Relax ... It's Just Sex (1998)

The title suggests some God-awful, trying-too-hard sex farce, but Relax... It's Just Sex! is a surprisingly layered comedy that takes some serious and compelling emotional turns. Jennifer Tilly (Bound, Bullets over Broadway) plays Tara, a straight woman who's something of a den mother to a circle of friends, most of whom are gay or lesbian. While she tries to get pregnant with her new boyfriend, her friend Vincey (Mitchell Anderson) finally meets a guy he likes, an artist named Buzz (T.C. Carson), only to bring him to a dinner party where Buzz hooks up with Javi (Eddie Garcia), who has recently discovered that he's HIV positive. Meanwhile, Sarina (Cynda Williams from One False Move) has just learned that her lover, Megan, has slept with a man and runs into the arms of Robin (Lori Petty, Tank Girl, A League of Their Own). The movie takes story lines that could have been soap-opera clichés and rescues them with clever but realistic dialogue and strong, surprising performances. Over the course of the film the characters grow increasingly genuine, giving some of the twists in their lives an unexpected emotional impact. Relax... It's Just Sex! didn't get much of a release in theaters, perhaps because it's a sympathetic, realistic portrayal of gay men and lesbians, including some graphic sex. The transfer from film to video has marred the cinematography, giving the film a somewhat fuzzy image, but don't let that put you off from this refreshing, funny, and moving film. --Bret Fetzer Amazon.com

VHS: Poor. Lesbian couples, sex, dragging & pointless.

Looks like I am the only person who is ready to throw the movie away. I found it somewhat disgusting, rarely amusing although attempts were made to generate laughs, with a group of crazy characters preoccupied with sex.
It starts out showing two ladies hugging passionately & then two men holding like bosom buddies. Jennifer Tilly is excellent. She wants to have children. Her bi-sexual friend gets it up in the kitchen. There are lots of interactions between men and women focusing largely on sex, even though other things go on in their lives. One shot shows two lesbians sharing it, two men coupled getting themselves off, a mixed couple intwined and lots of confusion. They might have been relaxing. I fell asleep. Perhaps the picture is good on DVD. The film was made by an
independent small firm, altered to meet video ratings. If UR, the bare end results wouldn't differ much. I missed most of thee nuances other
reviewers express. For those intrigued by homo & bi-sexual love scenes or who enjoy crude comedy, this film would be excellent. Avoid the VHS.
July 7, 2008

Hilarious

The movie touched on some serious issues, but did it in a way that you could still laugh. I highly recommend it. February 10, 2007

Awsome gem

This is one of my favorite movies ever. It's hillaroius with lots of heart. It's one of those films where you acually laugh and cry during it. All of the actors ( Jennifer Tilly, Mitchel Anderson, Lori Petty, "T.C", Cynda Williams, and Serena Scott Thomas in particualar) turn in great performances. The movie is about a group of friends ( who just happen to mostly be gay and lesbian) try to deal with life, death, and hard ships. I f you want more indepth descrption of it go to the other dvd edition's reviews. But I deffinetly recomend you buy this edition. Other then a great movie there is a witty, funny commentary track by Lori Petty, Jennifer Tilly and the producer Steven Wolf. I was laughing out loud with some stories and comments they had about the making of the film and there experiences in sundance. Plus I believe the two of them were the standouts of the cast so it was even more enjoyable. There are also some deleted scenes and some bloopers ( very scarce) but better then nothing. Overall it's a very good dvd and I'd buy it anyway just for the greatness of the movie. For movie with a 250,000 budget ( seriously) it deserves top honorr. Good for everyone. August 4, 2004

MADE IN AMERICA

What a pleasant surprise! Honestly, I have had the feeling for many years that a move like "Relax, It's just Sex" would never be made here in America. This movie is about a group of very intriguing good friends comprising of both gay and straight characters where, for once being gay is NOT the problem. It is not a "coming out" or a "is he or is she gay?" film; everyone is very comfortable with his or her sexuality to the point that they are able to be very supportive of each other no matter what is going on in a particular person's life at any particular moment.

There are many very funny moments intermingled with "real life" serious situations, which are dealt with--including love, HIV infection, commitments, a miss-carriage, and a "gay bashing". The "gay bashing" for me, really hit home. For once, in this movie, the "victim" had opportunity to get immediate revenge and did so to the shock and horror of his friends who had problems dealing with his anger and his execution of revenge on one of the bashers. (In all honestly if given the opportunity to get revenge on a "gay bashing" punk, I think that I would take advantage of that opportunity as the character, in the film, did!)

All of the actors in the film are great with Jennifer Tilly giving, to me, an Oscar winning performance-she's hysterically funny at one moment and "heart breaking" the next moment. I just wish I had a group of friends as portrayed in this movie.

If you are into good films, buy this DVD June 14, 2004

Incredible Movie

I ran into this movie while channel-surfing on TV. The introduction drew me in -- I couldn't figure out what they were doing with the people on a rotating stage in black and white and the corny 60's sounding announcer -- then suddenly the storyline went full-throttle into what could be some modern-day relationships in America. The movie not only focussed on intimate relationships between lovers but the strong bond between friends. I laughed and cried, was shocked and amazed, and thoroughly immersed throughout the entire movie. I saw the movie a few more times on cable, then have rented it a few times to show other friends who have never heard of it. Everyone loves it so I'm going to add it to my DVD collection to save having to rent it again! I highly recommend it to anyone who has an open mind, who loves great dialogue, and who actually enjoys a good story in their movie. January 30, 2004

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