a film by Amory Peart 2000 | 85 mins | UK ›› Piccadilly Pickups soft-core porn expanded to feature length duration On the advice of his rent boy best friend Gary, Northern lad Jake exits Piccadilly, Manchester for the bright lights of Piccadilly, London in the hope of making some easy money on the game, only to end up instead making the acquaintance of seasoned hustler Dan; a pretty boy all too keen to introduce his newfound pal to lowlife American porn director Henri de la Plus Oooh Aarrgh and thereafter the world of gender-bending pornography. And that’s basically all there is to it. For with more naked bodies, sex scenes and high heels to be had than what you can shake a porn directors’ megaphone at, this is and whatever way you look at it, soft-core porn expanded to feature length duration. Only here PLEASE don’t get me started on the lame narrative interludes and cheap comical touches to be found, lifted as they are from a host of British television classics. For with a mockumentary styled interview conducted by 'Tristram Hand Shandy,' you know what you're going to get here. Or to be more precise, what you're not. For a film that delivers a compelling insight into the raw reality of the rent boy trade, is not to be found here. Rather we have endless scenes of sex; in the bedroom, on the Millennium Wheel, in a cloakroom, on the studio set, even sex in a sex cinema, in a work that like the majority of all productions of this nature, whilst high on sex, is low on practically everything else, acting ability included. Frankly just what star of the show Alexis Arquette of such commendable features as I Think I Do / 1997 and The Trip / 2002 was thinking when the dotted line was signed, you have to wonder. Then again, the gender-bending scenario of the piece no doubt appealed, given writer and director Amory Peart is on record as hoping that his work would "encourage gender sexual experimentation, discourage labelling and reveal to everyone the true meaning of drag and all his wonders." It certainly encouraged the two to work together again, as Alexis went on to feature in Peart's follow-up film Digital Sex / 2001, only the least said about that, the better. Still you cannot say that this work didn't live up to its publicity hype, given this is certainly Alexis Arquette as "you’ve never seen before." And see a lot - you do! Enough said. available on DVD as part of the Peccadillo Pictures catalogue starring: Alexis Arquette, Chris Green, Spike St John, BJ Wallace, Mason, Jake Darby, Ryan Stone, Shawn Stone, Rod Hunt, THE PORNO SHOOT: Glenn de la Davidson, Andrew Savage, Toby Haigh, Tim Winter, Mark Harriott THE PORNO CINEMA: Matthew Christian, Skunk, Pete, Tony Copyright 2009 David Hall - www.gaycelluloid.com. archive reference #253 ›› previous page | back to top | print me ‹‹