Sissy-Boy Slap-Party (2004)

Madman Guy Maddin made this bizzaro four minute short...and it, frankly, defies description. It's practically a must see if you're into Guy Maddin's work as he certainly utilizes his style in a unique and totally "Maddin-esque" way, and it makes for some fascinating watching. Any real analysis or discussion of the film is almost pointless; it't almost TOO weird for that...it's...it's...it's really hard to describe with words unless one were a poet, but even if one were a poet their descriptions of what insanity bursts in every corner in every frame of this film would likely be extremely difficult reading, and something the average reader would have a difficult time processing. All I can say is that this is, no doubt, an experimental and wild ride that is saved by Maddin's signature stylistic liberties and sense of absurdist humor.

My experience was the opposite of the previous reviewer. I also saw Sissy Boy Slap Party as part of a festival of gay short films, and giggled and laughed through the whole thing at the giddy silliness of it. It was well received by the audience. You can't take it too seriously, obviously. But the combination of the music, the silent-film style, and the vision of a bunch of hunky guys naughtily having a slap party (nobody looks like they get hurt) when their mysterious overseer leaves them unsupervised with explicit "no slapping" instructions, is strangely irresistible. If you need something literal or "meaningful," this one's probably not for you. But if you're able to get into the spirit of something creative and goofy, this can be a great laugh tonic.

This movie is a little slice of choreographic genius. Shot in Guy Maddin's black and white faux early-film style, it's a six-minute dance of, well, sissy boys slapping each other. They slap, they cry, they giggle, and you laugh. It's set up, timed, and concluded flawlessly. There are jungle rhythms, beautiful boys, builds and climaxes, and one-of-a-kind cinematography. If you appreciate Guy Maddin at all, if you like camp, or if you think the title "Sissy Boy Slap Party" is funny, there's no reason not to own this and stick in your DVD player whenever you need a quick pick-me-up. Sofa guests seem to love it, too.

When the "daddy" goes out to the shop to buy condoms, he warns his gathered young men that he wants no slapping while he is away. Of course, this warning lasts fewer than 10 seconds after he has stepped out of the door and quickly the group are slapping each other all over and loving every minute of it.Although this short film has no plot and no real meaning, it is worth seeing simply as another example of who Guy Maddin is and how his style can be used in various ways – in this film, acting out gay clichés while also sending up the homo-erotic cinema of past generations. Here we have four minutes of men (very camp men) slapping each other. While it may sound like a closet case's perfect film, it is actually a funny little piece that lampoons the clichés of cinema's presentation of homosexuals and the eroticism that it cannot help but produce at the same time. Many will see just men slapping each other and will wonder what the point was – hysterically one reviewer here has said this film was made as a promotion piece for The Saddest Music In The World, clearly not knowing that it was made about 7 years earlier! Not worth hunting down by itself, this short is still funny enough and interesting enough to se worth seeing if you get the chance, despite the basic "plot". Maddin fans will understand why he is always worth seeing and this short is no exception even if there is really very little to it.