Shortbus


Shortbus is a 2006 American erotic comedy-drama film written and directed by John Cameron Mitchell. The plot revolves around a sexually diverse ensemble of colorful characters trying desperately to connect in New York City. The characters converge in a weekly Brooklyn 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

Set in contemporary New York City, Shortbus revolves around Sofia Lin, who is married to the handsome but unambitious and slightly dim-witted Rob. She works as a couples counselor/sex therapist. She comes into contact with a couple: A slightly egotistical former child star Jamie and former prostitute James, the film's other lead character. At the outset, James suggests to his boyfriend that they open up their relationship to 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. Sofia slowly opens up to new experiences; this includes a friendship with a dominatrix 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 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 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 wouldn't call them or come home.
There follows an interlocking trio of scenes showing connections between the characters' emotional problems and their sexual lives.
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 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

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 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 also participated in the latter scene, performing oral sex 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.

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 as "DJ Dear Tic", his Radical Faerie nickname. Other influences include the Lusty Loft Parties that took place at a Brooklyn art collective called DUMBA, 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:
There is a plot device involving a vibrating egg with the brand name, In the Realm of the Senses. This is a wink to the explicit 1976 Nagisa Oshima film of the same name in which a man urges his lover to insert a hard-boiled egg in her vagina 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 who was Lenny Bruce's last girlfriend. Mitchell was friendly with Weinstock and her daughter, singer-songwriter Lili Haydn, before Weinstock died in 1997.
The film playing in the first Shortbus salon scene is, in effect, an elaborate "erotic" joke. It's entitled "Saverio" and was directed by Mitchell as a tribute to a 70s-era short film called "Calma". The score song is "Kids" by John LaMonica which appears on the film soundtrack.

Release

The film was released in North America on October 13, 2006, distributed by THINKFilm, after premiering in May at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival, and it played in over 25 countries, winning multiple awards at the Athens, Zurich, and Gijon film festivals. Howard Gertler and Tim Perell received an Independent Spirit Award as Producers of the Year.

Critical reception

Shortbus received mixed to positive reviews, currently holding a 68% positive score on Rotten Tomatoes 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 based on 27 reviews.
Lou Lumenick from the New York Post wrote "Mitchell's adventurous, big-hearted, pansexual mosaic of New Yorkers looking for love and orgasms, is a rare example of a nonporn film that doesn’t exploit graphic sex as a gimmick." Peter Travers from Rolling Stone commented "If there is such a thing as hard-core with a soft heart, this is it."

Public reaction

Some have branded the film "pornographic". In response, Mitchell says that the dictionary defines porn as "material created and viewed for the primary purpose of sexual arousal," and argues that the sex in Shortbus is often purposefully "de-eroticized" to "remove the cloud of arousal to reveal emotions and ideas that might have been obscured by it": "Sex, like music, is a universal language. We want to use it to introduce character, evoke emotion, propel the plot."
Due to her participation in several unsimulated sex scenes in the film, Sook-Yin Lee was nearly fired by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, for which she hosted the radio program Definitely Not the Opera 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, Atom Egoyan, David Cronenberg, Francis Ford Coppola, Michael Stipe, Moby, Julianne Moore and Yoko Ono.
The Korea Media Rating Board banned the film from public screenings in South Korea 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 South Korea ordered the ban lifted, declaring the national film censorship law unconstitutional for its ambiguity.

Home media

The film was released to DVD in North America on March 13, 2007. The DVD features a comprehensive documentary, "Gifted and Challenged: the Making of Shortbus", the vérité-style "How to Shoot Sex: A Docu-Primer", deleted scenes, as well as a filmmaker/cast audio commentary.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was released on Conor Oberst's record label, Team Love, on November 7, 2006. Mitchell directed the music video for Bright Eyes' "First Day of My Life". The soundtrack was released in Europe on V2 with the Anita O'Day song replaced by "What Matters To Me" by Tiebreaker.
  1. Scott Matthew – "Upside Down"
  2. Azure Ray – "If You Fall"
  3. Yo La Tengo – "Wizard’s Sleeve"
  4. Animal Collective – "Winter’s Love"
  5. Scott Matthew – "Surgery"
  6. Lee & Leblanc – "Beautiful"
  7. Gentleman Reg – "It’s Not Safe"
  8. John LaMonica – "Kids"
  9. Scott Matthew – "Language"
  10. Jay Brannan – "Soda Shop"
  11. Anita O'Day – "Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby"
  12. The Ark – "Kolla Kolla "
  13. Jasper James and the Jetset – "This House"
  14. The Ark – "This Piece of Poetry Is Meant To Do Harm"
  15. The Hidden Cameras – "Boys of Melody"
  16. Scott Matthew – "Little Bird"
  17. Justin Bond and the Hungry March Band – "In the End "
  18. Scott Matthew – "In the End "
  19. Chimaira - "Taste My..."