Boys Briefs 2 - A-
By Kage Alan

The first selection in this short film collection is the explicit and humorous “Doors Cut Down”, a Spanish production and clocks in at 17 minutes.  Attractive high school student Guillermo is in his hormonal prime and he enjoys having sex with all the hot guys in whichever place is convenient, mainly the restrooms at the local shopping mall.  Between his father walking in on him and a private English tutor, getting caught by the authorities and having to go to a therapist, Guillermo manages to come out on top and find himself a boyfriend.  In order to stop his kind of behavior, the mall has the doors to the bathroom stalls cut down.

Ireland’s 3-minute “Chicken” is next and focuses on two friends bickering and joking around with each other until a dare is made, which ends up working on two different levels.  On one level, both boys must have a profound trust for each other while on another level it allows them to get physically closer (without being sexual) than they’ve been before.  The 13 minutes spent in Spain’s “Backroom” are a combination of humor, sadness, lust and reviling in multiple combinations.  Men cruise each other in the backroom of a dance club and viewers are given privy to their exact thoughts at any given moment.  While mean spirited at times, the film addresses some very real truths.

In the German production titled “Breakfast?”, a shy young man named Boris spends 14 minutes allowing his heart to ache for his oddly attractive friend Till.  One of the strangest and yet most profound films in the collection comes from Canada under the title “Touch” and runs 30 minutes.  A young man who has been abused both mentally and physically from early on in life escapes from his captor and reenters the world.  Unfortunately, his ideas of what love is and what guise it takes are skewed and the story is heartbreaking.

The final selection, the 38 minute Canadian “Take-Out”, is unlike any of the others in the collection.  High school student Rory runs track, hates chicken and works as a delivery boy for a chicken restaurant.  One of his regular customers is Pete, a middle-aged lawyer who appears to be experiencing a breakdown.  Is he coming on to Rory or is it all in the boy’s imagination?   “Boys Briefs 2” is, in my opinion at least, far better than the first collection.  The films are poignant, honest, well written, well acted and feature solid production values.