By Yong Shu Hoong

HUMPDAY (R21)
Comedy/94 minutes

Ratings: 4

HUMPDAY sure takes the notion of male bonding to another level.

This year's wave of bromance flicks, from I Love You, Man to The Hangover, are content with having their male leads bare their souls, deepen their friendship and enjoy a wild time together.

But American writer-director Lynn Shelton's new indiecomedy ups the ante by having straight buddies - happily married Ben (Mark Duplass) and single-and-free Andrew (Joshua Leonard) - planning to make a gay pornographic video which they will also star in.

As preposterous as this premise sounds, it's to Shelton's credit that the scenario pieces together most naturally, without stretching the audience's sense of incredulity too much.

The film opens with scenes of Ben and his wife Anna (Alycia Delmore) enjoying domestic bliss, before Ben's unkempt college friend drops in for a surprise visit after an extended backpacking trip.

Anna tries to be cordial about Andrew's intrusion, but other issues soon crop up as Ben finds himself enjoying timeout from his "white picket fences" existence by hanging out with Andrew and his newly acquainted community of free-spirited artists.

Before one utters, "It's just like old times", the two friends get into a conversation about an amateur porn competition and subsequently broker a drunken dare that neither is willing to back down from.

While accessible and enjoyable, this film breaches Hollywood norms by not only touching on taboo subjects, but also by using lesser-known ordinarylooking actors and going the low-budget way.

Hence, you can expect a documentary or home-movie texture, lined with dialogue that feels unscripted in a Kevin Smith (1994's Clerks) kind of way.

So will they do it, or will they not? That's the question that sustains interest till the very end. In between, there are rollicking hilarity and emotionally charged scenes as the hapless Anna suffers a meltdown and the two buddies awkwardly deal with new tensions between them as "humpday" approaches.

The ultimate showdown in the hotel room may not satisfy everyone, but it's a conclusion that is believable and understandable.

This is not a gay film. More than that, it's a fresh look at egos, friendship and all the insecurities that men have about manhood, sexuality and begrudgingly leaving their youth behind.

myp@sph.com.sg

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