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Shortbus

Shortbus

2006
Drama
1h 41m
John Cameron Mitchell's Shortbus explores the lives of several emotionally challenged characters as they navigate the comic and tragic intersections between love and sex in and around a modern-day underground salon. The characters converge on a weekly gathering called Shortbus: a mad nexus of art, music, politics and polysexual carnality. Set in a post-9/11, Bush-exhausted New York City, Shortbus tells its story with sexual frankness, suggesting new ways to reconcile questions of the mind, pleasures of the flesh and imperatives of the heart. (ThinkFilm)
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Shortbus

2006
Drama
1h 41m
Your probable score
Avg Percentile 48.36% from 1077 total ratings

Ratings & Reviews

(1077)
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Rated 19 Dec 2013
60
38th
(My brain, seconds before turning on the movie) "I have no idea what to expect, but it should all be good as long as there's no close-up shot of a guy ejaculating into his own face, haha." (Two minutes later) "GODDAMNIT!". Well, all in all, despite the explicit sex scenes, I guess it was a decent indie drama that had a rough start, some genuinely good character stuff halfway through and a so-so ending.
Rated 05 Mar 2007
7
68th
Literally the gayest movie ever made.
Rated 29 Aug 2009
35
6th
the best summary of this mainstream "porno-like" cinema bust is that it attempts to be smarter than it really is by trying to provide provocative and thoughtful insights into things such as love, sacrifice, and human relationships while using shallow and uninteresting characters. another "sex-oriented" film that explains absolutely nothing new and certainly nothing intelligent.
Rated 26 Oct 2012
14
1st
It's art for gays and gay porn for us. Please try ''The Brown Bunny'' ''Ken Park'' or ''9 Songs'' at least for the world's sake. * Casting, Acting : 2 * Script : 1 * Directing, Aura : 2 * Ease of Viewing : 1 * Naked Eye : 1
Rated 19 Jan 2008
85
77th
20 Ocak 08 & bir cok erotik sahne, tum dogalligiyla cekilmis, hersey gercek.Fakat hicbir sekilde tahrik etmiyor.Cok iyi, ic ice gecmis hayat kurgusuyla, orgazmi basariyla anlatmis bir film.NewYork maket&animasyonu cok icten, sirin durmus.Bu film tamamiyle orjinal ve "gercek"! Gercekten begendim..."Konulu porno" diyenlere kesinlikle karsi cikiyorum.Marjinal olacagim diye kastigini dusunmuyorum.Kasmamis ama gercekten de "marjinal"! bence sanat eseridir, guzeldir, hostur...
Rated 02 Feb 2008
35
10th
Too many shots of that dude's junk.
Rated 15 Apr 2008
73
61st
Like a slow adaptation of a gay carneval play.
Rated 25 Jun 2008
88
93rd
Some may be tempted to dismiss this movie as porn (especially if one sees only the first ten minutes), but that would be doing this movie a huge disservice. All the nudity and graphic sex tend to distract one from the fact that this is really extremely well-written and acted, full of humor and poignancy.
Rated 07 Apr 2009
100
99th
wow not for every one but if a friend recommends then def. see it
Rated 14 Jan 2012
65
59th
Maybe the answer to everything is Sex. Maybe not. And while this seems to be the theme of the movie, it would be far too simplistic to refer it like this. Under the outworn sexuality issues, and beneath the sweaty bodies - Some sort of thing is hiding. No human ever named it before, nor will. It is the foundation of any relationship. And it was not meant to be there, and the fact we're entirely on our own, in this fucked up world, has hell of a lot to do with the previous-hideous declaration.
Rated 07 May 2012
63
43rd
Chamomile!
Rated 01 Feb 2014
60
51st
This is a strange movie for me, it both intrigues and bores me at the same time. It tries to be truthful, relevant and jarringly raw with it's explicitness but I find it better when it goes in a more subtle route. Basically a tale of a group of scarred and troubled people trying to find their way through sex.
Rated 02 Mar 2020
60
26th
Not sure what effect graphic sex is supposed to have on the story, but it didn't do a lot for me. It has an edge and realness to it, but it also seems uneven and amateurish at times as well.
Rated 18 Feb 2007
82
91st
A stinging, touching piece about love and lust and everything in-between, with annoyingly under-recognized excellent acting from all of the cast.
Rated 20 Mar 2007
93
82nd
Aside from a few moments that just feel clunky (Jamie's false revelation at Sofia's, the line "It stops at my skin") this is a fantastic film. There is graphic sex, but it is used in such an artistic way, to represent the state of the characters, that it isn't pornography. One of the few films, as well, that flawlessly slips from one genre into another halfway through the film.
Rated 05 May 2007
58
8th
All of the characters were annoying in their own unique way.
Rated 22 Sep 2007
70
5th
I thought this film was well made in terms of cinematography and portrayal of sexual subcultures. It would have been nice to see the development of the various personality types a bit more though. Instead, it shared with the viewer a snapshot of a sensual journey without talking about where it might all eventually lead. That would have been something I would have loved to have seen.
Rated 04 Feb 2008
65
26th
Well...um...there's a lot of sex, but it's not sexy. The acting is mostly not great, especially the female lead. There are about 5 sweet scenes and I did laugh at the, uh, "egg" bits.
Rated 18 Mar 2008
88
25th
Kind of unrealistic. At the time I had never had an orgasm before and it gave me a lot of hope! And I bought a vibrator soon after and did something for myself.
Rated 24 Mar 2008
50
37th
I kinda dug this movie, but I'm not sure why. It wasn't the depth (I didn't feel as though there was enough development of 90% of the characters.) It wasn't the knock-your-socks-off ending (there isn't one.) It wasn't the nudity/graphic sex (actually, yes it was.) It was also the first time I'd ever seen a grown man piss in a bathtub. An interesting look into the "why's" of sexual subculture. WARNING: NOT A DATE MOVIE.
Rated 05 Jul 2008
45
6th
It has lots of explicit sex. But apart from that, nothing to interst me.
Rated 06 Jul 2008
82
72nd
Voyeurism is participation!!!:-)
Rated 10 Jul 2008
57
3rd
Plot dynamics all a bit too predictable, and didn't offset the self-indulgence of the subject matter. Not that interesting ultimately.
Rated 11 Aug 2008
20
20th
Total crap!
Rated 23 Aug 2008
74
25th
With this movie you come to question humankind like puppets in the hands of sex, in the hands of nature. The clash of animal instincts and intellectual choices...Who wins?
Rated 13 Oct 2008
85
91st
Different to Hedwig, but still just as good, if not slightly better
Rated 15 Nov 2008
95
91st
An incredible movie about sexuality, a pornography with class!
Rated 01 Mar 2009
91
69th
Keeping a fill-length movie about nothing but sex interesting is an admirable feat. That said, this movie wasn't that interesting. It was, however, gorgeous and well considered, perfectly scored, & kind of oozing with warmth. Slightly better than Mitchell's other great movie, Hedwig & the Angry Inch.
Rated 11 Apr 2009
85
80th
A lot of personality and very well composed shots but there were a few elements that screamed of hipster bullshit that greatly turned me off at parts. Overall I feel that it has a very good message and actually manages to make a movie about sex and sexually non-exploitative.
Rated 19 Apr 2009
4
71st
"A gleefully subversive but over-simplistic rude little indie that's starting to gain cult status."
Rated 14 Aug 2009
88
85th
Fantastic. It's moving in ways that are far to difficult to imagine.
Rated 26 Sep 2009
43
28th
carp
Rated 05 Feb 2010
72
40th
At times, the movie is in danger of losing its focus.
Rated 16 Feb 2010
0
1st
I discovered about 15 minutes in that this is not my kind of movie. I will never, ever, get to minute 16
Rated 14 May 2010
65
52nd
Only watched until the dude ejaculated into his own mouth, which was superduperLOL - then my friend who had seen it before stated he needn't go through it again. Sorta bummer, but I don't think I woulda made it through anyway. Maybe revise score if I do watch past that point sometime.
Rated 25 Jul 2010
60
33rd
Some great acting, just was weird and kinda pointless!
Rated 07 Sep 2010
25
12th
I want to call it mis-guided, but it runs in the middle parts better than at the first and final acts, so in actuality we can call it mis-plotted and mis-executed. Pretty unsexy stuff, is this what we need? Has a big heart and big belief in its own imagery. Way too dour, wastes energy.
Rated 09 Sep 2010
75
68th
An alluring drama that explores the sexual subcultures and problems of its main characters. Its charm comes in its perfect balance of "indie spirit" and cinematic interest, appealing to a larger audience than your typical mid-budget film. Shortbus broaches the taboo and discusses those issues that everyone thinks about, though are too ashamed to admit. Of course it drags at points, the acting isn't airtight, and the plot is unfocused--despite that, I would argue that the film's goal is achieved.
Rated 16 Sep 2010
50
33rd
Mitchell's idea of a Spike Lee-style multicharacter New York comedy/drama. Lots of explicit sex -- most of it gay -- but many, many varieties of sex make it in here; at least the top 20 out of the book _Joy of Sex_. There's also a fair bit of humor, and pathos... and there's musical numbers as well. Like in so many of these semi-improv movies, it kinda loses all threads in the end as it fumbles around for a decent ending. May be the most thoughtful movie with this much nudity ever made
Rated 23 Oct 2010
25
61st
"Mitchell uses a dubious but vividly aestheticized tableau of New York City to sweep in and out of the lives of characters whose problems are so weakly articulated they hardly inspire sympathy." - Ed Gonzalez
Rated 31 Oct 2010
50
26th
Surprisingly not bad but a lot of this film just does not need to exist. I teeter on whether it's good or bad so I settle on 50.
Rated 25 Dec 2010
85
32nd
One of the better films out there that explores the concept of sexuality in the human context and search for love and companionship. Good performances overall. Good music.
Rated 04 Oct 2011
70
57th
"Shortbus" is plain weird and contains hardcore sexual scenes, but that's hardly what makes it stand out. Although its superficial flashiness makes it endlessly watchable, it is its personality, insight and emotional resonance that also make it memorable.
Rated 12 Oct 2011
60
44th
Unlike my expectations, "Shortbus" is mostly worth watching for its characters and not for its notorious sex scenes.
Rated 05 Feb 2012
3
45th
The standard compulsory reaction to this sort of explicitness may be that it lacks imagination or subtlety, but I found myself responding very positively. Between this and Hedwig, I admire the hell out of John Cameron Mitchell. It takes balls to tackle stuff like this in such a direct manner (that is, people on the fringes of "normal" sexual behavior). In any case, there's something decidedly unerotic, but intensely emotional about most of the sex depicted here.
Rated 19 Sep 2012
50
26th
It's mostly novel for featuring several non-porn actors in scenes of explicit sex, but none of it is very sexy (probably intentionally) and the story is pretty trite: endless scenes of people too stupid to communicate effectively with each other moping about their various dysfunctions. It does have a queer threesome with a dude singing the Star Spangled Banner into another dudes asshole though...so, yeah. Score mostly because I got to see Sook-Yin Lee getting railed, however briefly.
Rated 10 Feb 2013
74
53rd
i mean..
Rated 28 Mar 2013
70
53rd
alenen pornografik sahneler icermesine ragmen tahrik edici bir film degil. -ki yonetmenin hedefi de buydu muhakkak; amacina ulasmis.- maket nyc tasviri, son ceyreginde ibreyi yukselterek ulastigi finali falan guzeldi. (titresimli yumurtanin yol actigi zoraki siddet bolumleri cok kotuydu ama.) cok farkli bir tecrube oldu benim icin. genel olarak sevdim.
Rated 15 Jul 2013
80
68th
Works best as a snapshot of a particular character milieu; when the plot tries to inject some conflict it feels contrived. But I found it hilarious (some awesomely quotable lines and gags), moving, and often beautiful, though the climax during the blackout does come very, very close to stepping over the line from poignant and affecting into maudlin sentimentality. I can understand if people think it fell over that line, but it worked for me.
Rated 22 Sep 2013
62
15th
A cheesy got-redemption end, corny childhood-trauma explanations, messy and weak sceneries, artistically fragile "love", and the depressed and strict Asian face screwed all my rest endurance limit.(for God sake there are plenty of hot Asian women but just picked this ugly face) In one word, in this movie, I can't see any point of being naked and fucking really. The only interesting bit was that he sucked himself.
Rated 02 Dec 2014
69
44th
Pretty funny and engaging drama. Kind of flashy stylistically which makes it feel more superficial but on the other hand it's refreshingly uncynical about its subject matter.
Rated 26 Feb 2017
4
77th
En lite ojämn film som pendlar mellan det b-anala och konstnärliga intentioner. Bäst är den när den befinner sig nånstans mittemellan, när New York humorn flödar mitt i storstadens ensamhet. Fyran är nog svag, men filmen har en charm som får mig att vara överseende med dess svagheter.
Rated 11 May 2018
90
91st
hOW did i never rate this I saw this when i was 16 and it completely changed my concept of the basis of my human sexuality
Rated 09 Jun 2018
35
17th
Maybe you have to be in a mood for this. I was bored.
Rated 07 Sep 2018
63
16th
if i knew it was the same director who shot that "how to talk to girls at parties" thing, would i still watch this film? probably not. the plot halts the development in many ways and therefore gets repetitive and boring after awhile.
Rated 13 Dec 2018
65
50th
Something, something, flexibility, something something, sad PA scrubbing the floor with a wet rag
Rated 04 Aug 2019
75
49th
"I used to want to change the world. Now I just want to leave the room with a little dignity."
Rated 24 Mar 2021
61
20th
Supposed raw, honest depiction of fluid relationship mores ala 2006 veers into the amateurish and facile at times; notable how Mitchell successfully normalises the initially confronting "hard-core" material; an interesting comment on the puritanical nature of modern cinema. The screenplay feels more like a collection of ideas and ruminations than anything approaching a coherent narrative; it's easy to spot the performers that may have been hired for their (ahem) other attributes.

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