The Love Machine

Featured at all four major alt fests: LOS ANGELES INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL, CHICAGO UNDERGROUND, SF INDIEFEST, NY UNDERGROUND

A hilarious, vicious masterpiece! – The San Francisco Weekly

Nasty! A well acted, titillating, malicious satire of ‘sex, lies, and cyberspace.’ – The New York Times

Info

Completed: 1999
Commercial Release: 2000
Running Time: 84 Minutes
Color 16 MM
Distributed by Crystal Releasing
Video/DVD from GoKart Media
US Cable Premiere on IFC
UK Cable Premiere on the BBC

Downloads

Download a Presskit (PDF, 1.5M)
Contents: Synopsis, Production Notes, Interview with the Directors, Cast and Crew Bios, Extensive Photos

Synopsis

http://www.The-Love-Machine.com is the address of an “adult” web site set up on a New York City university web server as a prank by a student, “Marcus B.” Becca Campbell is the self styled investigative reporter who is attempting to make an expose of “sexual fantasy on the internet” by delving into the private lives of some of the local users of the site without their
knowledge. Some of the people Becca meets include:

Akira, a Japanese student with an American boyfriend, Javier, and a Japanese girlfriend, Kyoko;
Beverly, a woman in her forties who keeps a web journal of her affair with two teenage boys;
Shino and Mike, “amateur exhibitionists” who are contemplating a menage a trois arranged entirely by email;
Julio, a bookish college professor with a macho-lover alter ego;
and Chip, a gay man searching for the absolutely perfect soul mate on the Internet.

A subject perfect for a sleazy talk show turns into something much more substantial as the richly characterized participants become aware of the filmmaker’s purpose and manage to subvert the experience with a surprising dignity and humor.

Blurbs

A VICIOUS, HILARIOUS MASTERPIECE! – San Francisco Weekly
NASTY! A well acted, titillating, malicious satire of ‘sex, lies, and cyberspace.’ – New York Times

THE LOVE MACHINE WILL MAKE YOU LAUGH ! A cleverly executed
and often very funny “internet caper.”- The Daily News

FUNNY and PROVOCATIVE! A virtual saloon where sexual adventurers can meet. – TimeOut

GREAT FUN! A wonderfully drawn and truly nasty piece of work that had the jaded, post-therapy Los Angeles audience audibly gasping. – The Independent

HILARIOUSLY CANDID! – The Chicago Reader

EXTRAORDINARY. Lends new meaning to ‘sex, lies, and videotape!’ – The Philadelphia Inquirer

A MUST SEE! – The Bay Area Reporter

WONDERFUL TRICKERY, fabulous performances, expertly crafted!
- Cashiers du Cinemart

A DELICIOUSLY PERVERSE CHRONICLE of love in the time of the
Internet. -Le Devoir (Montreal)

A DELIGHTFULLY WICKED SATIRE! -The Gazette (Montreal)

A FASCINATING GAME OF HIDE AND SEEK WITH REALITY. -Voir

Links

New York Times Review, May 11, 2000

Significant Playdates

Los Angeles Independent Film Festival
Philadelphia Gay & Lesbian Film Festival
Chicago Underground Film Fest
Norwegian Film Festival, Hagesund
Bangkok Film Festival
Virginia Festival of American Film
San Francisco Indie Fest
New York Underground Film Festival
SciFi Channel Film Festival, NYC
Rio Di Janeiro Int’l Film Festival
Sao Paulo Film Festival
Philadelphia Secret Cinema
Cleveland Cinemateque
Brooklyn Heights Cinema
ICA Theater, London
Pioneer Theater, New York City
Cinema Du Parc, Montreal
The Japan Society, NYC