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Romeo and Julian

Romeo and Julian

Released Jan 31st, 1994
Running Time 86
Director Sam Abdul
Company Forum Studios
Critical Rating AAA 1/2
Genre Gay and Bi

Rating


Reviews

Director Sam Abdul and scripter/songwriter Michael Anton certainly deserve credit for trying to stretch the limits of the genre by creating the first musical gayporn video.

The story's simple: lonely boys finds stud; stud sluts around while boy agonizes; boy gets stud back again with promise of undying (and presumably monogamous) love. Julian (Johnny Rey) sings about his loneliness on a Saturday night, then heads for the bar, where he spots Romeo (Grant Larson); they sing a duet of longing at a distance.

Twenty minutes into the video, there's been no sex scene (Marco Rossi does some near-naked dancing on the bar, but that doesn't count)(, and I suspect that more jaded viewers (looking for sex, not songs) will have hit the fast-forward button more than once. When it does come, it's a tender circumspect coupling in Romeo's gossamer-draped boudoir.

Cut to a montage of the happy lovers traipsing through L.A. while Sharon Kane sings the title song (which also composed). Then the conflict: scenes of Romeo picking up guys in the bar while Julian pines. But we don't see any more sex until the two go to a party. When it turns out to be an orgy, Julian storms off. the group sex (featuring Rod Garetto, Donnie Russo, Tyler Scott, Randy White and many others) is mechanical and shot on a set with sick-looking green walls and plastic lawn chairs. I suspect the orgy is intentionally unappealing, as counterpoint to the lovers' sweet purity.

Romeo and Julian reconcile, with a song, and then fade to bliss with another tender sex scene, well-shot with style and passion.

"Romeo and Juliet" has been made into a musical before, of course, called "West Side Story," which retained the big themes of family conflict and the final unity of love in death, along with big production number and intimate ballads. This video has ballads, plus, of course the sex scenes, which goes a step further than either Shakespeare or Bernstein. Retailer Tip: A definite must-stock item for your store, due to the overall high quality.



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