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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 16, 2002)
auquH 1B, 200? ' FILM Alberto (top) is “ not like that,“ but he sure acts like it in Second Skin Caring For People Living With H IV /AIDS Invites y o u to o u r 2002 fu n d raise r at Creadon Gallery & Design • 8419 SE Clatsop Court August 24 l-5pm Creation Gallery is the most unique art gallery in Portland. With over 400 pieces of original art from around the world, each beautifully framed. Contribute to Swan House and purchase origninal art at a very inexpensive price. Prices range from as low as $50-$500. Wine, punch & food will be available as you view this wonderful collection of art. For more information call Pamela - 503-786-4829 1 Seconds, anyone? REEL WOMEN” Fly Fishing 101 Seminars Sept 20-22 New Spanish film offers real emotion and dazzling sex by Lodging for 2 nights on tho Metolius River 1-1/2 Day Flyfish Seminar & Hands-On Instruction Reduced rate for non-fishing partner ($951 Equipment provided Meals G ary M orris H I ’m not like that!" says Alberto (Jordi Molla) to his secret lover, Diego (Javier | Bardem), in Second Skin, which opens ¡S Aug. 16 at Hollywood Theatre. •“That,” as you might guess, is queer— a comment that’s especially alarming after Alber to’s earlier wistful declaration of love. Gerardo Vera’s steamy film presents the classic dilemma of the faithless husband with a gay twist. Hunky engineer Alberto is married to Elena (Ariadna G il), and they have a kid from the long-gone days when they were still having sex. He is understandably bored to death with middle-class hetero life, though he also clings desperately to it. Alberto has discovered his gay side and pur sues it furtively with the even hunkier Diego, a surgeon. Inevitably, the pressure of trying to have the social approval and ease that come with straight life along with a sweaty queer romance on the side causes our protagonist to become Kith crazed and careless. He can’t help hut leave a little trail of cell phone messages and hotel receipts, which Elena, of course, discovers. Ariadna Gil is great as Alberto’s tortured wife From there it’s a dizzying spiral of accusa tions, unmet demands for love and commit ment among all parties, breakdowns, other liaisons and a final tragedy that removes one member of this triangle without making it easy for the remaining two to he together. One of the lures of Second Skin is its candor in treating the details of Alberto and Diego’s liaisons. Queer viewers so often have to con tend themselves with fadeouts, drawn curtains, a nervous camera that shifts to a window or a seascape rather than honestly witness the trou bling tableau of man on man. This movie shows bow far we— or at least Spain, where the film was made— have come from those days and how unnecessary such subterfuge is. Alberto and Diego are pom-star sexy, and their love scenes are presented as natural and, indeed, desirable, with Diego’s pleasure at falling in love palpable and the tormented Alberto gaining a sense of peace— if temporari ly— by acting on his true desires. Hot straight actors playing gay men seems to have become a staple of Spanish cinema lately, and Bardem, whose charms first surfaced on the international scene in 1992’s Jamón Jamón, is the poster boy for this movement. (Penis spotters were well rewarded by the film’s much-remarked midnight “bullfighting” scene.) As Diego, he’s alternately passionate and sub missive and mostly convincing as the uncloset ed gay man trying to forge a life with a tortured bisexual. The almost indecent good looks of Molla, another alumnus of Jamón, threaten to capsize his characterization— or at least distract the viewer into an uncritical stupor of lust— but his unabashed emotionalism gives Alberto the gravitas necessary to convey his dilemma. Like any self-respecting actor, Bardem hasn’t hesitated to “play gay” in his career— most notably in Before Night Falls — though he appar ently did have some trepidation about the love scenes in Second Skin. “In the stronger scenes,” he’s quoted as say ing, “I could easily have felt a hit uncomfort able— they’re pretty explicit— but luckily, we were amongst friends. 1 don’t know whether I could have done this role with another actor. Between Jordi and me, there is trust and friend ship.” So convincing is their chemistry that one can imagine trust, friendship and more outside the set. Director Vera has said the film is autobio graphical, which might account for the sense of engagement in its issues. No pat answers are offered, though. None of the characters is present ed as villainous, though Alberto skirts it during a party when he’s publicly dismissive of Diego. Gil as the suffering wife manages to sidestep the role’s soapier aspects, bringing a sense of entrapment and confusion to Elena. Cecilia Roth (memorable in Pedro Almodovar’s All About My Mother) also registers strongly as Diego’s boss, Eva, a strong, sexy woman whose unrequited love for Diego filigrees the work. The one area where Second Skin suffers is in its syrupy score, which uses swirling violins relentlessly to underscore the notion of the char acters’ drift. Such melodramatics are irritating and unnecessary in a film that works hard to avoid the soap opera inherent in the story. J H v *e For information & reservations Call "Cee” to ll fre e 1-866-752-9822 email: cee^ playtimevacations.com $ 1 70pp Class sizes are limited we recommend early reservations most definitely is like that. û* MÊm W lm Êm -ft WENTWORTH SUBARU COME IK FOR A NO HASSLE PRICE! IF WERE NOT THE CHEAPEST. WE’LL MATCH ANY ADVERTISED PRICE IN 0REC0N' 503-232-2000 l.<SS> The Beauty o f A ll Wheel Drive. * On an exact MSRP in stock GARY M orris is a Portland free-lance writer who mmmm ** o WENTWORTH SUBARU www.wentworthsubaru.com 107 SE Grand • 4 Blocks South of the Convention Centei • 503-232-2000
