New to VOD this week:
V-CARD
Director:
Jamaal Green
Premiere:
Cinekink 2018
About:
A 23 year old virgin makes a film about virginity and his quest to lose his.
Dillon is a tall, larger guy who is still a virgin in his early 20s, and, as he or his friends explain more than once, takes on this film project as a way to make sense of his virginity, and, ideally, lose it. He sets off to interview pretty much anyone he can find about virginity: academics dealing with sexuality and gender, sex therapists, his parents, his friends, porn actors and actresses, comedians, and, recurringly, vox pops around NYC. Supplementing this are video diary entries, meta conversations about the film, and adventures in online-, app-, and speed dating. Though on the surface he is outgoing and able to engage the various women he interviews, Dillon has a defeatist attitude born from years of rejection, forcing him to change his attitude to find a solution to his issues. While Dillon seems like a nice guy – his performativity makes it hard to get a real sense of authenticity – he and his collaborators have made a clunky film. Beyond its weak production values and very familiar premise, the project suffers from a common crutch for novice documentarians: the meta film. Dillon spends an excessive amount of time explaining what the film is or discussing the film, making it feel tedious and far longer than it is.
what (not) to doc 