Writer/director Casper Andreas' thoughtful, ensemble-driven sex comedy A Four Letter Word embodies a loose sequel to his 2004 Slutty Summer, with several of the tertiary characters from that earlier effort, including Peter, Luke, and Marilyn, foregrounded here. As in his prior effort, Andreas relies on humorous situations, characters, and setups to ask the sober question of how it is possible to maintain the integrity of gay love in an atmosphere of unbridled hedonism, replete with such
pleasures as homosexual orgies (or "fourgies"), transvestism, and naked yoga. The filmmaker hones in on several colorful characters. At the center of the story are porno-shop proprietors Zeke, a gay rights crusader, and the nymphomaniacal, muscle-bound queen Luke, who finds it hard to commit to anyone. Luke's partner is Stephen, who initially expresses interest in a committed relationship, then chucks it all for a swinging lifestyle. Meanwhile, the newly engaged Marilyn grapples with her Alcoholics Anonymous program, and live-in lovers Derek and Peter must contend with the petty irritations of sharing a residence. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
The film also serves up latte-frothy glimpses of an all-drag bridal shower, an erotic spinning class, and - all of 90 seconds into the proceedings -- naked yoga. Don't forget to bring your wipe-down towel.
[Director] Andreas rescues A Four Letter Word from being merely a raunchy lil' romance by showing how his characters are steeped in a culture of therapy that has filled Americans with endless, compulsive self-analysis and self-doubt.
...explores gay life in New York primarily through the eyes of Luke ... who is so busy trying to sparkle that he's made himself into the perfect gay cliché.
It's always a treat when a movie seems to be exactly the movie that the filmmakers intended to make, and their audience wants to see. It's also a treat when it's a good movie, too.
There is no denying that Andreas is really trying to say something about the difficulty of real intimacy in a society where easy sex lies in wait on every corner of Manhattan.
Lots of four-letter words get tossed around in Caspar Andreas' naughty sequel to his cheekily titled Slutty Summer, but the scariest one of all is the L word: love.
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