Boys For Sale | DVD Review
October 14th 2012 01:45
To be as clear and frank as possible it must be said at the start that this collection is not something you will find sexually stimulating - it is not soft or hard porn, it is documentary. The cover image of a hairless, clean, fit and soft-porn styled male leaning against a wall is probably meant to attract the eye of the ‘gay market’ and entice a sale – but it doesn’t really illustrate what you will find inside the volume.
The pornesque titles of the three documentaries ‘Rent Boys’, ‘All Boys’ and ‘Men for sale’ are somewhat tabloid when lined up next to each other and would easily be mistaken for a multitude of porn titles available in any ‘Love Art’ shop; so my main concern is the misleading packaging as it is giving off a visual message that fits in quite well next to much of the material the content is ultimately criticising. This is deeply ironic on so many levels as it is not likely to stimulate the porn-buying customers in the way they are seeking to be stimulated.
There is a lack of insightful documentaries about the exploitation of young men by pornographers. There is also a mystifying disjoint between the male characters in fictional motion pictures who prostitute themselves and the reality; I don’t suggest this is surprising given the tendency for major motion picture studios to tell stories that are sugar-coated.
Many same-sex attracted men may not appreciate the insights that they’ll find in these documentaries, such as the fact that young men in much of the pornography they consume see themselves as heterosexual and their clients simply a market to be aggressively exploited.
Despite the packaging these documentaries in this ‘Volume 1’ of ‘Boys for sale’ do not glamorise the pornography industry, they call it as they find it, allowing the actual subjects of the films to speak for themselves rather than editorialise their findings a great deal.
‘All Boys’ looks at the relationship between porn ‘star’ Aaron Hawke and the industry that discovered him showing how there really is no difference between the way young men are handled and the way most young women are handled in the parallel industry. ‘All Boys’ does work as a ‘cautionary tale’ but it is unlikely to reach the young runaways who would most benefit from the insight.
The documentaries ‘Men for sale’ and ‘Rent Boys’ both examine the street working world of male prostitution and do a very good job of it, but again let me stress that these are not films to stimulate the eros or libido of the common same-sex attracted guy. They show the dreadful situations most of these young men find themselves in after spending their formative teen years working the streets for cash.
So who is the audience for these films? Social workers, educators, mentors, politicians, care givers, anthropologists... the information is not going to appeal to everyone and the documentaries are not likely to appear on local television but they are worth seeing if you have any interest in the relationship between politics, economy and the lad on the street (literally). The conditions that lead to these fellows making the decision to prostitute their young bodies are largely to blame and they stem from the realms of social education, political legislation, economic conditions and education on a more general level.
It seems many of them were struck by the ease in which they could earn good money simply by standing on the street and accepting cash for sexual services. The long held belief is that many of these fellows are likely to become involved in a variety of drugs is proven to be accurate. The fact that many (if not most) of them start their commercial activities before they have reached the age of consent is troubling; the health issues they are forced to deal with as they reach the ripe age of twenty is troubling and the public health implications for all of society are touched on.
I own the collection of three documentaries essentially for research purposes and can see how they will speak to my agenda, and I am pleased to have purchased them as I’m unlikely to see material like this in my country on the government owned or commercially run free to air channels. I think the packaging and general tone of the way the product as a ‘Volume’ looks is misleading with its dramatic title; ‘Boys for sale’ is on the same sort of level as ‘Women in cages’ I find. The line between the value of the content in these documentaries and the way they are marketed/packaged as a ‘Volume’ is finer than it needs to be. I think the individual packaging of each documentary is more honest, but having said that I’m pleased to have purchased the three of them in one limited edition box set.
My final word is that the content is really impressive and each documentary is worth watching; each can be used to show a set of circumstances and choices that can lead to tragic outcomes for young men. They are not at all sexually graphic visually - genitalia and sex acts are not shown – so if you are cruising the web looking for something to turn you on, these are not going to delight you. If you are interested in the overall subjects you will be pleased – if you are interested in documentary – you will be pleased – if you are interested in the roads many young men travel but have little insight into them, be prepared to get an eyeful. If you are considering opening yourself as a shop in the sex industry get ready for a rude awakening. I think there are good arguments arising from these three films for a lot more education and legislation around the issues of sex work, safe sex and young men.
There is a lack of insightful documentaries about the exploitation of young men by pornographers. There is also a mystifying disjoint between the male characters in fictional motion pictures who prostitute themselves and the reality; I don’t suggest this is surprising given the tendency for major motion picture studios to tell stories that are sugar-coated.
Many same-sex attracted men may not appreciate the insights that they’ll find in these documentaries, such as the fact that young men in much of the pornography they consume see themselves as heterosexual and their clients simply a market to be aggressively exploited.
Despite the packaging these documentaries in this ‘Volume 1’ of ‘Boys for sale’ do not glamorise the pornography industry, they call it as they find it, allowing the actual subjects of the films to speak for themselves rather than editorialise their findings a great deal.
‘All Boys’ looks at the relationship between porn ‘star’ Aaron Hawke and the industry that discovered him showing how there really is no difference between the way young men are handled and the way most young women are handled in the parallel industry. ‘All Boys’ does work as a ‘cautionary tale’ but it is unlikely to reach the young runaways who would most benefit from the insight.
The documentaries ‘Men for sale’ and ‘Rent Boys’ both examine the street working world of male prostitution and do a very good job of it, but again let me stress that these are not films to stimulate the eros or libido of the common same-sex attracted guy. They show the dreadful situations most of these young men find themselves in after spending their formative teen years working the streets for cash.
So who is the audience for these films? Social workers, educators, mentors, politicians, care givers, anthropologists... the information is not going to appeal to everyone and the documentaries are not likely to appear on local television but they are worth seeing if you have any interest in the relationship between politics, economy and the lad on the street (literally). The conditions that lead to these fellows making the decision to prostitute their young bodies are largely to blame and they stem from the realms of social education, political legislation, economic conditions and education on a more general level.
It seems many of them were struck by the ease in which they could earn good money simply by standing on the street and accepting cash for sexual services. The long held belief is that many of these fellows are likely to become involved in a variety of drugs is proven to be accurate. The fact that many (if not most) of them start their commercial activities before they have reached the age of consent is troubling; the health issues they are forced to deal with as they reach the ripe age of twenty is troubling and the public health implications for all of society are touched on.
I own the collection of three documentaries essentially for research purposes and can see how they will speak to my agenda, and I am pleased to have purchased them as I’m unlikely to see material like this in my country on the government owned or commercially run free to air channels. I think the packaging and general tone of the way the product as a ‘Volume’ looks is misleading with its dramatic title; ‘Boys for sale’ is on the same sort of level as ‘Women in cages’ I find. The line between the value of the content in these documentaries and the way they are marketed/packaged as a ‘Volume’ is finer than it needs to be. I think the individual packaging of each documentary is more honest, but having said that I’m pleased to have purchased the three of them in one limited edition box set.
My final word is that the content is really impressive and each documentary is worth watching; each can be used to show a set of circumstances and choices that can lead to tragic outcomes for young men. They are not at all sexually graphic visually - genitalia and sex acts are not shown – so if you are cruising the web looking for something to turn you on, these are not going to delight you. If you are interested in the overall subjects you will be pleased – if you are interested in documentary – you will be pleased – if you are interested in the roads many young men travel but have little insight into them, be prepared to get an eyeful. If you are considering opening yourself as a shop in the sex industry get ready for a rude awakening. I think there are good arguments arising from these three films for a lot more education and legislation around the issues of sex work, safe sex and young men.
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