MD Reviews: Private Parts

One thing about Patrick Moote, the title "character" of Unhung Hero: he may not be packing much penis-wise, but he sure has balls. After being humiliated in front of a sports arena-full of strangers when his girlfriend walks out on his "kiss cam" wedding proposal, the video goes viral, humiliating him further in front of a worldwide, schadenfreude-hungry internet audience. Adding insult to injury, she tells him that she doesn't want to marry him because of his small penis. Yikes. But instead of keeping that information to himself like most dudes would, Patrick, an aspiring actor and comedian, decides to "out" himself as genitally-impaired and sets out on a global journey, seeking the answer to the age-old question "does size matter?" while documenting it in cinema's first ever, ahem, "cockumentary".

During his quest, Patrick tries everything from pumps and pills to heavy weights dangling from his privates, traveling from San Francisco to Korea to Malaysia to learn of the myriad ways men have tried to maximize their members throughout history. Along the way, he seeks out the advice of medical professionals, condom makers, porn stars and "sexperts" like Annie Sprinkle and Dan Savage. Patrick even meets his polar opposite, Jonah Falcon, who reportedly boasts a 13.5" schlong.

Now available on DVD from Breaking Glass Pictures, Unhung Hero does to a man's junk what Super Size Me did to junk food. That is, it makes its point in a highly entertaining way while still being informative, enlightening and even, well, uplifting.

From a guy with not enough dick to a man who literally never had one, Buck Angel is the subject of another Breaking Glass documentary available on DVD this week, Mr. Angel. For those who are not familiar with him, Buck Angel is unarguably the most successful transman in pornography, the pioneering self-proclaimed "Man With a Pussy". (Go ahead, Google him.)

Delving into his life as much as his career, Mr. Angel tells a familiar story of a tomboy growing up into a rebellious, drug abusing teenager, a girl who never fit in, even in her own body. A survivor of several suicide attempts, that tomboy became Buck Angel, finding empowerment through his gender expression both on and off camera. His an unconventional yet inspiring story (especially to young transmen), far from the narcisistic self-pity seen in another recent porn star doc, Sagat.

Through his constant struggles to get his DVDs to a wider audience, home life with his wife Elayne in Mexico and a health scare most men will never face, we get to know this Mr. Angel far more intimately then any of his X-rated efforts could ever accomplish.

MD Ratings:
Unhung Hero: B
Mr. Angel: B-

Review by Kirby Holt, creator and editor of Movie Dearest, The QuOD: The Queer Online Database and the Out Movie Guide.