GAY
FILM REVIEWS BY MICHAEL D. KLEMM
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GAY
FILM REVIEWS BY MICHAEL D. KLEMM
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End of Love Breaking Glass
Pictures, Director/Screenplay: Starring: Unrated, 97 minutes |
Hong
Kong Cowboy
End Of Love, written and directed by Simon Chung, is the second feature film from the out Hong Kong filmmaker. It is an uneven, but mostly engaging, look at the journeys undertaken by a young gay man, aged 22, whose drug addiction leads to arrest and a mandatory stay in a Christian rehab camp. |
 Ming
(Chi-Kin Lee) is an emotional train wreck who hung out with the wrong crowd
during the aftermath of his mother's death. He views the rehab center as
a prison but his sponsor, a former heroin addict named Keung (Guthrie Yip),
shows him the ropes and helps the time pass. Ming soon develops feelings
for his new best friend but Keung is straight and doesn't even notice that
his acolyte only has eyes for him. Keung is there voluntarily and, when
he decides that he is ready to return home, he invites Ming to come stay
with him when he is released. |
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 Director
Chung wisely breaks up the scenes at the camp with a series of flashbacks
that detail the events leading up to Ming's incarceration. Ming led a double
life, juggling a sweet relationship with Yan (Ben Yeung) while indulging
his inner Mr. Hyde as a drug-fueled rent boy. Ming's roommate, Cyrus (Clifton
Kwan), plays Lord Henry to Ming's Dorian Gray and leads him down the dark
path, supplying him with both sex clients and drugs. There's always a party
going on in their apartment and, before long, Ming is spiraling out of control.
Yan's attempt to intervene horribly backfires. |
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 End
Of Love's
non-linear structure is effective but not without its drawbacks. A twist
involving Ming's mother's death isn't revealed until the final minutes.
The withholding of this information makes for a dramatic finale but also
causes some head scratching in a few earlier scenes. This is not a fatal
flaw however, and there remains much to commend. There is often an overabundance
of teen angst in queer Asian films and this certainly isn't the case here.
No one struggles to come out of the closet in End
of Love and Ming's problems do not stem from queer self loathing.
We see one ugly moment of homophobia and, aside from that, the characters'
sexualities are incidental. |
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 Instead,
the issues involve drugs, and hustling, and these are topics that aren't
restricted to any gender, sexual preference, or country of origin. There
is, thankfully, really nothing "fabulous" or cutesy about this film's
approach. (The last Chinese queer film that I tried to watch featured a
Taiwanese boy band - I have my limits.) The story, even if it could sometimes
use a little more punch in spots, is a realistic one. Chung takes us down
darker alleys and, while it might not be harrowing in a Trainspotting
way, End Of Love lays bare the
horrors of addiction. With more than its share of melodrama, End
Of Love manages to be creepy and erotic at the same time.
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 There
is fairly explicit sex with lots of jump cuts, and fans of Asian eye candy
won't be disappointed. The film isn't all grim and there is a nice From
Here To Eternity styled beach scene between Ming and Yan. Ming's first
trick with an older john is also rather touching. The score is western but
the accoustc guitar's squeaky strings provide an Oriental flavor. I'm sure
I missed a few things that would have been obvious to an Asian audience.
Undoubtedly there was much cultural significance to the shot in a hotel
room where Ming, Cyrus and their john share the frame with their shoes looming
large in the foreground. There are many such memorable images. The first
time that Ming takes E (or K, I get those designer drugs mixed up), he watches
Cyrus and their john's lovemaking distorted through a cocktail glass. |
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 I've
seen several American variations on the drug and hustler theme (too many
actually) and this one has a nice edge to it. Maybe it's the subtitles but
End Of Love seemed more serious
than the ones I'm used to. The viewer is treated to a glimpse at another
culture with the comfort of a universal storylne that knows no borders.
Hong Kong isn't subject to the same censorship laws as mainland China and
so the director's vision comes delivered without compromises. Chung is a
filmmaker worthy of our attention. |
Ming
takes Keung up on his offer but is disappointed when he discovers that
his comrade has a live-in girlfriend. Her name is Jackie (Joman Chiang)
and she makes no effort, at first, to get along with their new roommate.
Ming, still smitten by Keung, finds it hard to listen to the sounds of
their lovemaking in the next room. Jackie figures out that Ming is gay
and delights in throwing herself at Keung in front of him whenever she
can. She turns out to be quite the party girl and her actions become the
catalyst for disaster.