Shortbus

John Cameron Mitchell's sophomore directorial effort is a lot better than his debut (the inscrutable, off-putting, and annoying Hedwig and the Angry Inch).

Shortbus is the typical movie with multiple storylines and characters that at some point intersect with one another. In this movie, however, there is no mystery about what the connections are, as they are shown early on and are part of the overall screenplay.

The movie is sprinkled with very explicit sexual scenes, so if that's not your cup of tea, you might want to steer clear of this one. Furthermore, the sex is both gay and straight, and there's even an orgy in which everything goes.

The acting ranges from good to acceptable, while the screenplay, written by Mitchell himself, feels at times more like a tool serving the director's goal of making a visually provocative movie rather than a means to showcase these people's lives at a certain point in time.

Overall though, the end product is interesting and comes together rather well.

Grade: 7