Speedway Junky Reviews

The adjective "inimitable" has often been applied to Gus Van Sant's My Own Private Idaho. But that hasn't stopped young directors from attempting to imitate the filmmaker's stylized tale of young hustlers in love. Case in point: With nothing but a pedestrian segment of the gay shorts anthology Boys Life on his resume, first-time writer/director Nickolas Perry apes Van Sant's story, if not his lyrical style, with this warmed-over melodrama about life on the streets. Jesse Bradford steps into Keanu Reeves' dreamy straight-boy shoes to play Johnny, a would-be race-car driver who ends up hustling in Vegas. Jordan Brower plays the River Phoenix part as damaged goods with a streak of romance and an unshakable jones for his unattainable compatriot. Brower clearly gives the superior performance, mostly because his street-coarsened character doesn't have to shake off the "aw, shucks" aura that pervades most of Bradford's scenes. The only performer to generate much real emotional pull, however, is Daryl Hannah as an ex-prostitute who cares for both boys. Her mournful combination of mother and whore is certainly more involving than the brief cameos of everyone from Patsy Kensit (cool as a cucumber for two minutes of screen time) to Tiffani-Amber Thiessen (laughable for about the same duration). Those with a perverse sense of humor may enjoy teen heartthrob Jonathan Taylor Thomas' turn as a smug little rascal with a rich clientele, but the film's cautionary heavy-handedness and tacked-on treacle cancel out the incidental pleasures of such stunt casting. It's anyone's guess why Van Sant felt the need to executive-produce a film that unsuccessfully echoes his own work. Regardless, Speedway Junky proves inferior to the similarly manipulative Johns and falls even farther short of My Own Private Idaho's emotionally resonant benchmark.