That was an excellent one.

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

I was curious mostly about this movie. Not being one to pass up on seeing a movie based on information or history I took a chance and watched it on the HERE! network a couple of years ago. It was better than I expected.Ignoring the continuous display of frontal male nudity (which didn't offend me in the least), This film was very informative and entertaining. The interviews opened my eyes to a part of history that I have only read about. It is a pity that this film didn't get more exposure, but I believe that the "exposure" on screen would and probably did prevent any real showcasing in worldwide theaters.I think that anyone who likes to know what occurred in the past in regards to pre-stonewall life should watch this film. And if anyone who just wants to see guys in the nude without the sex involved, will like it too. In any case, it's really interesting.

I did not expect this film to be as good as it was. It transcendedthe dishy, titillating cliches and avoided all the usual cheap shotsat all the usual suspects. It also avoided the dry, overly objective and ultimately unsatisfyingapproach to such subject matter. It is not afraid of its subject, noris it judgmental, nor does it pander. I takes its subject head on,without flinching.This film does what a good documentary, or reconstruction,should do. It allows us, the viewers, to contemplate its subject, anenigmatic and deeply alluring aspect of human nature, at length,and come away feeling we know something important that wemight never have known about the erotic if we hadn't seen it. It says, as all good films about sex always say, that beauty fades,passion dies, spells break, illusions end, the substance, if there isany, eludes our grasp, but the mystery and fascination, as far aswe are concerned, are eternal. It reveals the erotic, and the homoerotic facet of the erotic, for whatthey are, virtually indomitable forces of nature. And it reveals thestruggles and the fate of many of those who encounter such forcesmost directly. There are a couple of scenes in this film that capture thehomoerotic in its almost pure elemental form. The filmmakersinclude, toward the end, a clip of a naked young man performing ahomoerotic dance. The sequence goes beyond titillation andprurience and even eroticism to revelation. Or perhaps I shouldsay, this sequence is both erotic and revelatory.One comes away informed and humbled, I think, and, not least,with respect and compassion for the subjects of the film.

I saw this film with some misgivings and enjoyed it a lotmore than I'd expected. It's the story of Bob Mizer andhis Athletic Model Guild and the unfortunate court trialthat took place in the '60's because of pornography charges. Mizer's physique magazines filled with "artistic" photos of nude and nearly nude males seem quiteinnocent by today's standards but were looked upon ratherdifferently back in those less enlightened times. "Beefcake" mixes lots of vintage photos of AMG models withcontemporary footage and actors giving credible performances (Josh Peace as model Neil O'Hara is especially good). There are a number of "talking head"interviews with people connected with Mizer's outfit inone way or another. Two of them are Joe Dallesandro (whowent on to Andy Warhol fame) and Jack LaLanne. I was especially amused by the very macho LaLanne's comments. Especially when the interviewer asks a question that prompts LaLanne to say "are you asking me for a date?" That remark brought some guffaws from the audience! Foranyone looking for something different in the way of entertainment, I would recommend this film.

This film is a huge departure from Thom Fitzgerald's first film The Hanging Garden. Beefcake is a loosely woven docu-drama of photgrapher Bob Mizer's Athletic Model Guild. The style of the film will look very familiar to anyone who's seen the NFB's "Forbidden Love" where interviews with those who knew Bob are blended with a storyline about a court case involving an alleged prostitution ring. Good use is also made of archival footage from AMG and others. The interviews are quite well done- Joe D'Allesandro and Jack LaLanne in particular but the new footage seemed a little 2 dimensional and predictable.