Trick (1999)

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

Trick is a lighthearted film about a couple of young guys in the big city trying to navigate the gay sex scene. There is the requisite 'fag hag' played by Tori Spelling, in what is a very poor performance. Most of the other acting was on the level of low quality television comedy. The film tries hard to be fun and in that regard it succeeds only in theory, as it is wholly unable to make any of the fun moments and situation work. Tricks are supposed to be fun, but unfortunately this one was not.

Gabe is a somewhat shy, slightly nerdy, aspiring show tune writer while Mark is an attractive go-go dancer at a discotheque. One night on a crowded New York subway their eyes meet and Mark decides to pursue Gabe for a hookup. However, they find themselves all dressed up with no place to go as they are thwarted by inconsiderate roommates, needy BFFs, spurned drag queens and flirtatious club kids, not to mention their own insecurities and burgeoning feelings for one another."Trick" is somewhat low-budget but manages to work well within its limitations. The most recognizable name will undoubtedly be Tori Spelling, though most everybody else does a good enough job that the story is at least engaging. Christian Campbell as Gabe gives a terrific performance, really getting across his insecurity, shyness, and fear that the gorgeous hunk he managed to land will slip through his fingers if they don't do the deed soon. Spelling does pretty good playing a shallow, self-centered, struggling actress (meta-casting, anyone?). Clinton Leupp is also another standout, playing every campy drag queen trait to the hilt.Steve Hayes (Perry) gives the best performance, managing to inject genuine pathos and feeling into a character that could've ended up an uncomfortable stereotype. It helps that he gets one good scene where he sings a hilarious song in a piano bar. It also helps that he gets another scene where he tearfully reunites with an ex. He was so good that I sometimes found myself wanting to see a movie about him instead. The worst performance belongs to Jean Paul Pitoc, who's nice to look at and that's it.The shots of New York are well done and the city is shown as in a positive light which is certainly a welcome change from other movies even if the musical cues that accompany them sound like they come a different movie. Shots of the WTC towers will instantly date this movie but that's not something that can really be helped.Not all the music is bad though. The two original tunes the movie showcases, "Enter You," and "Como Te Gusta Mi Penga," have just the right amount of silliness to be charming. My only complaint here is "Enter You" gets horribly overused throughout the film, even playing during the credits. I would guess that the reasons for this are that "Enter You" was probably meant to be a metaphor for Gabe and Mark's relationship and the film's budget didn't allow for much original or licensed music.The first big problem with the movie comes from several plot inconsistencies. Perry is introduced as though he is not a main character and not somebody Gabe knows. He comes across as just another anonymous casting director at Gabe's audition but later Gabe calls him for help when he needs a place to be alone and watches him sing in a cabaret. Conversely, another character that Gabe talks to in the bar where Mark dances seems to be given some importance despite the fact that he never appears again.The movie violates the "Show, Don't Tell" rule in the scene where Gabe gets angry with gal pal Katherine in a diner. While his outburst is justifiable since Katherine does nothing but talk about herself, her rebuttal about Gabe pressuring her to experiment in lesbianism doesn't seem reasonable because we are never shown this. Even though Spelling gives the monologue her best it ends up being hollow because we don't see it. Maybe they ran out of money to shoot it? The biggest problem of all comes from the fact that I just don't see Mark and Gabe having a happy ending despite the movie wanting me to think so. It's stated, and in Gabe's case, shown, many times that they have no place to be alone which can be a drag on even the best of relationships. They both live in shoebox apartments without a nickel between them. There's a scene where a man checks out Mark as he walks by the stoop of Gabe's building and Mark appears to be checking him out too, right in front of Gabe, I might add.There's also the fact that Mark makes a living dancing in a thong and loves to dance the night away shirtless in a club. There's an offhand mention of Mark majoring in journalism, which suggests there might be more to him, but it's casually mentioned and forgotten. Mark seems to instantly fall for Gabe only after he plays his song for him. Mark ends up being as shallow as a kiddie pool and I think this movie could've greatly benefited from character development for Mark.Gabe is painfully insecure and a bit of a doormat who won't stand up to his best friend mooching off his computer or his heterosexual roommate hogging the only bed every night for his routine conquests. At the dance club he runs off taking the word of a catty drag queen over Mark to say nothing of the fact that watching Mark bumping and grinding against other guys would only exacerbate his feelings of inadequacy.I would give a couple like this a month in real life. If anything Perry and his ex-boyfriend seemed like they had more of a chance than Gabe and Mark. The whole movie comes off as the screenwriter wishing they could've had a meaningful relationship with a hot, young stud like Mark and deciding to commit their fantasy to film.I don't know. Maybe I'm just too cynical to truly appreciate this film.

It is refreshing to see that not all "gay" related films have to be centered around sex scenes. I felt as though I could relate to the character of Gabriel. A shy and somewhat awkward man that finds himself staring at a Greek godlike looking Go-Go Boy (Mark). The two find themselves in various stimulating and not so comical situations as the night unfolds and dusk becomes dawn.I found this film to be a breath of fresh air in the way that, although, Mark and Gabe are trying to find a place to be "alone", the movie focuses more on the possibility that love can be found where we sometime would least expect it. The film doesn't over dramatize any "gay" related issues or make it a point to critically analyze what is wrong with the world. It is what it is; a romantic-comedy that will find its watchers reacting with the characters and secretly hoping that Mark and Gabriel will, in the end, find what they are both secretly hoping to find.

Tori Spelling as Katherine is captivating in her supporting role in this terrific Gay romantic comedy. I have always loved her since her breakout role as Donna in the hit TV series Beverly Hills 90210.To me her relationship as the close female friend to Gabriel (Christian Campbell) has more development and drama in it than the Gay romance between Gabriel and Mark (John Paul Pitoc). The late night café scene is both dramatic, comic, and touching... every character is memorable in that scene (Where are those cheese-fries!!) This was such a great cast... everybody from Steve Hays as Perry, Brad Beyer as the sex starved straight room-mate, and the unforgettable Clinton Leupp as Miss Coco Peru dishing her dirt to Gabriel trapped at the urinal in the Gay nightclub.That unforgettable piano music when Gabriel and Mark kiss and the sheer satisfying ending .... This is one of my favorite movies... Enter You!!