A Short View of a "Shortbus"

Last night I joined seven other humans for the 6:15 showing of "Shortbus" at the Guild. The scant crowd enhanced the porno theatre atmospherics of John Cameron Mitchell's film. To me, I guess I'd sum up "Shortbus" as Rent-meets-A Confederacy of Dunces, but that's omitting the wide swath of actual bona-fide sex taking place throughout the first 2/3rds of the film. As for cinema that sticks with you, "Shortbus" is short-lived, but it does serve to emotionally lift and smash the viewer in a way that not only mimics sex, but life.

I could be flippant and say it's the best porno movie I've ever seen at the Guild, but instead I'll be flippant and say "Shortbus" is okay, but nothing to scream orgasmically about. It's also worth mentioning that the cast is fine, but the best acting is done by a fabulous 3-D model of Manhattan that Mitchell uses to glue scenes. Top notch work on the model..maybe the most impressive I've ever seen in a quasi-porno movie at the Guild.

"Shortbus" finishes its Guild run tomorrow, Thursday night the 30th.