johnb609 I read the other review of this movie and couldn't believe we had seen the same film—maybe we didn't. I thought this was an interesting history of an era, perhaps a unique era, and that it had an obvious beginning and an obvious end. I especially liked that the title was so mundane.The photos of men in NYC in the 70s were spectacular and the entire story captivating, at least for me.I went because I tend to like documentaries and I think the movie was well structured. There is a point at which it "dawns on you" and you might even get up and go at that point but it is a good history.I wonder what Pompeii was like...

MarkDcomic This is a film that suffers from the same malady that so many gay films suffer from. It's all about New Yorkers, and only eighteen of them. (Count the cast yourself.) Like Longtime Companion, and even Angels in America, it assumes that homosexuals only live and love in NYC.Considering the title I guess I expected a broader more enlightening documentary. In the opening segment it promises to cover 69-81, Stonewall till AIDS. Then it goes on to cover AIDS anyway, in a tact-on perfunctory manner. "See how the consequences played out?" it seems to say. The film is not particularly enlightening in any way and nothing that hasn't' been said before. It would certainly be nice to see a film someday that could encompass the gay experience of all of America instead of a tiny group of New Yorkers. The fact that San Francisco is not even mentioned should tell you that this film does not live up to it's title.If you want to see a film about gay sexuality, you would be better off looking up "SEX IS," or even renting some classic gay porn.

Christopher T. Chase There are very few movies that dispense with the coyness and cleverness of a catchy title, and simply tell you flat out what you can expect to see. This is one of them.Director Joseph Lovett's documentary is kind of like one of those retrospectives you see on VH-1 or the E! Network, only with more naked men, hot explicit sex (well, explicit for a documentary), and snapshots frozen in time that show us visions of a bygone decade, where the Gay Wide World went from draconian repression, to sexual liberation of Bacchanalian proportions, to the next chapter where "the bill came due" for all that excessive indulgence.No one clucks their tongues or passes judgment, as the interviewees regale us with tales of just how things were back in those days, (although you have to consider that there was some extravagant embellishments here and there.) I was only privy to a taste of the lifestyle of which the subjects speak in this film, and I guess I should be grateful for it, because more than likely it saved my life and the lives of more than a few other people I know. Even back then, in my younger days, I only knew of the stories about Fire Island, the New York-based bars, baths and clubs and the infamous Piers and Trucks through hearsay, and it all sounded fabulous, hedonistic and legendary even as it was happening.There are touches of the ominous, though, and it certainly doesn't shy away from the dark side of all that "jazz." There were risks other than STD's, and in pursuit of ultimate bliss, there were some who still paid the ultimate price, and that was way before AIDS came to call.Funny, touching, shocking and sobering all at once, the only drawback is that it isn't the fully rounded account it could be. Maybe Lovett can find a way to extend this into a series and capture more accounts of the shock waves that spread out into other parts of the country, from the "epicenter of the gay universe" as someone in the doc describes the Big Apple. New York and San Francisco were important touchstones of gay culture, but they were not the 'Alpha and Omega' of the Seventies' sexual revolution.At the very least, it is an important historical record that a new generation can learn from, for those who think that "Stonewall" is just another place in the mall where you can buy acid-washed jeans.And on a sadder note, maybe the reason why it hasn't been possible to film a more complete history of "Gay Sex in the Seventies," is because many of the eyewitnesses to this remarkable time in history are no longer here to tell about it. I certainly hope that isn't the case.

preppy-3 Probably the first documentary ever done about gay sex before AIDS hit. It has interviews with various men who lived through the 1970s and some incredible film footage and photographs. It shows how Stonewall liberated gays and made them fight back. It opened the doors for gay bars, bathhouses and virtual nonstop anonymous sex. The movie doesn't pass judgment on the subjects. It just shows it how it was.I was born in 1962 so when I came out in the 1980s AIDS was in full effect. I've heard how great the 70s were and this documentary shows me a time we'll probably never see again. It doesn't shy away from the dark side--it makes it clear people were robbed or beaten (or killed) and there were plenty of STDs being passed around. Also it shows the rampant drug abuse going on. I honestly can't say that I personally agree with the nonstop sex and drugs, but it does show gay men having sex and not apologizing for it--and that's just great.This is obviously not for everybody--it's unrated but no one under 18 is admitted--and some of it may be too graphic for some (there's PLENTY of sex and nudity). Still, it chronicles an important time in gay and US history and is invaluable. I give it an 8 because it does have its slow spots.