Strictly Sexual (2008) User Reviews

A Delightfully Funny and Original Love Story

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 4 January 2009]

In Los Angeles, the wealthy aspirant writer Donna (Amber Benson) and her best friend and aspirant designer Christi Ann (Kristen Kerr) are bored of relationships and decide to chase two escorts in a bar for one night stand. Meanwhile, the construction workers and best friends Stanny (Stevie Long) and Joe (Johann Urb) come from New York but do not find job in Los Angeles; without money, they decide to go to a fancy bar to drink and leave the place without paying the bill. The sexual experienced Donna and the uptight and shy Christi Ann meet Stanny and Joe and invite them home believing they are hustlers. After a night of sex, the women discover the misunderstanding and that the men are indeed unemployed workers. They propose them to stay in a tent near the swimming-pool with beer and food while they search for jobs; in return, they would be their "boy-toys" during the nights in a strictly sexual relationship. Along the following weeks, the couples become closer and change their feelings and behaviors with the development and growing of their relationships.

"Strictly Sexual" is a delightfully funny and original love story. This sweet low-budget movie overcame my best expectations, supported by an excellent screenplay, great direction and a perfect chemistry among the four believable lead characters. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Apenas Sexo" ("Just Sex")

Great Situation Drama/Comedy

[thomas-bengtsson · 7/10 · 9 December 2008]

It's a lovely piece of drama, with less sex scenes than one might anticipate. Strictly Sexual is rather more of a drama, with situations and scenes that are well written and thoroughly funny. But the movie does have it's flaws. Some scenes (you'll see them) are just terrible, and, in my opinion, the entire movie needs some serious editing.

But all that doesn't stop Strictly Sexual from being great. All it does is just give a snapshot of two lives, two lives that intertwine with them and give a rather long explanation of them. The movie starts with a masturbation scene by Donna, then quickly gives a documentary-like interview of the two lovers, Donna and Stanny. Then we see a fight between them and a narration by Joe, who asks how a couple can end up like that, and then brings us, the viewers, back to the beginning, before all of what we have just seen happened. This is where we see the two successful girls, Christi Ann and Donna going to a hotel lounge to buy sex from gigolos that frequent that particular lounge. Joe and Stanny just happen to sit at the bar, and the two girls think they are gigolos and later on invites them to their house. Oh, the drama that follows.

A one of a kind movie that exceeded my expectations. It's simply a movie some might enjoy, possibly through ignoring some of the missteps it makes, and sees the whole pictures and the situations. Recommended for late night watching with a special someone.

Good fun movie to watch!

[zsachill · 7/10 · 30 November 2008]

I just got a chance to watch this movie and i must say that it was pretty Fun watching it.first of all all the characters in this movie played a Good role.good acting by all four of the main characters, specially the Stevie long.

The movie is about 2 Carrier women who are singles and at the other hand There are 2 guys who just got fired from their job and moved to LA.They Meet at the bar and the guys get mistaken for 2 gigolo.and so starts the funny stuff.

Good directing by Joel viertel and of course good writing and acting by Stevie long. i watch a lots of films but i had never heard or seen Stevie Long but i must admit that he made a good impression on me.Kristen Kerr Looked so cute playing that role and Johann urbb is quite impressing as Well.A feel good movie and watch worth watching with you girlfriend or boyfriend.

a REAL love story!!!

[firejen54 · 5 December 2008]

thank god Hollywood (or i guess this is an indie) finally made a movie that shows LOVE like it really is. Painful, infuriating, fun, sad, wonderful. of course i am a woman but not prone to being emo, yet i found myself crying at the end. hard to explain, you have to see it, but it makes you feel okay about falling in love and falling out of love to. highly recommend this movie to men and women. (watched it with my boyfriend and i caught him sniffling at the end too, i swear, he never does that). i heard this director had won the independent spirit award, now i know why. sort of like "the notebook" with comedy, but not goofy comedy, maybe more like "annie hall", or the English movie "love, actually". also very much like "sex and the city" but also the guy's point of view mixed in. can you tell i loved this movie?

Exceeds all expectations!

[ibnalmauser · 7/10 · 21 August 2020]

This one was an unexpected little gem. The actors playing the four protagonists have true chemistry, and that is key to what makes this work shine. What this film does is it shines a massive, industrial scale floodlight on how differently men and women see relationships, and the nuances and politics within.

My favorite scene was the guys chatting on the roof. Priceless.

Amber Benson Rocks

[kellyadmirer · 7/10 · 17 May 2010]

I enjoyed this film. I especially liked Amber Benson as Donna, an aspiring screenwriter with serious esteem issues who makes no secret of her overpowering sexual appetite. She convinces her shy but successful roommate Christi Ann (Kristen Kerr) to pick up two gigolos downtown for some paid sex. The girls and guys pair up, have sex, then face the consequences in the morning and thereafter.

The set-up is silly and full of those little coincidences that are routine in these kinds of female-oriented relationship films. The two supposed gigolos are actually unemployed construction workers (female fantasy time) who need someone to pay their bar bill at the fancy hotel bar they chose to patronize (only in the movies), and the two wanton females (male fantasy time) are only too happy to oblige (ahem). Well, they have to meet somehow, right? If you can get past that silliness, things do pick up later.

Johann Urb (Joe) and Stevie Long (Stanny) are genial enough as the two buddies who luck out, but their characters are drawn simplistically. Urb plays Joe as a male model type (at one point he even gets a job offer as a model, one of the more believable moments in the film) in whose mouth butter wouldn't melt. Stanny is played as a crude lout who says thing while sober that you would have to be drunk to think are acceptable. Both guys are given dialog that sometimes rings true and sometimes doesn't, sometimes makes sense and sometimes doesn't.

There isn't any explicit sex shown, but some scenes are about as suggestive as you can get without crossing that line. Which isn't a bad thing, the sex scenes are essential to show the complex attractions involved. That's a pretty remarkable achievement, usually the sex in low budget films like this is gratuitous, but here it really isn't. Donna in particular has a lot of issues and gets closer to reality with her neuroses and sensitivities than the others, who are broad stereotypes. If as much care had been taken with the other characters, "Strictly Sexual" might have become a minor classic.

But, alas, along with Donna we have the shy, innocent girl who must learn about love from her sensitive, gentle and caring construction worker/male model Joe, and the other construction worker who takes the caveman routine way too far. Only in the final scene does Stanny get a chance to act like a human being, and unfortunately, that's too late.

Even with its flaws, I liked this one. An entertaining way to spend the evening, especially if you like Amber.

One time watch movie

[vinayshri · 6/10 · 3 November 2020]

I watched this movie in 2020 and i believe it's completely something underrated. If this film could re-release then it might be a blockbuster. But i find it boring at some parts, that's what happens when you add emotions to the rom-com movies. Otherwise everything was great. Thank you.

Strictly Boring

[hjames-97822 · 2/10 · 8 May 2015]

No offense but if you think this thing is a "great movie" you may need to see more films.

After two or three scenes, sex starts to get boring...except here. Where we are treated to straight people talking--talking--talking--about sex. Good grief, move on. I would rather, however see multiple simulated sex scenes (as predictable as they are) than to watch two alleged actors sucking each other tongues in close up. I mean, what acting school do you have to learn that technique? It's slow. It plods. It repeats the same dialog and situations over and over again. These are boring characters and a stinky screenplay. Given that, there is no place to go but down.

In the end, I just wish they could all have one good orgasm and then roll over, shut up and get some sleep. A total bore. Two stars for showing up.

it's sincerely, funny and moving!

[yahurb · 10/10 · 9 December 2008]

I begin my comment from saying that love the story itself. I loved the film. The story is so true image of what many of us sometimes feel but fail to live. It both, touches and entertains. The characters are believable and the director, actors and crew did a great job. Although a simple story, none of it is so simple in the end as the relationships between the characters develop smoothly. What i liked about this movie, was the childishly brutal honesty between the characters, the way they relate their emotions and thoughts to each other. "What a great city. People here don't date. They just move in." :))))

I watched it as a story, without prejudice and expectations, and I found myself laughing and feeling for those "types" sincerely. This is a gift. This is where you appreciate the art - it's where you find yourself truly believing the story. Would I watch it again? Hell why not!:)))

Just garbage

[sagbelly · 1/10 · 22 August 2019]

I do not understand the good ratings, "so believable" etc it was described as being hilarious. The only thing that brought a smile to my face was the credits, in any case halfway through I started looking at cars on autotrader, I don't even want a car.

Fantastic storytelling & film-making

[marniealan-1 · 9/10 · 9 December 2008]

"Strictly Sexual" is probably the sweetest, funniest sexually-themed movie I've ever seen. Not that the theme is just sex. It's really about four characters who you come to know, love and root for like none that I can recall in recent film history. No big orange explosions coming at you, but a rapport and chemistry between actors that is so rare in modern film, it feels like something new. All four leads grab you immediately. The film is brimming with bittersweet moments and belly laughs masterfully combined like the best of Woody Allen or Preston Sturges. The filmmakers are really on to something with this film, striking a (seemingly) effortlessly original tone and feel. One of the most honest and human films I've ever seen, "Strictly Sexual" is genuinely entertaining from start to finish. The ending just killed me (in a good way) but I don't want to give anything away. See it. -Alan Bernhoft

Not all it's cracked up to be.

[VoltySquirrel · 3/10 · 4 February 2012]

I watched this on a whim one night with a friend. We saw it in our Recommendations and decided, "eh, what the hell, why not?" Barely 5 minutes into the movie and him and I are cracking jokes at the movie's expense because of it's horrible acting and writing. Neither of these relationships seemed even vaguely real to me, and when one of the two (I forget their names) break up, I felt no emotion other than joy, because I hated the both of them. I get the feeling that was not the expected emotion. That really sums up my thoughts on it, really. Whatever the movie wanted me to feel, I felt the opposite. It was a waste of my time. The fact that this is the most watched movie on Hulu, next to classics like Clerks, Good Will Hunting, and Reservoir Dogs is what really astounds me. I'm aware my opinion is in the sever vocal minority, but I frankly hated this movie.

Better Than Expected

[metrobiz · 7 October 2011]

This flick starts out like it's going to be soft-porn'ish goofball comedy. But it morphs into something of a softer story (with harsh dialogue) with a number of insights - agree or disagree - that resonate. It's an immorality play on stereotypes, but fun throughout. Good acting for such a pretty principal cast. Like an Amy Heckerling teen sex flick, it all winds-up kind of sweet without a neatly tied-up-in-a-bow ending. Language & situations are what rates this an "R." The male duet is compelling with buddy film overtones. The attractive female cast goes on voyages of different female discovery. The goofy but fun gumbo tends to work.

This movie is Strictly Terrible!

[iamcharlie · 2/10 · 24 June 2010]

Anyone with a brain can recognize the plain atrociousness of this film. First, the acting was unequivocally bad for each of the four leads. Second, the plot was predictable, cliché, and groan-worthy throughout. Third, this movie fails to live up to its genre of comedy. I didn't laugh once! Fourth, the movie makes no attempt to introduce or develop the female characters - and don't think that they are universal or represent standard gender roles. As for the two male leads, their development is more laughable than profound. Only this movie's slightly creative concept elevates it to two stars instead of one. Although this movie is free to watch on IMDb, it is not worth the time you will spend watching it.

I absolutely loved it!

[linuxwise · 8/10 · 30 November 2008]

It's a really great movie, okay maybe not great as in top 250 but really good then. It's about camaraderie between friends and about love between people.

The movie is about Joe and Stanny, two construction workers from Queens who find themselves in LA looking for work, and Donna and Chriti, a writer and a designer. At a nice hotel bar, Donna and Christi are looking for male prostitutes where Joe and Stanny are just looking to get drunk. They meet and the story takes of.

This would be something I'd see alone or with my date/girlfriend, maybe even with my friends but most of them would probably give this movie a 3-4. I gave it an 8, it's a kind of a feel good movie. If you tear up easily or occasionally you probably need something to wipe those with. As I said I really liked it..

Could be improved

[vjulien · 4/10 · 22 May 2012]

Strictly Sexual is not exactly what I was expecting.

It is a straightforward script with two women who decide to hire two men for sexual purpose but then fall in love with them. The script is really direct and the characters are not very well developed. Fortunately, there is some funny parts improving the movie. However, most of the thoughts developed in the movie are pretty elementary and basic and make the movie kind of lame.

This movie just looks like the same as many of other ones and it is a shame because I think that it probably could be a better movie if the script was more developed and the characters more interesting.

Strictly Sensational!

[crimeflix · 10/10 · 8 December 2008]

I was lucky enough to see an advance screening of this film earlier in the year and it absolutely rocks. It's an edgy, hilarious, ultimately charming romantic comedy. The script, direction and ensemble cast are terrific. Amber Benson delivers what might be the most nuanced performance of her career. Newcomer (and screenwriter) Stevie Long steals scenes in a performance on par with Jon Favreau in Swingers. The structure of the film is reminiscent of Woody Allen's work, particularly Annie Hall and Manhattan, but with a hip, updated feel. The film has been a huge hit in Europe and I hope that carries over in the U.S. Highly recommended! Jason Starr, author of THE FOLLOWER and TWISTED CITY.

A movie that stimulates not only the body but also the mind.

[saralong-1 · 10/10 · 19 December 2008]

Its a delight to find a movie that's real. Many relationships start with the physical, never go any where, then fizzle out. This movie explores what happens when these two young men ask, where do we go from here? Relationships like people have the ability to grow. Some do, some don't. Why do some relationships gain substance, some stay flat and superficial? Two men begin their relationships with sex and realize that there's so much more to explore. Watching these characters looking for companionship, love, the everything else a relationship can be, makes for a fun date. The acting is super, the sets enjoyable, the music entertaining. All in all this is a real, on target story about life, people and world we live in.

unique...

[ssto · 10/10 · 14 December 2008]

this is an unique movie, a great viewing experience for me. initially, from the beginning, i thought it would be more about profanity and prepared to cut after the first fifteen minutes, but then a couple of sharp lines kept my attention and it was well worth it. just by looking at the actors, the camera work and directing you can appreciate the love this movie was made with. the music also helped a lot, by providing a great atmosphere. you cant really define this as a comedy and put it in comparison with 'comedies' like "american pie" and such - "Strictly Sexual" is a story about love, the effect it has and people; how it can make you happy or make you cry...actually i feel the nonsense i started writing, while all i wanted to say is - this is a beautiful movie, i feel like i'd want to watch it again, and again, just like how you want to love and be loved, always

A portrait of a movie

[faruqs · 10/10 · 2 December 2008]

This movie is a keeper and a half. Though it starts off bit raunchy, but it is sassy, well thought out, VERY well casted. The cinematography, character build up are world class... and most of all its believable. The movie as a whole is well pull together and does an excellent job of relating the power of sex and the balance we try and maintain between life sex emotions and our past and our limits.

Most importantly though, the story is portrayed equally clandestine from the point of view of both sexes. There are some instances where some of the scenes start abruptly, but it plays well in to the overall story telling and reels you back in. Don't let the title fool you, the movie has by far many more layers than other flavors we have become accustomed to as of late. In the end, the movie is about men and women.

Overall : Bravo, brAvo, braVo!

Has sexual fizz and an intimate feel but ultimately not the realism and impact to really engage

[bob the moo · 12 April 2009]

Thanks again to the IMDb community, since this film came to me via a fellow reviewer in the US – currently on this site it has no UK release date so I suspect I may never have seen it otherwise. However this is not thanks for the quality of the film – only of the gesture. Strictly Sexual has a provocative title and a plot that matches it. It starts with a rather abrupt "future" scene before flashing back to the origins of the story. At this point it has a fun fizz to it that carries you along despite the sheer unlikeliness of the narrative – the gloss and the rather contained nature of it makes it quite engaging.

The problems with it come once this early fizz has settled down a little bit. At stage the film starts to become more of a dramatic affair with the playing out of the drama that inherently comes with any "casual" relationship. In itself this is engaging enough but it never totally rings true and I always felt like I was watching a film with actors in it – it never sucked me into these relationships or gave me things that I could see were real. I have to put this at the door of the script because it is here where this problem comes from. Ultimately it comes down to being a romantic drama but when it is doing the "drama" part, it distracts but never moves.

I don't put this on the cast though because they do as well as they can with the material. The women are the stronger but this may be because they have the dominant characters. Benson does a good job with her character, allowing her to be difficult to understand and a bit conflicted in her signals but yet also keeps her open to the viewer. Kerr has to carry the romance side of the drama and she does this with beauty, lightness and a delicate performance that isn't brilliant but is just what the film needs. I found Long a little heavy in the role and I confess that I though he would have been better handing off to someone else and stick as writer. He is OK though and he works well with Urb, who is a bit too much of a pretty boy but works well with Kerr. The film contains the action really well and the tight focus on these 4 in a handful of locations gives the film a really good feel of watching an intimate play – shame that the material doesn't get as impacting or meaningful as this proximity deserves.

Strictly Sexual is an OK film but it is not as amazing as some here would suggest. The intimate delivery and sexual fizz of the material doesn't transition well when it gets more serious and, when it should suck the viewer in, it only really retains the superficial air that it started with. This is a shame because, while the film feels like it should be better, it ultimately doesn't have the reality and substance that I found myself wanting.

Innovative

[viqous · 8/10 · 4 December 2008]

I've seen a lot of love-movies. Most of them follow the exact same pattern, inherit with the category. Don't get me wrong, this one does too. But, it gets across that with a insightful script. The set-up is as follows: Two women, living together, decides they need to get laid and go to a bar frequented by male prostitutes. Two construction workers planning to drink some free drinks and skipping the tab are there, they are picked up and love-story follows. And had it been most movies it would've ended there, and a rating around 5 would be fair. But the script opens up to a wide variety of actual situations and problems relationships run into, with twists of course, but this story keeps trying to portray real relationships and succeeds for the most part in doing so. It has a witty and smart dialog, unexpected turns and overall quality that gets me thinking and recognizing situations. The characters start out as the typical placeholders in romantic films, but end up growing on you and evolving beyond the type and into real, very likable but flawed people. If I'd compare it to other movies I'd say it's a cross between Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Closer.

True Stuff Hard to find such movies

[girish_105 · 10/10 · 8 December 2008]

I just felt absolutely loved and was so shocked at how 'LOVE' can be so strikingly simple yet so lethal. This is an awesome movie, many wont agree with me but somewhere in the movie even you might come across a true feeling of love which u might have or had in your life all over again !!!

I hope people can make such movies more often which i think is really hard to do as movies of this type can take very long time to make or very true feeling of love to make.

Conclusion would be go ahead give a watch its not a must watch i would say but if you do you definitely won't regret it cause you'll fall in Love all over again !!!

simply beautiful

10/10

Wow

[cgo72123 · 10/10 · 18 January 2009]

Watched this movie expecting a profane, nudie filled movie I could just lay back and not really get into. How wrong I was. Not only was it deep, but I did not miss a second of it. It all forces me to admit that I will include Staney character base in my own novel. The guy really drives the whole movie. You won't be disappointed, no matter who you are. This film can be all a drama for the average chick to watch, a deep movie for the intellectual, and even a comedy for those who just want to have a few laughs. I am actually going to make sure that one of my specific friends watches this movie. I will sit down with her and make her watch it. Because after all the love, the comedy, the drama; there's a beautiful lesson to learn from this brilliant film.

A perfect end to a perfect movie.

[robotman666 · 10/10 · 2 October 2009]

Its a fantastic story, and it couldn't have been more perfect any other way.

The actors were perfect for their roles, the non-mainstream style of the cinematography, sets, costumes, and actors made this movie shine like Little Miss Sunshine to me.

Its rare when a movie seems so truly genuine. One of my top 25 romance movies for sure - I won't watch it repeatedly, but I hope I cross paths with the movie in the future, several times in my life. Its not something that I would watch in a film class for technique, because there are flaws to the movie, but the flaws are something that make it seem so genuine, so real. It's almost like you are there, or someone was just using a camcorder to film the movie. You don't get that effect with something like Funny People, but you most certainly do with something like Say Anything - the movie and the characters just feel right.