King Cobra (2016)

When you watch a movie like this, you expect it to be terrible, and it is. But on top of that, this film goes through great lengths to make Brent Corrigan look like he's an innocent lamb who had nothing to do with Stephen's death. In reality, we all know he was an integral part of the plan to murder his ex boss. Not only did he try to blackmail him by using his age, which they played down in this movie, but he thought he could get away with killing his boss by having two other guys do the dirty work and burning the place down. In the movie, he plays innocent as if he had no idea. The movie suggests that he only implied it, when in reality you know for sure it was a lot more than that. This is a guy who used a fake ID and then tried to make himself a victim (by the way he won a lot of money in his lawsuit... bc he made porn while under age... because he used a fake ID to do so). This is a guy who had absolutely the most incentive to get rid of his boss and get out of his contract. The movie even paints his boss as quite a rapist right before his death, so you won't feel anything for him. As if these porn stars had no choice but to hang out with this rich guy. I'm not condoning how rich old men act, but you have to be stupid to think that rich old men, no matter what their orientation, don't diddle younger people. I don't like them either, so I stay away from them.Brent is one of the worst people to walk our planet and this movie paints him as some sort of hero. He even got Alicia Silverstone to play his mom. We know the producers brought her in as bait for the gay audience. Her turn in Clueless will forever give her a gay fan base. Don't get me wrong, I love her too, but I wish she had no part in this horrible movie.

The strange but true story of Porn legend Brent Corrigan is told in this well made drama from director Justin Kelly ('I am Michael'). Sean Paul Lockhart took on the name of Brent Corrigan as a 'porn name' when he dipped his toe in the world of smut. He was taken under the, very keen, wing of Stephen played by Christian Slater in a well executed performance. He was a talented man who had a liking for young lads and the moment he saw Sean he was smitten. He also had a canny head for business and stood by the rule of not mixing the two together.We also have the back stories and the story of a rival firm where the star was not making the kind of money that Stephen was and how the envy turned into, what some would cal 'affirmative action'. Those that know the story will not be surprised, I did not and must say this was compelling and gripping in equal measure.The acting is all first rate with some well observed period detail but this is the very 'near past' so not too much effort really needed. The action – if one can call it that - is all simulated and mostly not seen so nothing to put one off ones dinner. The real strength is the story and the performances and they are all more than up to the task. This is a film with gay interest but it is predominantly a thriller and on that scale it scores both highly and readily – hence easy to recommended.

"I like to think that I'm gay in my art and straight in my life - James Franco.In another recent missed opportunity James Franco proves once more that he is talented but highly pretentious when it comes to his craft. With recent films like - Milk, Howl, Wild Horses and most recently I am Michael; Franco again argues that he is shaping his view of what he considers art - His directorial work is more of the same, contemporary period literature that sometimes never translates well to the screen. In King Cobra, we see the same results all too familiar by now.Sean Lockhart (Garrett Clayton) decides to meet with gay porn producer Stephen (Christian Slater) in the hopes of becoming a star within the industry. Stephen instantly believes Sean has the makings of a star and soon begin to work together producing videos under the pseudonym "Brent Corrigan" - Quickly rising to fame Stephen takes complete ownership of Sean not allowing to him to leave or work freely with others - Or raise his pay.Meanwhile, two aspiring porn producers Joe (James Franco) and Harlow (Keegan Allen) in debt try to produce a film with the rising Bret Corrigan, only to be stopped by Stephen; who wants 80% of the profits made.Director Justin Kelly (I am Michael) once again struggles on two themes - who is this movie for ? - And what this movie is about ? - with a similar theme related back to I am Michael about the struggles of homosexuality and what it means to be a gay man - or how it feels to find acceptance from your loved ones - this is briefly touched on, but not strong enough to make us care or connect with anyone in this film.To his credit, Kelly who also wrote the screenplay tries to craft a story leading to the incident we already know is coming - Establishing the motives and reasoning behind Sean's decision to later venture off on his own - the end of his partnership with King Cobra - and perhaps a message about the industry itself. With all this juggled, King Cobra falls under the weight of being just another "based on a true story". For his role, Garret Clayton plays it slow and naive. A deer in headlights unsure of his prospects and goals. Christian Slater also good does his own interpretation of his character, playing him with aggression and lust. James Franco is fine in his role, but ultimately feels and still looks like James Franco playing a part - with Keegan Allen being the standout of the film.King Cobra is a darkly entertaining exploit that although retains the true story element - would rather have style over substance.

'King Cobra' continues what appears to be co-producer James Franco's fascination with gay pornography (see also 'Interior. Leather Bar' and, to a certain extent, 'Kink'). I don't know why he doesn't just appear in a gay porn film himself and get it out of his system...... actually, Franco does play a porn actor in this, but anyone hoping for a display of Franco flesh is going to be disappointed: for a film set in the gay porn industry this is remarkably coy about male nudity: there are plenty of shirtless scenes, but only a few quick shots of bare backsides (none of them Franco's). So, having got that out of the way, what about the story?The film is based on the early career of porn star Brent Corrigan. He is hired by porn producer Stephen (the 'King Cobra' of the title, played - or rather shouted - by Christian Slater, looking more than ever like a bad-tempered monkey) and he soon has a large fan-base, but his contract with Stephen does not allow him to fully exploit his new-found fame. This frustrates not only Brent, but other, more dangerous folk as well.It is hard to comment on the quality of the acting when the actors are portraying members of a community that seems to attract larger-than-life personalities. For instance, Franco portrays his rival porn producer with sleazy relish - but is that merely a one-note performance, or was the real-life man like that? As Corrigan, Garrett Clayton queens his way through the film in a manner that could be offensive - but is that how the real Corrigan behaved? The only rounded performance seems to come from Keegan Allen as an abused performer.Ultimately, this is a dull film: for instance (SUPER SPOILER ALERT!), a scene where Corrigan tricks a confession from the murderers is a wasted opportunity to build up some tension: it is a dangerous situation; will he be able to get the information the police need; will the criminals suspect him - and if so, what will they do? Instead the scene has even less edge-of-your-seat tension than a reconstruction on the 'Yesterday' channel (admittedly, Yesterday would not include the swearing and possibly not the hot tub, either). In more than one way, this is disappointment, I'm afraid.