Humpday Trailer Ushers in the 'Beyond Gay' Era

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One of the better films to hit the acquisitions jackpot this year at Sundance, Humpday turns the bromance genre on its ear by actually introducing sex into the fraternal equation. Or at least the prospect of sex, which, as the film's new trailer suggests, even the most cutting-edge indie comedy might not quite be ready for.

Ben (Mark Duplass) and Andrew (Joshua Leonard) are college buddies reunited years after heading their separate ways. Ben settles with his desk job and loving wife (Alycia Delmore), Andrew veers into rootlessness and irresponsibility. One stoned, drunken night among Andrew's bohemian pals, the two hatch a plan to contribute to Humpfest, Seattle's annual amateur-porn film festival (better known as Hump!): They will film themselves, two straight guys, having sex. With each other. "It's beyond gay," they conclude.

The genius wears off in the days ahead, however, as their commitment complicates both Ben's marriage and the men's friendship itself. Will they? Won't they? And do we want to see these guys naked in the first place? Maybe so, if you trust director Lynn Shelton's perceptive read on the quirks of male bonding and sexuality. True, the new spot isn't quite as dynamic as than the one that followed it to Park City, but Magnolia Pictures is smart to run with the comedy. After all, anything inspiring EW critic Lisa Schwarzbaum to unprecedentedly dizzy hyperbole, even for her ("Humpday is buoyed aloft by sex and laugh bubbles!" her pullquote blares), has Movieline's vote.

VERDICT: Sold!



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