"Tales of an American Hoodrat": Buddies and Gay Subtexts in South Dakota

 

Aberdeen, South Dakota is the home of Northern State University.  Although it has a population of only 28,000, it boasts its own "what's happening in town" magazine.  There we find an interview with Brandon Lunzman, who grew up in Aberdeen, graduated from Full Sail University in Orlando, Florida, and then returned home to produce, direct, and star in his first movie: Tales of an American Hoodrat, about four teens "who don't always follow the rules."  Dude, that's every teen.

I'm surprised that Aberdeen even has a hood, but Brandon is hot enough to warrant a look.  And so are the buds he got to star in the movie with him.

1. He plays Leighton, the focus character, who mildly disapproves of his friends' misdeeds, but goes along anyway, whether it's smoking weed, throwing rocks at cars, shoplifting, or jumping off the roof onto a trampoline.  His problems are caused by abusive parents.

2. Thomas Goetz, whose day job is with the South Dakota National Guard, plays the extremely muscular Jaren.  A gossipping practical joker, Jaren tries to get on people's nerves deliberately, because that's the only way they will notice him.  His problems are caused by a father who's abusive and a drug-dealer.

3. Tylan Glover, who works as a lifeguard, plays Terron, one of those super-horny types who seduced his babysitter at age 12 (but Mom had the girl arrested for sexual assault). Since then. he's slept with half of the girls in town and most of the female teachers, but he thinks that with his current girlfriend Denise, it's the real thing.

4. Nate Bruce Wilson, a Scottish-Korean singer and security guard, plays Kaden, an easily angered loose cannon.  His anger problem is explained by having a dead father, which caused him to be bullied throughout his childhood. Later his mother remarried, and his stepfather is abusive (seeing a pattern here?).  

There are lots of conversations about which girls at school and which of their mothers they have screwed, and Leighton has a naked-lady poster in his room, but only Terron expresses significant interested in actually dating girls. The others go to parties to get drunk, not to get laid.  They are photographed with girls before the prom (with Leighton looking morose, like he would prefer to be anywhere else).  But then the scene immediately shifts to the boys alone by a bonfire.

There really isn't much of a plot arc, just scenarios and vignettes.  Leighton starts dealing drugs to earn some extra money.  They get angry with Terron for ditching the group to spend time with his girlfriend. Kaden gets kicked out of his house, and moves in with Leighton, and then goes to prison.

They are arrested for DUI.  Their respective fathers beat them. Leighton beats up an abusive teacher, and attacks the guys who are harassing his sister. There's a breakup/suicide. There's pizza.

An interesting plot arc occurs when the teacher assigns Leighton to be partners with Lucas (Lyndon Orr, middle, a high school hockey star now playing for the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs).  It's "awkward."  Something happened between them eight years ago, after which Leighton dumped him (it's unspecified, but since they were eight years old, it's unlikely to be sex).  

Lucas appears again, being conciliary while Leighton has a breakdown in class.

In the last scene, Leighton goes off to college at Northern State University, and guess what?  Lucas is there, too! They run into each other in the hallway, gaze longingly at each other, and Lucas says: "We should catch up sometime."  Leighton agrees. The end.

So, Leighton, who seems surprisingly uninterested in girls, agrees to reconcile with his old...boyfriend?  

Beefcake: Griffin, the boorish dolt who keeps hitting on Leighton's sister (Olympic swimming hopeful Adam Kastigar), takes his shirt off.

Heterosexism: None.

Abusive Parents:  All of them.

Gay Characters:  None specified.  I doubt that Leighton is canonically gay, but there's a definite subtext.

My Grade: B