Boys in the Sand (Vinegar Syndrome) Review

Distributor: Vinegar Syndrome Edition Details: Standard DVD Movie Specs: Genres: Classic (1970s Shot on Film), Feature Film, Gay Also known as: The Early Films of Wakefield Poole, Wakefield Poole's Boys in the Sand Run Time: 73 minutes Rated: X Release Year: 1971 Director: Wakefield Poole Written by: Wakefield Poole Director of Photography: Wakefield Poole Cast: Casey Donovan, Peter Fisk, Danny Di Cioccio, Tommy Moore, Ed Parente Release Specs: Audio: Dolby Digital 1.0 Mono Subtitles: none Video: Full Frame, 1.33:1 Video Format: NTSC Format: DVD Regional Code (for DVD/Blu-ray): 0 (All) Number of discs: 1

The landmark film in straight adult cinema is widely considered to be 1972's Deep Throat. A year before Deep Throat was released the far less heard about these days landmark film in gay adult cinema Boys in the Sand was released in New York City. Shot on Fire Island Pines by Wakefield Poole, who had formerly worked on Broadway, Boys in the Sand doesn't have a story within it in the traditional sense of the term. In fact, Boys in the Sand doesn't even have a single line of dialog anywhere within the film.

Boys in the Sand is essentially three loops titled “Bayside,” “Poolside,” and “Inside.” The three segments are connected by one central character, an unnamed blonde male (Casey Donovan). The unnamed blonde male is in all three of the segments which gives the three segments a feeling of continuity with each other. Where Boys in the Sand very much differs from the loops that it resembles and what made Boys in the Sand the landmark film it was for gay adult cinema is the look of the film.

Poole has created a visually beautiful film. Filled with artistic shots and portions that don't contain sex but pad out the segment to give it a story feel to it. While there is no dialog within the film, each segment does contain its own small story. The stories are obviously primitive in nature since they are shown only through visuals. Poole has also written the credits, and the names of each segment, in the sand.

Boys in the Sand isn't the best film that Poole made over his career and the film can be slow at times when Poole gets too heavily into the visuals that he is showing however in a field of films where so many of the director's don't care about their finished product, it is nice to see the work and care that Poole put into making Boys in the Sand. As far as the sex scenes go, being a straight male, they are hard to rate.

Vinegar Syndrome has done a really good job with their edition of Boys in the Sand. Boys in the Sand is presented in the academy aspect ratio of 1.33:1 in 480p. The transfer presented here is a bit more beat up than one generally sees from Vinegar Syndrome. The print contains print damage, artifacts, and debris. There are portions where the picture appears to be a little too dark and one point where the image turns red for under a second. Overall, the film is very watchable and while the video quality isn't up to Vinegar Syndrome's normal standards, it is well above what most adult DVD production companies are putting out.

Boys in the Sand is presented with a Dolby Digital 1.0 monaural audio track. The audio track contains pops and crackles. There isn't any dialog in the film, just music. The audio sounds fine despite the pops and crackles.

Vinegar Syndrome has loaded this release with extras that are sure to please. There is a feature length commentary track from Wakefield Poole for Boys in the Sand. The original first segment for Boys in the Sand with Dino and Peter Fisk, called “Peter and Dino,” is included on the release and runs for 16 minutes. This segment was shot again for the final film with Casey Donovan and Peter Fisk because Dino wanted too much money. There is a introduction to Boys in the Sand from Wakefield Poole that runs for two minutes. The theatrical trailer is included on the release.

There is an 11 minute feature called “Revisiting Fire Island,” where Poole visits the shooting locations from Boys in the Sand. There is a feature called “Linda Williams on Boys in the Sand” that runs for seven minutes and author Williams talks about the film. There is a 24 minute segment from The Emerald City, a community access Cable TV program which aired on Manhattan Cable and Teleprompter Cable's Channel J aimed at the gay community, from 1977 where host Frank O'Dowd interviews Wakefield Poole and Casey Donovan.

Four of Poole's early experimental films have been included on the release as well. “Andy,” a ten minute film from 1971 shows the Andy Warhol retrospective at the Whitney Museum. “A Gift,” is a ten minute film from 1971 with Edward Parente and also has a commentary from Wakefield Poole. “Head Film,” is an 11 minute film from 1971 with Peter Fisk and Wakefield Poole. And last is “Vittorio,” a three minute film from 1971 from the Triton Gallery which was part of their art of Vittorio Fiorucci exhibit.

Boys in the Sand is a visual experience from Wakefield Poole that shows that for him, adult film making was more than just sex, he was trying to create a beautiful cinematic experience. And he succeeds. There are some slow spots in the film, but overall Poole has created a very good film that has become the landmark film in gay adult cinema. Vinegar Syndrome has done a very good job with this release with a decent transfer of the film and a wealth of extras.

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