Digitally Disillusioned

On Saturday night the wife and I curled up in a ball to watch Shortbus, the controversial new film from John Cameron Mitchell. If you are savvy with films you might remember him as the mind behind Hedwig and the Angry Inch, but truth be told I didn’t see that and you probably didn’t either.

Shortbus made a bit of a splash in the Canadian cultural consciousness as it stars Canadian media princess Sook Yin Lee in what some would say is a compromising position. Indeed, some felt she was so compromised that she nearly lost her position as prominent radio host and pop culture commentator with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. What could have gotten everyones panties in a bunch? Well, you could say it was Sook Yins panties, or lack thereof.

You see Shortbus is a story of understanding the self, of understanding ones true needs and motivations, and understanding how the world around you interacts with that exploration yet we alone are responsible for the interaction. Golly, that doesn’t sound controversial at all, does it? It’s also my own take on the subject matter, material which by all accounts is pretty volatile. You see, sexuality is the primary language of the psychological dialogue, and the film bravely ensures the honesty of the discourse by displaying actual acts of sexual expression. In blunt layman’s terms: she almost got fired for having sex - very openly on film.

Some people would call this pornography, but while explicit it lands nowhere near the realm of the obscene. Indeed it is an extraordinarily fresh use of sexual themes: instead of being exploitative and lascivious, the inclusion of explicit sex is a critical element to the story. Certainly you could tell a similar story in a more conservative fashion, but insinuating that as a preferable outcome would overlook the sort of story that could only be told by filming a man trying to orally pleasure himself culminating in, well, a very messy situation. “Was that the first time someone sang the Star Spangled Banner into your ass?”, one character asks another post-coitus. “No”, is the honest, almost dismissive, reply. And then we cut away quickly.

The sheer number of interesting characters within Shortbus almost make you wish it was an anthology, but instead it follows two intertwined threads and two intertwined couples. James (Paul Dawson) and Jamie (PJ De Boy) are a gay couple dealing with a crisis. James is trying hard to deal with feelings of alienation and solipsism which has an indelible effect on the relationship. They seek out sex therapist - sorry, couples counsellor - Sofia (Sook Yin Lee) who almost too quickly confides in the darling gay duo that she is unable to come to orgasm herself, thus alluding to her own relationship problems with simple and apathetic husband Rob (Raphael Barker). This leads all parties (perhaps inexplicably) to Shortbus, a place of solace, socialization, artistry, and sex. Part-time dominatrix Severin (Lindsay Beamish) rounds out the essential cast.

The film does nothing to shy away from sexual encounters, but I found that it was only to show how integral sexual expression was to all the characters in the film. This I think reflects a very true and neglected chord in society. While explicit, it felt poetic, and perhaps it was just the quality of the cinematography but I frequently found myself completely ambivalent to the genitalia swinging across the screen.

But I suppose I come from a background where the situation with the national anthem described above is not innately shocking, and it would be negligent to assume this is a common sort of background for people to have. So really, I have no idea how you may react to viewing Shortbus, how challenging you may find some of the visuals, how abrupt you may find some of the experiences. And it is impossible to describe much of the scenario within the film without being explicit. Not only do I not want to put on a freak show and scare people off, this is really not the most appropriate venue for that kind of explanation.

So instead I will leave this with my strongest recommendations for the brave of heart and stout of soul. This is an excellent story wrapped necessarily beneath a thick veneer of explicit sexuality. Your mileage may vary, but I think you owe yourself an attempt to get on the Shortbus.