''Shortbus'' is a 2006 American
erotic
Eroticism () is a quality that causes sexual feelings, as well as a philosophical contemplation concerning the aesthetics of sexual desire, sensuality, and romantic love. That quality may be found in any form of artwork, including painting, scul ...
comedy-drama
Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...
film written and directed by
John Cameron Mitchell
John Cameron Mitchell (born April 21, 1963) is a two-time Tony Award winning American actor, playwright, screenwriter, singer, songwriter, producer and director. He is best known as the writer, director and star of the 2001 film '' Hedwig and th ...
. The plot revolves around a sexually diverse ensemble of colorful characters trying desperately to connect in an early 2000s
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. The characters converge in a weekly
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
artistic/sexual salon loosely inspired by various underground NYC gatherings that took place in the early 2000s. According to Mitchell, the film attempts to "employ sex in new cinematic ways because it's too interesting to leave to porn." ''Shortbus'' includes a variety of explicit scenes containing
non-simulated sexual intercourse with visible penetration and male ejaculation.
Plot
In New York City, Sofia Lin, a
couples counselor/
sex therapist
Sex therapy is a strategy for the improvement of sexual function and treatment of sexual dysfunction. This includes sexual dysfunctions such as premature ejaculation or delayed ejaculation, erectile dysfunction, lack of sexual interest or arousa ...
, is married to the handsome but unambitious and slightly dim-witted Rob. She comes into contact with a couple: slightly egotistical former child star Jamie and former
sex worker
A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker"
According to one view, sex work is d ...
James, the film's other lead character. At the outset, James suggests to his boyfriend that they
open up their relationship to have sex with others. During their first consultation, Sofia snaps, slaps Jamie, and then apologetically reveals her
"pre-orgasmic" status. The couple suggests she attend a weekly social/artistic/sexual salon in Brooklyn called "Shortbus", which is hosted by
drag artist
Justin Bond
Justin Vivian Bond (born May 9, 1963) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Described as "the best cabaret artist of heir!-- MOS:GENDERID --> generation" and a "tornado of art and activism", they first achieved prominence under the pseudo ...
. Sofia slowly opens up to new experiences; this includes a friendship with a
dominatrix
A dominatrix (; ) or femdom is a woman who takes the dominant role in BDSM activities. A dominatrix can be of any sexual orientation, but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are known for inflic ...
who goes by the name Severin. Sofia's inability to achieve orgasm begins to cause conflict with Rob, who in turn begins attending Shortbus with Sofia.
James and Jamie meet a young ex-model and aspiring singer named Ceth (pronounced "Seth") and the three begin a sexual relationship. Meanwhile, James and Jamie's life is being closely watched by their across-the-street
stalker neighbor, Caleb. Caleb fears the inclusion of Ceth in James and Jamie's relationship might break them up and thus destroy his ability to live vicariously through them, so he attends Shortbus, where he confronts Ceth. Sofia begins to go daily to a spa with a
sensory deprivation tank
An isolation tank, sensory deprivation tank, float tank, float pod, float cabin, flotation tank, or sensory attenuation tank is a water filled, pitch-black, light-proof, soundproof environment heated to the same temperature as the skin, developed ...
to meet with Severin, and the two begin to have intense conversations. Severin begins to help Sofia loosen up sexually; Sofia helps Severin achieve a deeper human connection than she had experienced before. One evening at Shortbus, Severin discusses with Sofia the idea of giving up sex work to pursue her dream of being an artist. The two then have an unplanned sexual experience, and once again Sofia is left unsatisfied.
Throughout the film, James is seen making a film about himself and his relationship. It turns out to be a suicide note. He attempts to take his own life and is rescued by Caleb, who calls for help, but is too embarrassed to wait with James for the help to arrive. He writes his phone number and email address on James' face while he is unconscious. When James wakes in the hospital, he calls Caleb. James goes to Caleb's home to be consoled, but does not contact Jamie or Ceth, neither of whom can understand why he would not call them or come home.
An interlocking trio of scenes shows connections between the characters' emotional problems and their sexual lives. At Caleb's house, he and James have sex, and James allows Caleb to penetrate him, something he has never allowed anyone to do before. Afterward, in a dramatic revelation, James is seen in the window of Caleb's apartment by Jamie, who realizes in that moment that James is alive and okay. Rob and Severin have a paid encounter where Rob asks to be flogged, something he could not ask Sofia to do. As this progresses, Severin loses control and Rob tries to comfort her. Sofia seems to have a dream of struggling through an overgrown, wild forested area to a gentle seashore where she tries to achieve orgasm again. On failing, she screams, and in the real world
the lights go off across the city, seemingly caused by the simultaneous and collective frustration of the characters.
The film ends with a song by Justin Bond at Shortbus during the blackout. Sofia arrives and finds Rob with Severin and after acknowledging him sits down by herself. James and Jamie also arrive followed by Ceth and Caleb. Justin's song starts on a wistful note, but as it progresses it becomes more energetic and positive thanks to the arrival of the
Hungry March Band. This is mirrored in the actions and emotions of the actors. Jamie and James make out on the floor, and Ceth and Caleb start to hit it off. Rob seems to find a friend, and Severin progresses from nervous anxiety to happy elation upon the arrival of the band. Sofia engages in a threesome with a couple (Nick and Leah) she has seen several times before and who appear to meet her prerequisite of "just beginning to experiment sexually" and finally achieves an orgasm, and the blackout affecting New York ends, as does the film.
Cast
*
Sook-Yin Lee
Sook-Yin Lee is a Canadian broadcaster, musician, film director, and actress. She is a former MuchMusic VJ and a former radio host on CBC Radio. She has appeared in films, notably in the John Cameron Mitchell movie '' Shortbus''.
Early and p ...
as Sofia Lin
*
Paul Dawson as James
*
Lindsay Beamish as Severin
*
PJ DeBoy
Paul J. "PJ" DeBoy (born June 7, 1971) is an American actor and talk show host.
Early life
DeBoy was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He shares his name with his cousin, actor Paul DeBoy. He and Paul are cousins of Delegate Steven J. DeBoy Sr.
Car ...
as Jamie
* Raphael Barker as Rob
*
Peter Stickles
Peter Stickles (born October 8, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as the voyeuristic Caleb in the John Cameron Mitchell film ''Shortbus'' and as Damian, leader of a gay vampire cult, in the Here TV original series ''The Lai ...
as Caleb
*
Jay Brannan as Ceth
*
Alan Mandell
Alan Mandell (born Albert Mandell on December 27, 1927) is a Canadian-American actor known for playing Rabbi Marshak in the Coen Brothers' 2009 film ''A Serious Man''. With several decades of experience as a stage actor, he is especially acclaime ...
as
Mayor Tobias
* Jan Hilmer and Shanti Carson as Nick and Leah
*
Justin Vivian Bond
Justin Vivian Bond (born May 9, 1963) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Described as "the best cabaret artist of heir!-- MOS:GENDERID --> generation" and a "tornado of art and activism", they first achieved prominence under the pseudon ...
as vself / Mistress of Shortbus
* The
Hungry March Band as Themselves
Cameo appearances
* Director/writer Mitchell is featured in two shots in the Sex-Not-Bombs Room: the first, kissing a dark-haired man; and the second, performing
cunnilingus
Cunnilingus is an oral sex act performed by a person on the vulva or vagina of another person. The clitoris is the most sexually sensitive part of the human female genitalia, and its stimulation may result in a woman becoming sexually aroused ...
on a woman sitting on a couch.
*
Jonathan Caouette
Jonathan Caouette (born November 26, 1972) is an American film director, writer, editor and actor.
Film career
Caouette is the director and editor of '' Tarnation'' (2003), an autobiographical documentary, that premiered at the Sundance and Ca ...
, director of ''
Tarnation'', as the man who steals some "blondies" off a plate in the Sex-Not-Bombs Room. Mitchell met him when Caouette auditioned for ''Shortbus'' and subsequently became executive producer of ''Tarnation''.
*
Mary Beth Peil
Mary Beth Peil (born June 25, 1940) is an American actress and soprano. She began her career as an opera singer in 1962 with the Goldovsky Opera Theater. In 1964 she won two major singing competitions, the Young Concert Artists International Au ...
as the woman with her hand down the storm drain (Severin takes a
Polaroid
Polaroid may refer to:
* Polaroid Corporation, an American company known for its instant film and cameras
* Polaroid camera, a brand of instant camera formerly produced by Polaroid Corporation
* Polaroid film, instant film, and photographs
* Polar ...
of her).
* Singer-songwriter Reginald Vermue (aka
Gentleman Reg
Reg Vermue is a Canadian indie rock singer from Guelph, Ontario. Born in Trenton, Ontario, he has recorded music under the stage names Gentleman Reg and Regina Gently. His musical style has been compared to Elliott Smith, Aimee Mann, The Smiths ...
) has a song on the soundtrack and appears as "The Albino"
*
Tristan Taormino
Tristan Taormino (born May 9, 1971) is an American feminist author, columnist, sex educator, activist, editor, speaker, radio host, and pornographic film director. She is most recently known for her book ''Opening Up: A Guide to Creating and Susta ...
, a sex columnist and porn film director/occasional actress, is one of the participants in the orgy sequence.
["How to Shoot Sex: A Docu-Primer" (2007): Shortbus Region 1 DVD release (Th!nk Film)]
* Comedian
Bradford Scobie
Bradford Scobie is a New York City performance artist and comedian who performs a wide array of one-man musical comedy routines.
Doctor Donut
The comical supervillain Doctor Donut is Scobie's best-known onstage persona. In this guise, Scobie we ...
(Doctor Donut)
* Singer-songwriter Jasper James, who also appears on the soundtrack, has a
cameo as the woman on whom Mitchell is performing oral sex (on the couch next to Rob).
* Comedian/bon vivant
Murray Hill (on the swing)
* Acrobat-comedians The Wau Wau Sisters (on the trapeze)
* Miss Exotic World 2004
Dirty Martini (doing the strip tease)
*
Burlesque
A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects. star The World-Famous *Bob* (sitting with the Mayor in the Truth-Or-Dare Room)
* Ray Rivas, like his character
Shabbos goy, is known for his blood-inclusive brand of
extreme performance art which he performed at
DUMBA.
*
Bitch
Bitch may refer to:
* A female dog or other canine
* Bitch (slang), a vulgar slur for a human female
Bitch or bitches may also refer to:
Arts and media Film and television
* ''The Bitch'' (film), a 1979 film starring Joan Collins
* ''Bitc ...
, of the bands
Bitch and Animal Bitch and Animal, a duo consisting of musicians Bitch and Animal Prufrock, were a queercore band that performed from 1995 to 2004. They became established while touring as an opening act for Ani DiFranco, and later launched their own highly succes ...
and "Bitch and the Exciting Conclusion", plays herself.
*
Daniela Sea
Daniel Sea (born January 7, 1977) is an American filmmaker, actor and musician. They rose to prominence through their role as Max Sweeney on Showtime's drama series ''The L Word''.
Personal life
Daniel grew up in Malibu, California, raised by h ...
,
queercore
Queercore (or homocore) is a cultural/social movement that began in the mid-1980s as an offshoot of the punk subculture and a music genre that comes from punk rock. It is distinguished by its discontent with society in general, and specifical ...
musician and former circus juggler of
Cypher in the Snow and cast member of ''
The L Word
''The L Word'' is a television drama that aired on Showtime from January 18, 2004 to March 8, 2009. The series follows the lives of a group of lesbian and bisexual women who live in West Hollywood, California. The premise originated with Ilene Ch ...
'', plays themselves as Little Prince, their Radical Faerie nickname.
*
JD Samson
JD Samson (born August 4, 1978), stage name of Jocelyn Samson is an American musician, producer, songwriter and DJ best known as a member of the bands Le Tigre and MEN.
Background
Samson grew up in Pepper Pike, Ohio, and attended Orange High ...
of the band
Le Tigre
Le Tigre (, ; French for "The Tiger") is an American electronic rock band formed by Kathleen Hanna (of Bikini Kill), Johanna Fateman and Sadie Benning in 1998 in New York City. Benning left in 2000 and was replaced by JD Samson for the rest ...
(who actually played their first show in DUMBA) appears in the "Bitch's Bedroom" scene.
*
Justin Tranter
Justin Drew Tranter (born June 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, singer, and activist. Frequently co-writing with Julia Michaels, Tranter has written songs for artists such as Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Linkin Park, Kelly Clarkson, Selena ...
, lead singer of the band
Semi Precious Weapons, is a spectator in Shortbus.
Production
The audition website elicited half a million hits and 500 audition tape submissions. Forty people were called in for improv auditions and nine actors were cast, all before there was any story in mind.
The film's characters and story were created collaboratively over 2.5 years through
improvisation
Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...
workshops with the cast.
Mitchell wrote the screenplay from the raw material generated by the workshops and rehearsals.
Much of the sex in the film is unsimulated.
Mitchell says:
As indicated in the DVD special features, Lee and Shanti Carson each suggested they be filmed having real orgasms rather than fake them, specifically for the final scene involving Lee and the orgy sequence involving Carson.
Mitchell
Mitchell may refer to:
People
*Mitchell (surname)
*Mitchell (given name)
Places Australia
* Mitchell, Australian Capital Territory, a light-industrial estate
* Mitchell, New South Wales, a suburb of Bathurst
* Mitchell, Northern Territo ...
also participated in the latter scene, performing
oral sex
Oral sex, sometimes referred to as oral intercourse, is sexual activity involving the stimulation of the genitalia of a person by another person using the mouth (including the lips, tongue, or teeth) and the throat. Cunnilingus is oral sex per ...
on a woman for the first time "as a gesture of solidarity".
The panoramic cityscape interspersed through the film was completely
computer-generated and designed by John Bair.
In the opening sequence in which
Sook-Yin Lee
Sook-Yin Lee is a Canadian broadcaster, musician, film director, and actress. She is a former MuchMusic VJ and a former radio host on CBC Radio. She has appeared in films, notably in the John Cameron Mitchell movie '' Shortbus''.
Early and p ...
and Raphael Barker are engaged in a session of unsimulated vaginal intercourse, the actress wore a female condom. "They wanted to make sure it was safe sex, and it would look weird if my husband was wearing a condom," Lee explained.
Sook-Yin Lee said she had a boyfriend at the time of filming. She revealed he was "very supportive" regarding her real sex scenes with her "dear friend" Raphael Barker.
Mitchell said one of the things he wanted to depict in the film was a growing sense of disconnect between people due to the rise of
digital culture
Internet culture is a culture based on the many way people have used computer networks and their use for communication, entertainment, business, and recreation. Some features of Internet culture include online communities, gaming, and social medi ...
. Of one of the film's opening scenes where the character James cries immediately after masturbating alone on camera, Mitchell commented, "That, to me, is the strongest metaphor for how sad and lonely today's digital culture is."
Inspiration
The characters all converge on a weekly underground gathering or salon called Shortbus, inspired by the short yellow school buses for "challenged" students.
The Shortbus salon was loosely based on a series of New York social/artistic/sexual gatherings.
One was the monthly "Shortbus Sweaty Teenage Dance Party" organized by Mitchell (2002) as "DJ Dear Tic", his
Radical Faerie
The Radical Faeries are a loosely affiliated worldwide network and Counterculture, countercultural movement seeking to redefine queer consciousness through secular spirituality. Sometimes deemed a form of modern Paganism, the movement also adopts ...
nickname (Mitchell was influenced by annual Radical Faerie counter-cultural gatherings in
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
and
). Other influences include the Lusty Loft Parties that took place at a Brooklyn art collective called
DUMBA (where the film's salon was actually shot), and the weekly CineSalon film gathering, both of which were organized, in part, by Stephen Kent Jusick who plays Creamy in the film.
The still-running underground Rubulad party was also an inspiration.
Casting
Several members of the cast previously worked with Mitchell in ''
Hedwig and the Angry Inch'', including:
*
Sook-Yin Lee
Sook-Yin Lee is a Canadian broadcaster, musician, film director, and actress. She is a former MuchMusic VJ and a former radio host on CBC Radio. She has appeared in films, notably in the John Cameron Mitchell movie '' Shortbus''.
Early and p ...
previously played Kwang-Yi, the
electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...
ist in Hedwig's original band in
Junction City, Kansas
Junction City is a city in and the county seat of Geary County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 22,932. Fort Riley, a major U.S. Army post, is nearby.
History
Junction City is so named from its ...
.
* Sofia's therapy client, Cheryl, is played by
Miriam Shor
Miriam Shor (born July 25, 1971) is an American actress. She is known for her performance in the rock musical ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch (musical), Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' and in the Hedwig and the Angry Inch (film), 2001 film adaptation of ...
, who portrayed Yitzhak, Hedwig's back-up singer/lover.
* Mandell, who played Tobias, appeared as a restaurant customer who receives a "car wash" from Hedwig. Mandell met Mitchell when they performed together wearing radiation burn makeup in a 1987 Los Angeles stage production about
Chernobyl
Chernobyl ( , ; russian: Чернобыль, ) or Chornobyl ( uk, Чорнобиль, ) is a partially abandoned city in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, situated in the Vyshhorod Raion of northern Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine. Chernobyl is about no ...
. Mandell was a great friend and collaborator of playwright
Samuel Beckett
Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish novelist, dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. His literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal and tragicomic expe ...
and was directed by him in ''
Waiting for Godot'' and ''
Endgame
Endgame, Endgames, End Game, End Games, or similar variations may refer to:
Film
* ''The End of the Game'' (1919 film)
* ''The End of the Game'' (1975 film), short documentary U.S. film
* ''Endgame'' (1983 film), 1983 Italian post-apocalyptic f ...
''. They met after Mandell co-founded the
San Quentin Prison
San Quentin State Prison (SQ) is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men, located north of San Francisco in the unincorporated place of San Quentin in Marin County.
Opened in July 1852, San Quentin is the ...
Drama Workshop in the mid-60s which produced works of Beckett, among other playwrights. Mandell introduced Mitchell to Beckett in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
in 1988, the year before Beckett died.
*
PJ DeBoy
Paul J. "PJ" DeBoy (born June 7, 1971) is an American actor and talk show host.
Early life
DeBoy was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He shares his name with his cousin, actor Paul DeBoy. He and Paul are cousins of Delegate Steven J. DeBoy Sr.
Car ...
appeared as the Hedhead with dreads in the scene where Hedwig recounts her Tommy Gnosis stories atop a big pile of tires.
References
There is a
plot device
A plot device or plot mechanism
is any narrative technique, technique in a narrative used to move the Plot (narrative), plot forward. A clichéd plot device may annoy the reader and a contrived or arbitrary device may confuse the reader, causing ...
involving a vibrating egg with the brand name "
In the Realm of the Senses
''In the Realm of the Senses'' (french: link=no, L'Empire des sens, Japanese: , ''Ai no Korīda'', "Bullfight of Love") is a 1976 erotic art film written and directed by Nagisa Ōshima. It is a fictionalised and sexually explicit treatment of a ...
". This is a wink to the explicit 1976
Nagisa Oshima
NaGISA (Natural Geography in Shore Areas or Natural Geography of In-Shore Areas) is an international collaborative effort aimed at inventorying, cataloguing, and monitoring biodiversity of the in-shore area. So named for the Japanese word "nagisa ...
film of the same name in which a man urges his lover to insert a hard-boiled egg in her
vagina
In mammals, the vagina is the elastic, muscular part of the female genital tract. In humans, it extends from the vestibule to the cervix. The outer vaginal opening is normally partly covered by a thin layer of mucosal tissue called the hymen ...
and "lay it".
Justin Bond's line, "As my dear, departed friend
Lotus Weinstock used to say, 'I used to want to change the world. Now I just want to leave the room with a little dignity'," refers to a stand-up line from real-life comedian Lotus Weinstock, a Los Angeles-based performer. Mitchell was friendly with Weinstock and her daughter, singer-songwriter
Lili Haydn
Lili Haydn (born December 25, 1969) is a Canadian-born rock violinist, vocalist, actress, and composer. As a child, she pursued a career as an actress; at age eight she discovered the violin and began to focus on classical music. By the time Hay ...
, before Weinstock died in 1997.
The film playing in the first ''Shortbus'' salon scene is, in effect, an elaborate "erotic" joke. It is entitled "Saverio" and was directed by Mitchell as a tribute to a 70s-era short film ''Calma''. The score song is "Kids" by John LaMonica, which appears on the film soundtrack.
Release
The film premiered at the
2006 Cannes Film Festival
The 59th Cannes Film Festival was held from 17 to 28 May 2006. Twenty films from eleven countries were in competition for the Palme d'Or. The President of the Official selection Jury was Wong Kar-wai, the first Chinese director to preside over the ...
,
where it was received warmly with a standing ovation from audiences and strong interest from North American distributors, despite its explicit content. The film was ultimately picked up by
THINKFilm, who released it in
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
on October 13, 2006.
The film was also released in over 25 countries, winning multiple awards at the
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
,
Zurich, and
Gijon film festivals
A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors. Films may be of recent date and, depending upo ...
. Howard Gertler and Tim Perell received an
Independent Spirit Award
The Independent Spirit Awards (abbreviated Spirit Awards and originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards), founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with acrylic glas ...
as Producers of the Year.
In 2022,
Oscilloscope Laboratories
Oscilloscope Laboratories is an independent film company and distributor founded by Adam Yauch and former TH!NKFilm executive David Fenkel. It also has a recording studio and film production facilities. Fenkel returned to the company on May 4, 20 ...
rereleased ''Shortbus'' as a
4K restoration for the film's 15th anniversary.
The restoration was screened at New York's
IFC Center
IFC Center is an art house movie theater in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York City. Located at 323 Sixth Avenue (Avenue of the Americas) at West 3rd Street, it was formerly the Waverly Theater, an art house movie theater. IFC Center is ...
on January 26, 2022, and was later rolled out theatrically throughout the year.
Oscilloscope also released ''Shortbus'' on Blu-ray, DVD, and as an online rental (a first for the film).
The film was made available on all
VOD platforms except for
Amazon Prime
Amazon Prime is a paid subscription service from Amazon which is available in various countries and gives users access to additional services otherwise unavailable or available at a premium to other Amazon customers. Services include same, one- ...
, who rejected the film five times with the reasoning that the "captions are out of sync” and that the film contains “offensive content."
Critics noted other films that feature scenes of unsimulated sex, such as
Lars von Trier
Lars von Trier (''né'' Trier; 30 April 1956) is a Danish filmmaker, actor, and lyricist. Having garnered a reputation as a highly ambitious, polarizing filmmaker, he has been the subject of several controversies: Cannes, in addition to nominat ...
's ''
Nymphomaniac
Hypersexuality is extremely frequent or suddenly increased libido. It is controversial whether it should be included as a clinical diagnosis used by mental healthcare professionals. Nymphomania and satyriasis were terms previously used for the c ...
'' and
Vincent Gallo
Vincent Gallo (born 1961) is an American actor and director. He has had supporting roles in films such as ''Arizona Dream'' (1993), ''The House of the Spirits'' (1993), ''Palookaville'' (1995), and '' The Funeral'' (1996). His lead roles include ...
's ''
The Brown Bunny
''The Brown Bunny'' is a 2003 experimental road drama film written, directed, produced, photographed and edited by Vincent Gallo. Starring Gallo and Chloë Sevigny, it tells the story of a motorcycle racer on a cross-country drive who is haunt ...
'', have both been made available to rent on Prime's service.
In response, Oscilloscope president Dan Berger stated, “There's no shortage of dicks readily available on Amazon, and apparently, there are plenty behind the scenes too. The prudishness and utter hypocrisy of refusing to carry this film — one that is the height of healthy representation, inclusiveness, and support for a community often persecuted — only further perpetuates abuse and they should be ashamed."
Oscilloscope encouraged viewers to seek the film out on other VOD platforms besides Amazon Prime.
Critical reception
''Shortbus'' received mixed to positive reviews, currently holding a 68% positive score on
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
based on 127 reviews with an average rating of 6.47/10. The consensus states: "The sex may be explicit, but Mitchell integrates it into the characters' lives and serves the whole story up with a generous dose of sweetness and wit." The film also has a score of 64 out of 100 on
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
based on 27 reviews.
Lou Lumenick from the ''
New York Post
The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com.
It was established ...
'' wrote "Mitchell's adventurous, big-hearted, pansexual mosaic of New Yorkers looking for love and orgasms (not necessarily in that order), is a rare example of a nonporn film that doesn't exploit graphic sex as a gimmick."
Peter Travers from ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' commented "If there is such a thing as hard-core with a soft heart, this is it."
Writing for
RogerEbert.com, Jim Emerson said, "the characters in ''Shortbus'' focus on sex as a way of getting through to each other, and getting in touch with themselves. It's a gleefully randy romantic roundelay, in the tradition of
Max Ophuls
Max or MAX may refer to:
Animals
* Max (dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog
* Max (English Springer Spaniel), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of OBE)
* Max (gorilla) ...
' serially sexual French comedy ''
La Ronde La Ronde may refer to:
Geography
* La Ronde, Charente-Maritime, a commune in the Charente-Maritime ''département'', France
* La Ronde River, on the Caribbean island of Dominica
*La Ronde (amusement park), Montreal, Quebec, Canada
*A La Ronde, an ...
'' (1950). Polymorphously pornographic, sure; but it doesn't feel the slightest bit obscene. And that's a neat trick."
He concluded, "And by the time Justin Bond's bullhorn baritone croons 'Everybody Gets It In the End', the thin characterizations and soapy sitcom plot contrivances melt away in a cleansing, melancholy humor, and you notice that something quite magical and moving -- and healing -- is taking place, for real, right before your eyes."
In a 2016 retrospective for the film's 10-year anniversary, Hayden Manders of ''
Nylon
Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers composed of polyamides ( repeating units linked by amide links).The polyamides may be aliphatic or semi-aromatic.
Nylon is a silk-like thermoplastic, generally made from petro ...
'' wrote, "Today…the movie's optimism and shamelessness feel as progressive as it does provocative. Since then, there hasn't been a movie that celebrates the body, and the joys and the ickiness of sex. What's more, it's a story about New York that's hardly told. (And New York stories are ultimately about all of us.) This one isn't glamorized or satirized. It seeks to harmonize."
Public reaction
Some have branded the film "
pornographic
Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of Human sexual activity, sexual subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults, ".
In response, Mitchell said, "I define -- and most people do -- pornography as devoid of artistic intent. The purpose of pornography is to arouse. I don't think anyone got
exually arousedwatching this film", and argued that the sex in ''Shortbus'' is often purposefully "de-eroticized".
He added, "We keep reminding people it's not pornographic — it's not a film that's meant to arouse. We try to de-eroticize the sex to see what kind of emotions and ideas are left over when the haze of eroticism is waved away."
In addition, Mitchell said, "There is a certain provocation we had in mind with this film, but more important than that, we wanted to use sex as a metaphor for things that were, perhaps, universal, themes like connection and love and fear. We just thought the language of sex could be used the way the language of music could be used in a musical."
Due to her participation in several unsimulated sex scenes in the film,
Sook-Yin Lee
Sook-Yin Lee is a Canadian broadcaster, musician, film director, and actress. She is a former MuchMusic VJ and a former radio host on CBC Radio. She has appeared in films, notably in the John Cameron Mitchell movie '' Shortbus''.
Early and p ...
was nearly fired by the
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...
, for which she hosted the radio program ''
Definitely Not the Opera
''Definitely Not the Opera'' (or simply ''DNTO'') was a magazine-style radio program focusing on aspects of pop culture and storytelling, that aired on CBC Radio One on Saturday afternoons from 1994 until 2016. The show's running time varied ove ...
'' at the time. Ultimately, she retained her job as the CBC relented in the face of support for Lee from the public, as well as from celebrities such as
Gus Van Sant
Gus Green Van Sant Jr. (born July 24, 1952) is an American film director, producer, photographer, and musician. He has earned acclaim as both an independent and mainstream filmmaker. His films typically deal with themes of marginalized subcultur ...
,
Atom Egoyan
Atom Egoyan (; hy, Աթոմ Եղոյեան, translit=Atom Yeghoyan; born July 19, 1960) is a Canadian filmmaker. He was part of a loosely-affiliated group of filmmakers to emerge in the 1980s from Toronto known as the Toronto New Wave. Egoyan m ...
,
David Cronenberg
David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation ...
,
Francis Ford Coppola
Francis Ford Coppola (; ; born April 7, 1939) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the major figures of the New Hollywood filmmaking movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Coppola is the recipient of five A ...
,
Michael Stipe
John Michael Stipe (; born January 4, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter and artist, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of alternative rock band R.E.M. He is known for his vocal quality, poetic lyrics and unique stage presence.
Poss ...
,
Moby
Richard Melville Hall (born September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, singer, producer, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "among the ...
,
Julianne Moore
Julie Anne Smith (born December 3, 1960), known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress. Prolific in film since the early 1990s, she is particularly known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in independent films, a ...
and
Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono ( ; ja, 小野 洋子, Ono Yōko, usually spelled in katakana ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking.
Ono grew up i ...
.
The
Korea Media Rating Board
The Korea Media Rating Board (; KMRB) is a public organization that classifies films, videos, and other motion pictures into age-based ratings and recommends domestic performances of foreign artists. Through these rating systems, the Korea Media ...
banned the film from public screenings in
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
in 2007 for its sex scenes and gay content, although it still screened at film festivals not subject to the Board's authority. Sponge ENT, the film's South Korean distributor, filed suit and in 2009, the
Supreme Court of Korea
The Supreme Court of Korea () is the highest ordinary court in the judicial branch of South Korea, seated in Seocho, Seoul. Established under Chapter 5 of the Constitution of South Korea, the Court has ultimate and comprehensive jurisdiction ...
ordered the ban lifted, declaring the national film censorship law unconstitutional for its ambiguity.
Home media
The film was released to
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 kind ...
in North America on March 13, 2007. The DVD features a comprehensive documentary, "Gifted and Challenged: the Making of ''Shortbus''" (Director/producer M. Sean Kaminsky), the
vérité
Kelsey Regina Byrne (born May 6, 1990), known professionally as Vérité (stylized as VÉRITÉ), is an American singer and songwriter based in Brooklyn, New York City. Her first single "Strange Enough" was self-released in July 2014, reaching n ...
-style "How to Shoot Sex: A Docu-Primer",
deleted scene
A deleted scene is footage that has been removed from the final version of a film or television show. There are various reasons why these scenes are deleted, which include time constraints, relevance, quality or a dropped story thread. A similar o ...
s (including a dropped subplot about a character who is the
Bush twins' personal assistant), as well as a filmmaker/cast
audio commentary
An audio commentary is an additional audio track, usually digital, consisting of a lecture or comments by one or more speakers, that plays in real time with a video. Commentaries can be serious or entertaining in nature, and can add informatio ...
. The film was released on Blu-ray in Germany on October 28, 2011.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack was released on
Conor Oberst
Conor Mullen Oberst (born February 15, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter best known for his work in Bright Eyes. He has also played in several other bands, including Desaparecidos, the Faint (previously named Norman Bailer), Commander Venu ...
's record label,
Team Love
Team Love is an independent record label based in New Paltz, New York, founded by Conor Oberst and Nate Krenkel in 2003. It has released albums by several other recording artists. Team Love also released the documentary film by Roy Germano, Th ...
, on November 7, 2006.
Mitchell directed the
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
for
Bright Eyes' "
First Day of My Life" (which featured ''Shortbus'' cast members Bitch,
Daniela Sea
Daniel Sea (born January 7, 1977) is an American filmmaker, actor and musician. They rose to prominence through their role as Max Sweeney on Showtime's drama series ''The L Word''.
Personal life
Daniel grew up in Malibu, California, raised by h ...
, and Ray Rivas). The soundtrack was released in Europe on
V2 with the
Anita O'Day
Anita Belle Colton (October 18, 1919 – November 23, 2006), known professionally as Anita O'Day, was an American jazz singer and self proclaimed “song stylist” widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band appe ...
song replaced by "What Matters To Me" by Tiebreaker (John LaMonica).
#
Scott Matthew
Scott William Matthew is a singer-songwriter born in Queensland, Australia. He was a member of alternative pop band Elva Snow (2001–2006), which he co-founded with Spencer Cobrin. On 7 March 2008 he issued his solo debut eponymous album. His ...
– "Upside Down"
#
Azure Ray – "If You Fall"
#
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo (YLT; Spanish for "I have her") is an American indie rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan (guitars, piano, vocals), Georgia Hubley (drums, piano, vocals), and James McNew ...
– "Wizard's Sleeve"
#
Animal Collective
Animal Collective is an American experimental pop band formed in Baltimore, Maryland. Its members consist of Avey Tare (David Portner), Panda Bear (Noah Lennox), Geologist (Brian Weitz), and Deakin (Josh Dibb). The band's work is characterized ...
– "Winter's Love"
#
Scott Matthew
Scott William Matthew is a singer-songwriter born in Queensland, Australia. He was a member of alternative pop band Elva Snow (2001–2006), which he co-founded with Spencer Cobrin. On 7 March 2008 he issued his solo debut eponymous album. His ...
– "Surgery"
# Lee & Leblanc (with
Sook-Yin Lee
Sook-Yin Lee is a Canadian broadcaster, musician, film director, and actress. She is a former MuchMusic VJ and a former radio host on CBC Radio. She has appeared in films, notably in the John Cameron Mitchell movie '' Shortbus''.
Early and p ...
) – "Beautiful"
#
Gentleman Reg
Reg Vermue is a Canadian indie rock singer from Guelph, Ontario. Born in Trenton, Ontario, he has recorded music under the stage names Gentleman Reg and Regina Gently. His musical style has been compared to Elliott Smith, Aimee Mann, The Smiths ...
– "It's Not Safe"
# John LaMonica – "Kids"
#
Scott Matthew
Scott William Matthew is a singer-songwriter born in Queensland, Australia. He was a member of alternative pop band Elva Snow (2001–2006), which he co-founded with Spencer Cobrin. On 7 March 2008 he issued his solo debut eponymous album. His ...
– "Language"
#
Jay Brannan – "Soda Shop"
#
Anita O'Day
Anita Belle Colton (October 18, 1919 – November 23, 2006), known professionally as Anita O'Day, was an American jazz singer and self proclaimed “song stylist” widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band appe ...
– "
Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby
"Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby" is a song written by Louis Jordan and Billy Austin. The song's first recording, by Jordan, was made on October 4, 1943. It was released as the B-side of a single with "G.I. Jive" with the title "Is You Is or Is ...
"
#
The Ark – "Kolla Kolla (
Nationalteatern
Nationalteatern is a Swedish progg rock group from the 1970s that featured leftist political lyrics. It was originally a traveling theater ensemble with many members, most notably Ulf Dageby, Anders Melander, Totta Näslund, Nikke Ström, Hans M ...
Tribute Version)"
# Jasper James and the Jetset – "This House"
#
The Ark – "This Piece of Poetry Is Meant To Do Harm"
#
The Hidden Cameras
The Hidden Cameras are a Canadian indie pop band. Fronted by singer-songwriter Joel Gibb, the band consists of a varying roster of musicians who play what Gibb once described as " gay church folk music". Their live performances have been elabora ...
– "Boys of Melody"
#
Scott Matthew
Scott William Matthew is a singer-songwriter born in Queensland, Australia. He was a member of alternative pop band Elva Snow (2001–2006), which he co-founded with Spencer Cobrin. On 7 March 2008 he issued his solo debut eponymous album. His ...
– "Little Bird"
#
Justin Bond
Justin Vivian Bond (born May 9, 1963) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Described as "the best cabaret artist of heir!-- MOS:GENDERID --> generation" and a "tornado of art and activism", they first achieved prominence under the pseudo ...
and the
Hungry March Band – "In the End (Long Film Version)"
#
Scott Matthew
Scott William Matthew is a singer-songwriter born in Queensland, Australia. He was a member of alternative pop band Elva Snow (2001–2006), which he co-founded with Spencer Cobrin. On 7 March 2008 he issued his solo debut eponymous album. His ...
– "In the End (Acoustic)"
References
External links
*
*
*
*
*
''Shortbus''at
Fortissimo Films
Fortissimo Films is a Dutch sales, film production company specializing in the production, presentation, promotion and distribution of feature films, founded in 1991
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shortbus
2006 films
American comedy-drama films
American LGBT-related films
American sex comedy films
2000s English-language films
Films directed by John Cameron Mitchell
2000s erotic drama films
Films set in 2003
Films set in Brooklyn
Films set in New York City
Films shot in New York City
Films set in the 2000s
American independent films
2006 independent films
LGBT-related controversies in film
Obscenity controversies in film
Transgender-related films
LGBT-related sex comedy films
LGBT-related comedy-drama films
2006 LGBT-related films
2000s sex comedy films
American erotic drama films
BDSM in films
Censored films
2006 comedy-drama films
2000s American films