Trick (1999)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

Jim Fall

Writer:

Jason Schafer (writer)

Release Date:

23 July 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

A story about two guys trying to make it in the big city

Plot:

The misadventures of two young gay men, trying to find a place to be alone, one night in Manhattan.

Plot Keywords:

Subway | Drag Queen | New York City | Photo Credits | Piano Bar

Awards:

2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Tori Spelling	...	Katherine
Christian Campbell	...	Gabriel
John Paul Pitoc	...	Mark
Brad Beyer	...	Rich
Lacey Kohl	...	Genevieve
Abbey Hope	...	Business Woman
Becky Caldwell	...	Yolanda
Kate Flannery	...	Ridiculous Writer
Steve Hayes	...	Perry
Will Keenan	...	Dude
Joey Dedio	...	Ex Go-Go Boy
Ricky Ritzel	...	Scary Man
Lissette Gutierrez	...	Woman on the Subway
Lorri Bagley	...	Judy
Kevin Andrew	...	Stoop Cruiser

MPAA:

Rated R for strong language and sexual content.

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Certification:

Portugal:M/16 | Iceland:12 | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIB | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

"Don Hill", Tribeca, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Good Machine

Goofs:

Continuity: When Judy finds Mark's keys, she tosses them onto Gabriel's bed, not too far from his hand. When Gabriel gets up to run after Mark in order to return his keys to him, he retrieves them from his roommate's bed, despite them being on his own bed in a previous shot.

Quotes:

Ex Go-Go Boy: See, you work for tips. Sometimes you make a hundred, and if they like you, you make a hundred and fifty. And... If you do the other stuff...
[puts a dollar in Mark's g-string]
Ex Go-Go Boy: [to Mark] Shove off baby, that's all you're getting from me tonight.
Gabriel: Do you do the other stuff?
Ex Go-Go Boy: No, not since I found Jesus.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Another Gay Movie (2006)

Soundtrack:

Piano Sonata Opus 109

Sweet and Sly Gay Romantic Comedy

Did I see the same movie as some of the other folks who have posted reviews for "Trick"? My lover and I just watched this last night in New York City, with a predominantly gay audience, and we found it a delightful, unpretentious little comedy.

For starters, this is a "romantic comedy", making full use of all the cliches and conventions of the genre (i.e., our lovers "meet cute" on the subway and endless complications keep them apart). None of this is new, but when I see people complain about these plot devices I wonder just how many movies these people have ever seen? All this groundwork was laid down long, long ago in the silent era and certainly in the golden age of "screwball comedy" in the '30s. So, the idea today is to see how well a filmmaker uses these conventions, not to wonder why none of this isn't terribly original! In the case of "Trick", these rules of film comedy are applied very well.

This film is also, obviously, a "comedy of frustration" in that our two lovers want each other but can't have each other. Events and people conspire against them. Again, none of this is terribly original, but it is well played and diverting. I especially enjoyed the absence of any stupid "heart-felt", sentimental and unmotivated moments that mar so many contemporary Hollywood movies. For instance, the relationship between Gabriel (Christian Campbell) and his best gal pal (Tori Spelling) was quite realistic. She was a difficult-to-get-along with old friend, the kind you find hard to move on from. And the relationship (dating, we are told, from high school days) was convincingly complicated. Yes, she was self-centered, neurotic, even ridiculous. But, then some women are (as are some men). This is misogynistic? What, was she supposed to be some drippy, supportive, self-effacing female saint of a best friend offering her shoulder for Christian to cry on? I liked her better as played by Tori Spelling. Incidentally, Spelling has a marvelous scene of hysteria when she goes off in the diner about the cheese fries!

The acting in this film was uniformly good, and quite high level for an independent film. Far from being a "numb skull", I thought J.P. Pitoc gave the go-go boy character real depth and sympathy. He was beautifully subtle in the first scene in Gabriel's apartment when you can see his interest in Gabriel come alive beyond a casual sexual attraction. This deepening flicker of interest easily explains Mark's staying around through a frustrating evening: he sensed there is more to Gabriel and he wants to find out what. Made perfect sense to me. Also (duh!) if he didn't stick around we would have no plot!

The drag queen (Clinton Leupp) has a very funny monologue, also. His presence in this film was perfectly logical: they are in a gay dance club in Manhattan for gosh sakes! Drag queens do hang out in such places! Further, his entrance into the men's room is also well set-up; he sees Gabriel dancing with Mark and follows him into the john to give him some dirt. Motivation: jealousy! I cannot understand anyone faulting the screenplay on this note.

All-in-all, this is a slight, but very entertaining little film that tugs at the heartstrings a bit. And it certainly is a crowd pleaser! To hear a jaded NYC audience hooting and hollaring at any comedy was refreshing. "Trick" is a carefree delight!