Family Values

Boasting high-end production values and scorching sex, Family Values figured prominently in the 1997 awards. Longtime porn aficionados will note the re-emergence of '70s gay porn stars Derrick Stanton and Steve York, alongside current stud-pups Brooks, Kidd and Cross. Douglas' script is both clever and smart, and Family Values is a prime example of the kind of art the gay porn industry is capable of producing. Great sex and a wide selection of appealing men, terrific production values and a timeless theme will push porn buffs to make it a part of their home collection. The story begins with Young showing his family album to best bud Cross, including his only picture of his father. Young still lives with his activist mom, played with great verve and high emotion by that patron saint of the gay porn biz, Sharon Kane. Kane, for all of her activism, is virulently homophobic and informs her son that his father died before he was born, but of course there's more to that story. The action cuts to the magnetic Stanton paired with deliciously hung Brooks. Douglas quite cleverly parallels the journey of both Young and Stanton, tying the older man/younger man theme into a split-screen jack off session and a damned fascinating sex club face-off, in which older Stanton tops youngish O'Donnell, and twentysomething Young fucks an older bigger Tucker. This sexual rivalry is one of the dvd's more fascinating attractions, and it culminates in several steamy encounters between Young and Stanton. While Jerry Douglas apparently intended viewers to question whether or not Stanton fathered Young, the viewer is not left with any real doubts, and thus their sex has a disquieting edge. Attention must be drawn to the fabulous performance of Bo Summers as Sunshine, a happy-go-lucky pimp. Summers has never been funnier, or sexier, and his fans will not forgive themselves if they miss this performance. Summers prods Young and Cross into a superb pairing before joining the action himself. Kidd is paired with York, who, like Stanton, has matured into a sexy, appealing presence. Kidd spends most of his time slurping hungrily on the much older man's cock, and York plows him beautifully for the effort. All told, Family Values satisfies on many levels. Cast: Bo Summers, Brent Cross, Bryan Kidd, Cole Tucker, Derrick Stanton, Erich Lange, Kristian Brooks, Kurt Young, Steve O'Donnell, Steve York