Boat Trip succeeds where countless films have failed in providing insight into the multi-leveled complexity, ambiguity and tension inherent in gay/straight social interactions. Moreover, it brashly implies such interactions should be encouraged and even celebrated.
Boat Trip is both more and less than a sensitive but hilarious portrayal of the gay sex cruise industry. It must be recognized as a clever commentary on the often overlooked fact that gay men and straight men differ in sexual preference but are similar in some other respects.
The subtlety in the pretense of presenting what superficially appears to be a dreadfully juvenile and unfunny film as a means of illuminating the prejudices of the audience is utterly brilliant. So brilliant in fact that many of the more literal minded among us might leave the theater unaware of the profundity of the film and think they just endured one of the worst movies ever produced.
That would be their loss. Approached on a more open-minded level this film will reveal startling truths such as the little recognized tendency for some gay men to behave in an effeminate manner and the even less explored reality that such behavior makes many straight men uncomfortable. Even more revealing is the film's shocking premise that being in the company of gays does not inevitably cause a straight man to desire to perform fellatio. By exploding this myth this film may do more to strengthen the ties between straight and gay men than any development since the advent of unisex hair styling salons.
Most movingly, but with adroitly comedic undertones, this movie boldly suggests that, despite these hidden truths, gay and straight men can co-exist even within the confining environment of a seafaring vessel. Of course, the cruise liner is itself not merely the setting or "environment" in which this cinematic exploration occurs but indeed a metaphor for our ever more crowded society and the ultimate verity that we are all adrift in this mad world together.
The failure of this film to receive its due from critics only shows the dangers of daring to break new ground in Hollywood.
