Trick

Imagine meeting the person of your dreams. Your heart is pounding, your loins are aching; both of you are willing, but you cannot find a place to make it happen.

Trick is best described as an urban fairy tale. Gabriel (Christian Campbell) is a nice, gay young man waiting for his big break as a musical- comedy composer. Katherine (Tori Spelling) is his muse and bestfriend, although on edge lately as she prepares for opening night way off Broadway of the alt-female production of Salome, set in a women's penitentiary. Enter Mark (John Patit Pitoc), a sexy Adonis of a go-go boy from the local cruise joint. In most fairy tales, true love overcomes all odds, but there is no fairy godmother here to make things right. Just Miss Coco Peru, a not-so-nice drag queen who plants the seeds of doubt and mistrust. This is the nineties after all, and life is complicated. The couple, left to their own devices, must decide to have a one-night stand or live happily ever after.

Jim Fall is a smart director who has doubly succeeded. First, linked with a witty script, he has crafted a fast-paced comedy that vibrates with optimism. Second, Trick becomes an antidote for a decade of nihilism without getting cloying or sappy. All the true-life characters are glossed with just enough charm to make Greenwich Village magical. New York City has not looked so good since Woody Allen. Our heroes may have trouble getting to first base, but Trick is a solid home run.