Circuit

2001 Drama

A man hoping to move out of the closet falls into a trap of drug-fueled hedonism in this cautionary drama. John (Jonathan Wade Drahos) is a police officer from a small town who is forced to leave his career behind when it is discovered that he's gay. Hoping to find more tolerant surroundings, John moves to West Hollywood and rents an apartment with Nina (Kiersten Warren), an old friend from his high school days. One night, John attends a party where he meets Hector (Andre Khabazzi), an attractive hustler with whom he quickly strikes up a relationship. Hector is a regular on the L.A. party circuit, and John soon falls in with him, but the endless barrage of music, drugs, and anonymous sex proves more than John can handle, and he soon develops a dangerous dependence on amphetamines. William Katt, Nancy Allen, and Bruce Vilanch also appear in the supporting cast. Circuit had its premiere at the 2001 L.A. Outfest, a festival devoted to gay and lesbian-themed films. more..

Director: Dirk Shafer

Starring: Jonathan Wade Drahos, Andre Khabbazi, Brian Lane Green, Kiersten Warren

Reviews

  • At once a sexy soap opera, at times lurid and bathetic, and also a gritty cautionary tale made by a filmmaker honest enough to have it both ways.

    Kevin Thomas - Los Angeles Times

    19 January 2013

  • All-encompassing drama.

    Robert Koehler - Variety

    19 January 2013

  • There is a real subject here, and it is handled with intelligence and care.

    Dana Stevens - The New York Times

    19 January 2013

  • If anyone wants to watch naked men in the shower, naked men doing erotic dancing, naked men in bed and almost-naked men pumping iron, this is the film to see.

    Mick LaSalle - The San Francisco Chronicle

    19 January 2013

  • It makes the viewer wonder whether Circuit would have been stronger as a documentary instead of the well-intentioned, overlong, intermittently entertaining but flawed feature that it is.

    Loren King - The Chicago Tribune

    19 January 2013

Awards

  • Underground/Alternative Collection

    Coachella Valley Festival of Festivals (2001)

  • Exposé

    Political Film Society (2003)