There sure are a lot of gay films coming out of East Asia these days, and if they’re all as balls-to-the-wall crazy as Go Go G-Boys, I’m sure they’ll find a niche on this side of the Pacific.
An outrageously silly plot, wonderfully expressive acting, a few cheap laughs, even cheaper skin shots of a bevy of hot guys, and some deliciously creative videography mark this delightful debut from Taiwanese director Jong-Jong Yu.
The wacky starts right from the first scene, as young courier Hong discovers his self-involved girlfriend has racked up a $10-million debt on his credit cards in a single shopping spree, and is promptly chased across town on foot by a trio of hit men who threaten to kill him if he doesn’t pay up immediately. Taiwan’s collection agencies mean business, apparently.
After fleeing, he decides to enter the Go Go G-Boy beauty competition to win the money he needs to pay off the debt. The only problem is that all the contestants have to be gay. So Hong’s childhood best friend, gay rocker Shin, enters the contest alongside him to help him out.
There’s also a psycho killer who wants to destroy the contest, and a bumbling rookie cop with dreams of being a renowned anime hero who enters the contest undercover to catch him.
Yu doesn’t let anything go to waste in this film, giving each of the other contestants an opportunity to shine as well. Although oddly, there are no jokes about the contestant named “Young Long.” Maybe that pun doesn’t work in Mandarin.
Despite the comedy, Hong and Shin’s relationship is well drawn and at times even touching.
I admit to being a little disappointed by the finish, where some pretty major plot points were left unresolved for a somewhat left-field (yet predictable) plot development. Still, the film was undeniably fresh and delightfully entertaining.
Watch out for East Asian Cinema’s Nouvelle Fag.
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