The Houseboy

Playing the title role of The Houseboy is Nick May who is boyishly appealing. Because of that you can see the attraction he holds for partners Tom Merlino and Brian Patacca.

Whenever these two want a threesome over comes May. But May overhears Patacca before he and Merlino leave for a Christmas holiday vacation that he's getting bored and wants a new toy for Christmas. That jolts May who sees a well ordered world that depends on his boyish charm for survival. He resolves to kill himself on Christmas. But not before a round of hookups with mostly losers.

The Houseboy is a nice tale of young gay men who are totally dependent on looks a charm to get by. If May's not just outright doing sex on a cash and carry basis he's one step from it. But he's a sensitive kid who like so many gay people is alienated from his family because of his sexual orientation. Just a little love and acceptance is all he wants and needs. Like so many out there, May's a universal figure.

The Houseboy isn't the greatest from a technical aspect, but young Nick May is most charming and this film should be seen for him.

I didn't really know what the expect and considering the fact that 3 actors are featured on the poster I was sort of hoping for a love triangle with some psychology dealing with if and how a relationship could function as a threesome. But to my dismay, Nick May as the houseboy Ricky and the older couple Brian Patacca (DJ) with Tom Merlino (Simon) have one scene together (the best one sadly enough) then they both leave and the story goes flat. Actually I should specify that story is too strong a word because the number one problem with this production is that there is no plot.

All we see is Ricky brooding and inviting guys over for random sex during the Holidays with explicit sexual scenes and drug use, one after the other without purpose other than relieving boredom which I suspect is now spreading to the audience. I kept on watching, hoping that somehow this would amount to something deeper or at least more interesting but to no avail. A movie without a strong story is like a house without a foundation, it can not stand strong and will sooner or later start to collapse under its own weight.

If the acting had been interesting or the cinematography original maybe I could have latched on to something but all I felt was a sense of dread as I realized that this is all we get. Nick May as Ricky is not a good actor or even a decent one and I always felt like he was trying to not embarrass himself too much, lost in a ridiculous semi-porn movie (which is what this boils down to really...) with weird and uncomfortable sex scenes not even good enough to sustain our interest.

By the end, I only felt relief that this excruciating journey was over and I can not in good conscience recommend it to anyone unless they are prepared to not expect anything more than a sex flick with some bits of dialogue thrown in as we get to look at Ricky's face ad nauseam as he tries to keep our interest from disintegrating. But unfortunately, he doesn't succeed and I for one can't wait to forget this dreadful and inept flick. 1 star is all I could give to this awful experience.

Very interesting movie it hits on various points on cute houseboy Ricky (Nick May) played his character quite well. There is nudity in this film as well as drug use going on and the cast of characters entering and departing from his moment in the movie is typical of what u would find in any gay persons life. Make sure u watch the deleted scenes there's more fo the story there. You must watch it after the movie it will tell u a very crucial piece of info of the end of the movie wont tell u. Movie should affect anyone at any age even though it covers the a week of a 21 yr old it touches on many things that happens to each of us gay. One thing bad about the DVD it had no subtitles option.