Rock Bottom: Gay Men and Meth

Jay Corcoran's documentary Rock Bottom focuses on seven gay New Yorkers struggling with different levels of crystal meth addiction. All have faced personal crises (one man developed gonorrhea, another saw his career evaporate, another required the intervention of a social services agency to find a new apartment when he became homeless), and all share a basic denial of personal responsibility. Some blame the homophobia of American society, others condemn the behavioral excesses of the gay subculture, others cite family problems—but nobody is willing to shoulder the blame for blatantly self-destructive behavior (the fact that some of these men have been living with HIV+ status only compounds the perception of crass recklessness). Rock Bottom looks at a tragic and harrowing subject, to be certain, but eventually the film becomes little more than a tiresome collection of comments from immature, irresponsible, and (quite frankly) boring men. It also doesn't help that Corcoran's filmmaking style is frequently sloppy (some scenes have poor lighting, others have inadequate sound). Perhaps the film would have been more effective with greater focus on the medical aspects of the topic rather than the tiresome personal histories, as well as additional attention to production values. As it stands, however this is not recommended. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)