Sex, Politics & Cocktails

Julien Hernandez is a young writer/editor/actor/director to watch. Talented and bright, cute, sexy, and just plain funny, he has concocted a rather stylish coming-of-age film about 30-ish (he's a late-bloomer), straight-ish Sebastian, an aspiring LA film-maker. He has never had a serious relationship but longs to wake up with someone special and hear an affectionate sweet nothing whispered over breakfast.

When he gets a job making a documentary on gay relationships, Sebastian asks his soap-star friend Daria (beautiful Marisa Petroro) to introduce him to 'the boys'. It seems he doesn't know any gay men which, as he lives in Silver Lake, qualifies as a bona fide miracle. In any case, Sebastian becomes friends with a veritable pot-pourri of gay types, all well-played, quirky, and familiar. Devon Michael Jones is hilarious as bitchy therapist Blaire Edgewood (or Blaire St. John, depending on what part of the film you're watching), seriously in need of help himself. Gingerly welcoming his new experiences, which come fast and furious, Sebastian reacts by mugging adorably throughout his journey.

At his first 'swanky' Hollywood film party, where he hopes to meet and impress influential people in his best thrift-store duds, a self-conscious (and drunk) Sebastian becomes ornery, perverse, and ever more comical. His encounter with Billy is pure gold: their alchemy is both genuinely sexy and profoundly funny. These last 20 minutes of the film reveal Mr. Hernandez' deft -- even inspired -- touch in all his capacities.

There are questions of continuity, semantics, and production choices, to be sure. But chalk them up to guerilla film-making where virtually all expense, of necessity, has been spared. Mr. Hernandez' story and purpose over-ride any such quibbles. The message -- free yourself from preconceived expectations and notions of love and where to find it -- earns his ever-surprising, multi-faceted little gem a well-deserved eight stars.