Shortbus

2006, Comedy/Drama, 1h 42m

129 Reviews 50,000+ Ratings

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critics consensus

The sex may be explicit, but Mitchell integrates it into the characters' lives and serves the whole story up with a generous dose of sweetness and wit. Read critic reviews

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Movie Info

John Cameron Mitchell's SHORTBUS explores the lives of several emotionally challenged characters as they navigate the comic and tragic intersections between love and sex in and around a modern-day underground salon. A sex therapist who has never had an orgasm, a dominatrix who is unable to connect, a gay couple who are deciding whether to open up their relationship, and the people who weave in and out of their lives, all converge on a weekly gathering called Shortbus: a mad nexus of art, music, politics, and polysexual carnality. Set in a post-9/11, Bush-exhausted New York City, SHORTBUS tells its story with sexual frankness, suggesting new ways to reconcile questions of the mind, pleasures of the flesh, and imperatives of the heart.

Cast & Crew

Sook-Yin Lee
Sofia
Paul Dawson
James
Lindsay Beamish
Severin
PJ DeBoy
Jamie
Raphael Barker
Rob
Peter Stickles
Caleb
Jay Brannan
Ceth
Justin Vivian Bond
Brothel Madame
Alan Mandell
Adam Hardman
Ray Rivas
Bitch
Shanti Carson
Jan Hilmer
John Cameron Mitchell
Director
John Cameron Mitchell
Screenwriter
Howard Gertler
Producer
John Cameron Mitchell
Producer
Tim Perell
Producer
Wouter Barendrecht
Executive Producer
Michael J. Werner
Executive Producer
Frank G. DeMarco
Cinematographer
Brian A. Kates
Film Editor
Yo La Tengo
Original Music
Jody Asnes
Production Design
Sarah E. McMillan
Set Decoration
Kurt & Bart
Costume Designer
Susan Shopmaker
Casting
John Cameron Mitchell
Writer
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Critic Reviews for Shortbus

All Critics (129) | Top Critics (50) | Fresh (88) | Rotten (41)
Full Review… Mark Bourne Film.com Full Review… Melissa Anderson Time Out Full Review… Stella Papamichael BBC.com Full Review… Anna Smith Empire Magazine Full Review… Andrew Sarris Observer Full Review… Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader Full Review… Dennis Harvey 48 Hills Full Review… Frank J. Avella Edge Media Network Full Review… Matthew Lucas The Dispatch (Lexington, NC) Full Review… Annie Wagner The Stranger (Seattle, WA) Full Review… Dorothy Woodend The Tyee (British Columbia) Full Review… Tara Thorne The Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)
View All Critic Reviews (129)

Audience Reviews for Shortbus

  • Feb 02, 2014
    If this firm didn't have considerable artistic and intellectual merit, it would be porn. But it does have merit and it has a LOT more to say than prurience or lust. In fact, such sentiments would be missing the point entirely. It's a brave and brash film about sexuality and relationships that makes one wonder -- why hasn't a film like this been made before?
    Christian C Super Reviewer
  • Nov 22, 2013
    How will I describe Shortbus in one word? Different. It's not that weird, well sure there are some scenes that made me cringe or goes 'who would have thought about that'; but the whole movie feels different. It's not like the director is an amateur, he knows his stuff, and it's a treat to watch the core reason of why people have sex or look for sex even, in that matter. Not for prude audience obviously, but if you are in the mood for some funny/absurd sexual escapade with touch of comedy, watch Shortbus! 7/10
    Mesh B Super Reviewer
  • Oct 05, 2012
    This was of course the film that Sook Yin Lee got all sorts of heat about but the naughty bits are all overplayed. It is a generally good, not excellent, piece of insight into seven lives of discovery. Not particularly memorable.
    John B Super Reviewer
  • May 26, 2012
    Okay, honestly, I feel like the sex scenes were put there just to be titillating. Not effective.
    Jennifer X Super Reviewer
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