Pat Rocco Dared

Pat Rocco was an early gay pioneer who made erotic (but not pornographic) films, often with his subjects ending up naked, kissing and caressing. He also put his talents to use in documenting the early gay liberation movement, including parades and speeches by Harvey Milk. Here, Charlie David "interviews" him - or lets Rocco take us down memory lane, as we are shown clips of Rocco's films. There are interviews with other analysts, and documentation of Rocco's other charitable work.

I liked the clips, both as illustration of what he had done, and as a way of avoiding the talking head syndrome. As Rocco was before my time, I am happy to get to know him and his work.

Really interesting documentary. Canadian filmmaker pat rocco finds his way to hollywood.... starts out making softcore films. In harvey milk's orbit, he's in the right place to document police activity at the club "the meat market". Later making softcore films with a gay, romantic story. They not only have a backstory, but it's almost a magical romance in very ordinary places. He actually filmed a gay love story at disneyland, which they did not approve, and of course, placed a cease and desist order. Nude men in some of his films, (probably not at disney), frolicking, actually kissing, dancing. And sadly, at the end, the two men would have return to the harsh real world full of rules and police. Includes interviews with rocco, his partner, by charlie david, a director and actor in his own right. Very well done! It was fun learning about a guy that most of us had probably never heard of. He not only filmed gay parades and events, but had a hand in organizing them. And has become part of history himself.

I enjoyed so much this well deserved tribute to a courageous artist that made a great statement of freedom, love and art with his films. Charlie David made a wonderful job in this documentary that showed us Pat Rocco's story in such beautiful interviews, images and sequences. In my opinion, Pat Rocco was able to make his vision and his dream a reality that contributed hugely to the liberties we have now, and this documentary is an accurate reflection of his legacy and all the barriers he needed to demolish to succeed. I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to learn about our past, to improve our future. A great movie!

I'd never given much thought to the first male/male kiss in cinematic history. And I certainly had never thought about the artistic representation of homosexuality on the big screen.

Charlie David's new documentary about Pat Rocco opened my eyes to so many different things. Not just Pat's films - but to his activism, his charitable works and, I think most importantly, his 45 year relationship to his husband David.

I enjoyed the clips of the films, of course, but I really found the discussions between Charlie and Pat the most engaging. I'm so glad Charlie got such great footage.

This documentary is for anyone who loves cinema, gay representation, or just to see a trailblazer in action. I highly recommend it.

Pat Rocco made movies. Way back when. And they featured beautiful men. And the beautiful men were frolicking, walking through the woods, holding hands, kissing, and caressing each other. The affection, romance, and pure beauty of the men is still an amazing statement today. No tattoos, no piercings, no waxed and shaved bodies, no dirty talk or rough treatment. These men love and respect themselves and each other.

The filmmakers interivewed Pat Rocco shortly before he died and found vintage footage of him to include in this tribute. Unfortunately, they also recorded interviews with "experts" to tell the audience what to think and how to react. The unintentional incongruity between the appearances of the "experts" and the men in Pat Rocco's movies shows how far we have strayed from our natural bodies in an effor to be "edgy" or fashionable.

It would have been far better to let Pat Rocco's romantic, playful, joyous work speak for itself instead of bombarding viewers with folks telling us that this work was groundbreaking, important, etc. Don't you think we can see that for ourselves?

The added interviews make the movie feel padded. Repeating some of the vintage footage only adds to this feeling. And it is a shame because there must have been hours of additional shots they could have used instead of showing us the same clips two or three times.

If you are a gay man, treat yourself to this movie if you can find it. But you might want to fast forward through the talking heads.