best friend, and actually...believe it or not she was Good! Although the movie was a little slow, the point it drove home was incredible. It really made you stop and think about what people say about others, and how jealously rears its ugly head. While sitting in the cinema in a predominately gay theater, you could imagine the mixed emotions. All I can say is that when the movie ended, people stood and applauded.

"Trick" was definitely worth the money to rent on home video. I just recently watched it and was surprised at how much l enjoyed it. Christian Campbell turns in a wonderful, vunerable performance as the main character, Gabe, who is having trouble with writer's block and facing his own inadequacies about being a young, gay man. One wonderful scene that l enjoyed in the movie was between the characters Gabe and Mark at the subway entrance. After an argument, Gabe runs after Mark to give him his keys as Mark stands below the steps waiting for some kind of answer or apology. But Gabe doesn't answer and Mark leaves. You feel crushed and then all of sudden Gabe blurts out, "Are you hungry ?" but no one answers. You're left thinking, could this possibly be the end and then all of sudden Mark appears from around the corner with a small smile on his face. That was one of the favourite scenes in the entire movie. John Paul Pitoc does a fantastic job at portraying Mark, Gabe's object of desire. Although l've never heard of the two main actors, l truly believe that we will definitely see more of their talent in future projects. Tori Spelling finally does some credible work as Gabe's bestfriend, a struggling wannabe singer-actress. Although the film tends to drag on too long in some scenes (ie. Tori Spelling's song and dance number), the overall dialogue and energy is refreshing to watch. Some great comedic highlights in the film are between Gabriel and a drag queen in the washroom of a dance club and Tori Spelling's emotional outburst in a resturant. Both Christian Campbell and John Paul Pitoc do a great job at keeping the sexual attraction strong and sparkling throughout the film and by the end you're left feeling warm and happy, wanting to see more. I heard about this film through the Sundance Film Festival and am glad that l got the chance to see it. I highly recommend it to anyone with any open heart for a sweet romance.

Not since the Wedding Banquet have I seen a gay film that didn't commit the all too common sin of taking itself too seriously. this is the type of movie that you could actually take a date to and not worry about being too depressed or upset afterwards to go for coffee. A fun romp about two boys who see each other, want to sleep together and in the process of trying to find a "Trick Pad" figure out that they are falling for each other. Very sweet, I found myself smiling after the movie

I was home in the States browsing through the videos at a store when I came upon "Trick." I had heard about it and heard it was supposed to be good, but I still hesitated. I really enjoy gay films, but I expected this to be just another stereotypical look at gay life. Boy was I in for a surprise.
This was one of the best movies I have ever seen (in spite of Tori Spelling's terrible acting, she probably got the role because of her father).
Christian Campbell and JP Pitoc have chemistry right from the beginning. The scenes throughout NY were realistic and I was glad to see that the bar they go to actually has a mix of people, not just screaming queens, or tough leather daddies. I could relate to what happened, it seemed like real gay life.
What was most touching was that they don't just jump into bed; they talk, Christian's character plays the piano and JP's really listens.
An excellent movie!

I was taken in completely by this terrific movie. Even the inevitable ending was handled gracefully and without apology. Christian Campbell plays a young man (Gabe) whose heart is set on writing musicals, and although what bits and pieces we are given are hold-your-nose dreadful, it really doesn't matter because what we are given is only a beginning. It turns out that this movie's purpose will be to tell the story of his turning the corner toward becoming a whole person. The pivotal event is his adventures trying to hook up with a go-go-boy (played wonderfully by the very sexy and very talented John Paul Pitoc)in the face of one failure after another in finding a place to do the deed.

What really stands out in this picture is the terrific cast and screenplay. Especially juicy are the "grand-scene-and-aria" set pieces of Clinton Leupp, who plays a spiteful drag queen, and Tori Spelling, Gabe's Queen of De'nial best ... friend. The remaining performances are also winning, the main pair each breathing life into characters that might have been cartoons in less talented hands.

My recommendation is to buy this movie because you'll want to see it more than once. Unfortunately the DVD is short on extras - no doubt because films about gay men have short budgets at every stage of their distributions. Still, you probably won't be disappointed.

When Trick was released, it was during a time when the gay genre was emerging. In fact, in the late 90's it suddenly became chic to be gay. A play, movie, art exhibit could almost guarantee an audience just by having a gay theme. Sadly, most of the films were either formulaic, poorly acted, exploitation of stereotypes, or were really soft-core porn disguised as art-house indies, yet we as a community flocked to participate because finally there were messages for "us" regardless of how banal they were. Trick, however, was different. Trick was so different and so refreshing, I actually went to my local movie theater and saw it no less than five times! I now own the movie and watch it at least once a month. I'm not going to bother to go into the synopsis of the movie, as others have already done so. What I will say is that it is a sweet and funny romantic comedy, with star caliber performances (even from Tori Spelling...I know!). Yes, one may watch this and say...a middle aged queen belting out tunes at a piano bar is a stereotype, and they would be right, however between the script, the actors and the director, the audience sees something more than just stereotypes. The audience sees fully dimensional, well developed characters. The story is well crafted and the dialogue is sharp, funny, and most satisfying of all, real. And for anyone who hasn't run into a drag queen in the men's room...your life is not complete!

Trick is probably one of the best American queer-themed films ever to be produced. And it's an absolute pleasure the revisit this charming little movie, originally released in theatres in 1999 and now out on DVD. Taking place in Manhattan over a twenty-four hour period, Trick tells a tale of a potentially fulfilling relationship in danger of being sacrificed when sex happens too soon.

As the movie opens, we meet Gabe (Christian Campbell), an amateur songwriter and artist who lives with a whacked out roommate, Rich (Brad Beyer). Rich keeps forcing Gabe to sleep in the hall outside of their apartment whenever he wants to have sex with his girlfriend. The somewhat shy Gabe accepts this torture without putting up much of a fight. His only solace seems to be the humorous comfort of his best friend Katherine (Tori Spelling), a budding actress and incessant chatterbox.

After Gabe and Katherine attend a rather dubious audition attended by Gabe's friend Perry (a riotous Steve Hayes), Gabe decides to walk into a pub. There he sees hunky go-go dancer Mark (John Paul Pitoc) - whose nickname is "Beer Can" - stripping on the bar. Their eyes meet and there is an instant sexual attraction, but the reserved, and shy Gabe doesn't give the exchange much thought perhaps assuming that he wouldn't be found attractive by the muscular beauty.

Just minutes later, however, the two meet again on the subway and Gabe almost swallows Mark up with his eyes. Mark pretends to be asleep while really inviting Gabe to cruise him even more. Things progress quickly from there, and the two soon pick each other up on the subway platform. After some hesitant introductions, Mark propositions to Gabe. But where can they go to fool around?

At first they try Gabe's apartment, but Katherine is there and won't leave because she has to print 500 copies of her resume. And later, after Gabe throws Katherine out, the macho Rich comes home with his new ditzy girlfriend Genevieve (Lacy Kolhl). Frustrated, Gabe asks Perry if they can use his place for a couple of hours, but Perry has just reconnected with his estranged boyfriend, and needs some privacy.

Gabe and Mark gradually drift through the night, to discos, drag clubs, and diners, increasingly discouraged. Why, oh why, is there no place where they can have sex? Yet something strange is beginning to happen: In their somewhat ludicrously vain attempts to find a place to have sex, Gabe and Mark have developed feelings for each other and having sex at this point would probably destroy the newly bourgeoning relationship that both of them seem to want.

Trick is an absolutely delectable movie. The pacing is terrific, the direction tight, and the performances are spot-on. Never before has a film struck at the heart of the gay scene with so much honesty, vigor, and bravado. As the timid, reserved soul, Christian Campbell is adorably likeable and he provides a fitting juxtaposition to Pitoc's Mark, who is occasionally sour, but absolutely smolders with an off-the-cuff, confident sensuality. Both have a blazing, and fiery on-screen chemistry - you can utterly believe that they're hot for each other.

Tori Spelling is a revelation as Gabe's overzealous and clingy friend who just doesn't get the hint. And her monologue in the café towards the end of the film is absolutely priceless. But the greatest performance in the film takes place inside of a nightclub bathroom, where drag queen Miss Coco Peru tells Gabe to watch out for Mark, that he's bad news, and that she once got certain body fluids of his in her eye.

As the evening progresses, Gabe's encounters with his various assortment of kooky, mismatched friends, allows Mark to see him for what he really is, which is much more than just a "trick." Also, as Mark begins to open up to Gabe, the young musician begins to see Mark as far more than just an exotic go-go dancer. Viewers will leave this film with the knowledge that even though the night will soon be over for these two charming, sexy young men; their sparkling new romance is only just beginning. Mike Leonard July 05.