Boy Culture, based on the novel by Matthew Rettenmund, is yet another entry into the rather tired “gay hustler” genre. It chronicles a young man's sexually drenched relationship with his two roommates while also purportedly telling the story of his learning to take a chance with romance. The film additionally contains a subplot involving the hustler's deepening sexual entanglement with one of his regular elderly johns.

Adapted for the screen and directed by Q. Allen Brocka, whose previous work includes the made for television movies Camp Michael Jackson, Porno Valley and the hugely popular film Eating Out, Boy Culture does not live up to Brocka's previous work.

Revealed in sarcastic “confessional” voice-overs throughout the film, we experience Boy Culture from the perspective of its main character, a highly successful but emotionally cold, gay hustler who prefers to be known only as “X”. X, who at 25 is “aging” as a hustler, now seeks something more substantial in his love life.

The movie also includes X's extended gay “family,” his easy-going, randy roommate Andrew (for whom X has the hots), as well as his other roommate, teenage “chicken” Joey, who in a way functions as X's and Andrew's “son” (though “houseboy” may be a more on-target term).

The threesome's daily routine seems to pretty much rotate from random sexual escapades in their sex-den apartment, to workouts at the local gay gym, to appearances at their local gay pick-up bar, and then back to random sexual escapades in their apartment.

It is only when X starts hooking up with his mysterious new older client, 80 year-old Gregory, that he begins to drop his emotional defenses. Although the enigmatic Gregory pays X for each session, he refuses sex with X until such a time comes when he's convinced their sexual desire is entirely mutual. This unusual scenario catches X off-guard.

Until then, for his own hidden reasons, Gregory conducts what are basically quasi-psychiatric therapist-patient sessions with the handsome hustler. Via a kind of classic “transference”, X starts to find himself actually attracted to his 80 year-old client/therapist. This situation becomes his training wheels for being able to develop genuine romantic attraction for Andrew, the one X really wants.

Are you still following? Yes, this film strains credulity, and in more ways than one.

The problem lies in the film's script; in how the original book has been adapted for the screen; and in the script's conception and depiction of gay life. As writer/director Brocka acknowledged in a Q & A session to the audience at the film's premiere in NYC on April 26, getting a good, workable script out of the book was the single biggest difficulty in making the film. It took many attempts, many re-writes, and lots of time.

Despite all of that effort, the final script still feels wrong.

Once the flash of all the handsome gay eye-candy and erotic appeal wears off, the essential weakness in the film's script and message becomes apparent. As adapted for the screen, it's not really about gay love, romance or relationships. It's really just about gay sex.

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