Blending elements of French New Wave, avant-garde, Jack Smith films and Rene Clement's PLEIN SOLEIL (1960), SUNKISSED is a boldly surreal film that injects real experimentation into the gay indie genre.
Non-linear storytelling, temporal warping, shifting identities and even flashes of horror kept me intrigued and guessing throughout, while I admired the beautifully grainy and sun-soaked cinematography that matched the desert setting.
The film is like a dream you have when you fall asleep in the sun. On the surface it's about a young writer (Teddy) who tries to finish a novel in a rented house out in the desert, but falls in love with the place's sexy young caretaker (Leo) who may or may not be responsible for his wife's murder.
The homoeroticism is fun to watch of course for a gay viewer, but what really compelled me is what the film had to say about the treacherous nature of love, how quickly it can cross into obsession, and whether or not it's possible to ever really know someone's true nature.
The motif of biting throughout the film underscores how quickly sexual obsession can cross over into violence.
The hallucinogenic flashes of blood and horror provide possible clues to what really happened to the young novelist, but ultimately the unstable nature of Leo makes you question even that.
I felt like Gregory Marcel was the stronger actor of the two male leads, but cast and crew combine to create a compellingly surreal, sexy, low-budget thriller that should be admired for its audacity.
Non-linear storytelling, temporal warping, shifting identities and even flashes of horror kept me intrigued and guessing throughout, while I admired the beautifully grainy and sun-soaked cinematography that matched the desert setting.
The film is like a dream you have when you fall asleep in the sun. On the surface it's about a young writer (Teddy) who tries to finish a novel in a rented house out in the desert, but falls in love with the place's sexy young caretaker (Leo) who may or may not be responsible for his wife's murder.
The homoeroticism is fun to watch of course for a gay viewer, but what really compelled me is what the film had to say about the treacherous nature of love, how quickly it can cross into obsession, and whether or not it's possible to ever really know someone's true nature.
The motif of biting throughout the film underscores how quickly sexual obsession can cross over into violence.
The hallucinogenic flashes of blood and horror provide possible clues to what really happened to the young novelist, but ultimately the unstable nature of Leo makes you question even that.
I felt like Gregory Marcel was the stronger actor of the two male leads, but cast and crew combine to create a compellingly surreal, sexy, low-budget thriller that should be admired for its audacity.