''101 Rent Boys'' is a 2000

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

that explores the lives of

male prostitutes Male prostitution is the act or practice of men providing sexual services in return for payment. It is a form of sex work. Although clients can be of any gender, the vast majority are older males looking to fulfill their sexual needs. Male pro ...

in the

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

area. Created by film-makers Randy Barbato and Fenton Bailey, the film depicts 101 hustlers, being paid each $50 for their time, which come from diverse ethnic, regional, and economic backgrounds. Picked up on and around

Santa Monica Boulevard Santa Monica Boulevard is a major west–east thoroughfare in Los Angeles County. It runs from Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica near the Pacific Ocean to Sunset Boulevard at Sunset Junction in Los Angeles. It passes through Beverly Hills and West ...

, the men discuss a variety of things, many referring to their personal history as well commenting on the nature of their work.

Background and film contents

Filmmakers Randy Barbato and Fenton Bailey had earlier created the independent films '' The Eyes of Tammy Faye'' and '' Party Monster''. While the two previous films covered different topics, the

cinematography Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens to focu ...

and general style are the same as in ''101 Rent Boys''. Each man interviewed is paid $50 for his time, and they were picked up on and around

. The interviewees discuss a variety of aspects about the U.S. prostitution trade itself such as their individual physical selling-points, attitudes held toward customers, and sexual turn-ons/offs.

Self-identity In the psychology of self, one's self-concept (also called self-construction, self-identity, self-perspective or self-structure) is a collection of beliefs about oneself. Generally, self-concept embodies the answer to the question ''"Who am I? ...

and

sexual orientation Sexual orientation is an enduring pattern of romantic or sexual attraction (or a combination of these) to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to both sexes or more than one gender. These attractions are generall ...

come up, with several of the men being " gay for pay". Personal life challenges such as

substance abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

and periods of

homelessness Homelessness or houselessness – also known as a state of being unhoused or unsheltered – is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and adequate housing. People can be categorized as homeless if they are: * living on the streets, also kn ...

are talked about as well. Several were molested as children; some men mention feelings of depression and segregation, such as one interviewee describing using drugs "to deal with the fact that" he's "using intimacy as a commodity". However, others protest the characterization as hurting or being made dirty. Each hustler has a large card that describes the number with which he got assigned during the film-making. Additional examples of subjects broached include a

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

rent boy being a former

gang member A gang is a group or society of associates, friends or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over territory in a community and engages, either individually or collectivel ...

, a performance artist in heavily fetishist regalia operating in the

BDSM scene BDSM is a variety of often erotic practices or roleplaying involving bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given the wide range of practices, some of which may be engaged in b ...

, and a prostitute who is

transsexual Transsexual people experience a gender identity that is inconsistent with their assigned sex, and desire to permanently transition to the sex or gender with which they identify, usually seeking medical assistance (including sex reassignment ...

. While the outfits worn and states of dress vary from person to person, nudity briefly occurring, the film itself contains no sexual activity.

Reviews and responses

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' ran a mixed review by film critic Dennis Harvey, who argued that the men interviewed "are there more to be tallied than truly fathomed." He stated that the film's creators "deliver a slick, fussily stylized package that leaves no room for boredom" but should have delved more into the lives of the interviewees, with fewer hustlers being involved. However, Harvey considered several moments rather "memorable", citing for example a prostitute's description of a parent dying of a

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...

overdose that went into detail about "feeling my soul float away" as a result. A brief mentioning of the film by the ''

Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. It was founded by a ...

'' described it as "gritty" and remarked on the frankness of the comments made by the hustlers. The film has received condemnation in the pages of the ''Encyclopedia of Prostitution and Sex Work'', with ''101 Rent Boys'' labeled in the book's first volume as being "an exploitative look" at the subject rather than an honest one. The book asserted that the overall style of the film gets set up in such a way as to "reduce the men to parodies". The works '' Chicken Ranch'' (1983) and ''

Fetishes A fetish (derived from the French , which comes from the Portuguese , and this in turn from Latin , 'artificial' and , 'to make') is an object believed to have supernatural powers, or in particular, a human-made object that has power over ot ...

'' (1996) were highlighted as a contrast.

Releases

The film came out on the broadcast network

Cinemax Cinemax is an American pay television, cable, and satellite television network owned by the Home Box Office, Inc. subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. Developed as a companion "maxi-pay" service complementing the offerings shown on parent net ...

in August 2000. ''101 Rent Boys'' was released on Region 1

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

on June 26, 2001. The DVD release has a feature where each of the interview subjects were left alone with the camera for five minutes to do whatever they choose. In this feature, several participants masturbate. A companion book, also called ''101 Rent Boys'', was released, featuring photos and excerpts from the interviews.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 0252802, 101 Rent Boys 2000 films 2000 documentary films 2000 LGBT-related films American documentary films American LGBT-related films Documentary films about male prostitution 2000s English-language films West Hollywood, California Documentary films about Los Angeles Gay-related films Documentary films about prostitution in the United States 2000s American films

Background and film contents

Reviews and responses

Releases

See also

References

External links