2 by 4
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Bradley Fitts, Conor Foran, Karen Giordano, Norman Barbera, Ronan CarrBrand: SMALLHORNE,JOHNNY
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 89 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-08-10
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Ariztical
Movie Reviews of 2 by 4
Movie Review: Interesting, If Uneven
Summary: 4 Stars
This is another example of films marketed to a gay audience that are really only marginally gay, or to be more precise, of marginal gay interest. Johnny Maher is a non-union construction worker, foreman to his uncle Trump's rag-tag group of Irish immigrant day laborers. You get the feeling that these people may as well be back in Dublin, or even Belfast. Johnny has nightmares concerning the scars on his back and the death of his mother, but seems to be able to recall few childhood memories. Meanwhile, his uncle Trump keeps delaying payday for Johnny and his friends, and you get the idea quickly that his uncle is a low-life, a scam artist and probably very twisted on a sexual level. Our theories are expanded when his uncle is arrested for indecent exposure in a gay cruising area, claiming that he was in the bushes only to relieve himself. Our suspicions are then confirmed when Johnny catches his uncle having S&M sex with an African American hunk, and suddenly you understand why Trump has been late with his crew's last few paychecks.
Johnny eventually realizes what all those bad dreams are about, even though we don't. We don't because, like much of this film, the scene in which Johnny's nightmare is revealed is confusing and extremely vague, leaving the viewer to figure out most of the implications on their own. The film has yellow subtitles (even though it's in English) but the Irish Brogues are so thick, in many spots I was grateful for them. The homoeroticism is so minor, and the scenes in gay bars and those with the male hustlers (one for Johnny and one for his uncle) so brief, that I kept debating whether or not to file this one in my gay section after all. But I did like the gritty realism, and the lead actor / director had a quirky sort of masculine hunkiness that I found interesting. The acting is sincere and I dare say even first rate, as are the production values, including the camera work and lighting.
There is an engaging scene in which the tender side of the constructions workers is revealed when one of them is found to be carrying around a poem he not only wrote but has successfully published. The guys all kid him until he is forced to read the simple, somber verse aloud, and all present are effected by its sincerity. Although it sounds trite, it was far more effective than one would expect, and that's coming from someone not easily swayed by sentiment.
In my last review of a Culture Q Connection video, Ben and Arthur, I swore I'd never buy another CQC title. I purchased 2 X 4 without noticing the CQC logo. It doesn't have much to do with gay culture, but I did like it a lot more than Ben and Arthur or Visions of Sugarplums, two dreadful and dismal CQC releases. Since they also released the DVD version of Breaking the Surface (the Greg Louganis Story), Culture Q Connection is now batting two for two with me, which is better than I would have given them if I'd only purchased Ben and Arthur or Visions of Sugarplums. While not for everyone, I wound up enjoying 2 X 4 more than I expected to.
Summary of 2 by 4
Irish Construction worker Johnny Maher likes roughing it up, in the North Bronx. At night he sings Karaoke and drinks whiskey with his mates. This great American life with girlfriend Maria is threatened by the horrors of Johnny's paste and the torment of his childhood. Johnny turns to his uncle, the only person who may hold the key to his past. Johnny has no choice but to confront the demons of his past or be destroyed by them.Drama DVD Video
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