Think lots of moodiness and sex, shot in a way that conveys far more ambition than you average wham-bam porno. In some ways it plays as standard proto gay erotica, if there is such a thing. Their relationship as pen pals eventually leads to an epic all day date (the film moving into color, like Dorothy entering Oz) which culminates in sex outdoors in a sun-dappled scene which surely inspired Stranger by the Lake (2013). They meet via a personal ad which is alarming to modern eyes (falling in love via the written word and no thirst trap photos, wut?). The movie's slim plot involves a jaded 28 year-old man who spends his time quoting Walt Whitman and cruising and an 18 year-old just coming out of the closet and nervous about entering the gay scene. More, but definitely NSFW, after the jump. His earlier porn, Passing Strangers, emerged during that brief heyday in the 1970s when mainstream media was taking porn seriously - think Deep Throat and Behind the Green Door's blockbuster box office. Bressan also made the landmark gay drama Buddies (1981) and the documentary Gay USA (1977) which Glenn recently raved about.
It's the latest restoration for the work of the trailblazing filmmaker Arthur J Bressan Jr. The site Pink Label.TV, which is queer owned and operated, and specializes in ethical and niche adult queer indie fare is currently hosting a restored print. If you use movies for time travel, as we often suggest people should given that they're cheaper than time machines, you could do worse than renting the restored 1974 porn Passing Strangers.