The Drifter is a searing look at a hustler adrift in the seediest areas of Los Angeles trying to figure out his place in the world. The Pat Rocco film is newly restored on Blu-ray from Kino Cult.
The Film
There’s an unpolished rough around the edges style that only adds to the verisimilitude of director Pat Rocco’s Hollywood hustler drama The Drifter. Not the kind of drama that Midnight Cowboy was about friendship on the fringes but rather about the loneliness of the fringes. Rocco and star Joed Adair create a film that’s as compelling as Cowboy.
Drift (Adair) has come to Los Angeles with nothing but issues. No job. No money. No marketable skills. With all that going against him he manages to find that he does have a “marketable” skill set that is more off the beaten path. Drift has a charisma and look that draws the attention of both men and women. Something he quickly learns can get him the things he wants but is it worth the cost to him and his health. As Drift begins to realize his only value in a town where dreams are shattered more than they are ever made, what choice does he have?
Rocco’s cynical view of Hollywood of broken dreams is the kind of street-level look at hustling that is both sobering and understanding without the feeling of exploitation. The Drifter is uncommonly gentle to its world of johns, and janes. The film never criticizes Drift or those circling around him. Though the film does not shy away from the realities of this flesh peddling it has a gentler touch than most.
The Drifter is a challenging work that allows those on the fringes of the late 1960s to exist with an uncommon understanding. The most provocative notion is not the explicitness but the fact that these people deserve understanding and empathy. A notion that even sixty years later is a radical notion for many. This is the saddest of all sentiments that we have not gotten any further along as a society in the decades since this film.
The Transfer
The 2K Restoration from the Original 16mm A/B Negatives Preserved by the UCLA Film and Television Archive is a minor miracle. The rough-hued nature of the 16mm stock is already a given for most who delved into the grindhouse filmmaking of this era. That being said the image is clean of most scratches and direct. The image’s grain structure, as with shot on 16mm films of the era, is verbose, to say the least giving us an image that is as gritty as the subject matter. However, this does not distract from the viewing but rather enhances it. Bravo to Kino and UCLA Film and Television Archive for putting in the hard work for this important piece of cinema.
The Extras
They include the following;
- Audio Commentary by Film Historian Finley Freibert
- Four Short Films by Pat Rocco Autumn Nocturne (1968); A Matter of Life (1968); Strip Strip (1968); Sunny Boys (1968)
The archival Audio Commentary by Film Historian Finley Freibert begins with his qualifications and critical work about LBGTQ filmmaking and Pat Rocco’s work specifically. Some of the details include how The Drifter is the last Pat Rocco released in theaters, the details on the musical theme that plays throughout, the title sequence by Bill Stevens – including a detailed accounts of his further work in the sexploitation theaters Continental; a discussion of the personal history and career of actor/filmmaker Joe Caruso – including his other work with Rocco; a side discussion of Caruso’s work as a writer of pulp novel aimed at LBGTQ – which leads to an interesting discussion about obscenity laws; a discussion of Rocco’s Bizarre News – a larger discussion of what it was; Jaguar Productions – a detailed account of this LBGTQ based film company and its work here and in other films; the reason why Rocco disavowed his hardcore gay films; the life and career of actor/star Joed Adir; its place in the Genesis Book of World Records for film; its theatrical release at the time; a larger discussion of Rocco’s career and personal history throughout; a larger discussion of the various musical tracks pulled from various sources; a larger discussion of the various supporting actor and their personal histories; a larger discussion of the various location that were shot in and around the greater Los Angeles area – including the locations history both filmic and political; and much more. The track is an excellent dive into the work of Rocco and the film by Freibert with an aim toward the LBGTQ filmmakers of the era in Los Angeles.
Four Short Films by Pat Rocco – note these shorts do feature graphic male nudity.
- Autumn Nocturne (24:32) – a short film by Pat Rocco from 1968. The film that looked to be filmed at UCLA is about two men’s beach date and eventual rendezvous. Rocco without dialog creates a story of love and attraction between two men and the unsure/hesitant nature of moving forward in that era. Roughhousing, drinking, jokes, fun times, and more as these two men are able to exist without any sort of repercussions.
- A Matter of Life (14:18) – a short film by Pat Rocco starring Joed Adair (listed as Joe Adair in the short) from 1968. Another dialog-free short directed by Rocco. This is a look into the day in the life of a street hustler. This feels like a dry run for The Drifter though much more explicit and less articulate than the feature.
- Strip Strip (3:15) – a short film by Pat Rocco from 1968. The short stars a man who is both walking the Sunset Strip and stripping his clothes off – hence the title.
- Sunny Boys (3:11) – a short film by Pat Rocco from 1968. Two men meet at an undisclosed hiking trail and decide to get some “sun” together.
The Final Thought
Kino Cult continues to blossom into a truly great Label. They’ve put together an edition of The Drifter that gives context for this important piece of LBGTQ filmmaking and filmmaker. Highest Recommendations!
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The Drifter is a searing look at a hustler adrift in the seediest areas of Los Angeles trying to figure out his place in the world. The Pat Rocco film is newly restored on Blu-ray from Kino Cult.
The Film
There’s an unpolished rough around the edges style that only adds to the verisimilitude of director Pat Rocco’s Hollywood hustler drama The Drifter. Not the kind of drama that Midnight Cowboy was about friendship on the fringes but rather about the loneliness of the fringes. Rocco and star Joed Adair create a film that’s as compelling as Cowboy.
Drift (Adair) has come to Los Angeles with nothing but issues. No job. No money. No marketable skills. With all that going against him he manages to find that he does have a “marketable” skill set that is more off the beaten path. Drift has a charisma and look that draws the attention of both men and women. Something he quickly learns can get him the things he wants but is it worth the cost to him and his health. As Drift begins to realize his only value in a town where dreams are shattered more than they are ever made, what choice does he have?
Rocco’s cynical view of Hollywood of broken dreams is the kind of street-level look at hustling that is both sobering and understanding without the feeling of exploitation. The Drifter is uncommonly gentle to its world of johns, and janes. The film never criticizes Drift or those circling around him. Though the film does not shy away from the realities of this flesh peddling it has a gentler touch than most.
The Drifter is a challenging work that allows those on the fringes of the late 1960s to exist with an uncommon understanding. The most provocative notion is not the explicitness but the fact that these people deserve understanding and empathy. A notion that even sixty years later is a radical notion for many. This is the saddest of all sentiments that we have not gotten any further along as a society in the decades since this film.
The Transfer
The 2K Restoration from the Original 16mm A/B Negatives Preserved by the UCLA Film and Television Archive is a minor miracle. The rough-hued nature of the 16mm stock is already a given for most who delved into the grindhouse filmmaking of this era. That being said the image is clean of most scratches and direct. The image’s grain structure, as with shot on 16mm films of the era, is verbose, to say the least giving us an image that is as gritty as the subject matter. However, this does not distract from the viewing but rather enhances it. Bravo to Kino and UCLA Film and Television Archive for putting in the hard work for this important piece of cinema.
The Extras
They include the following;
The archival Audio Commentary by Film Historian Finley Freibert begins with his qualifications and critical work about LBGTQ filmmaking and Pat Rocco’s work specifically. Some of the details include how The Drifter is the last Pat Rocco released in theaters, the details on the musical theme that plays throughout, the title sequence by Bill Stevens – including a detailed accounts of his further work in the sexploitation theaters Continental; a discussion of the personal history and career of actor/filmmaker Joe Caruso – including his other work with Rocco; a side discussion of Caruso’s work as a writer of pulp novel aimed at LBGTQ – which leads to an interesting discussion about obscenity laws; a discussion of Rocco’s Bizarre News – a larger discussion of what it was; Jaguar Productions – a detailed account of this LBGTQ based film company and its work here and in other films; the reason why Rocco disavowed his hardcore gay films; the life and career of actor/star Joed Adir; its place in the Genesis Book of World Records for film; its theatrical release at the time; a larger discussion of Rocco’s career and personal history throughout; a larger discussion of the various musical tracks pulled from various sources; a larger discussion of the various supporting actor and their personal histories; a larger discussion of the various location that were shot in and around the greater Los Angeles area – including the locations history both filmic and political; and much more. The track is an excellent dive into the work of Rocco and the film by Freibert with an aim toward the LBGTQ filmmakers of the era in Los Angeles.
Four Short Films by Pat Rocco – note these shorts do feature graphic male nudity.
The Final Thought
Kino Cult continues to blossom into a truly great Label. They’ve put together an edition of The Drifter that gives context for this important piece of LBGTQ filmmaking and filmmaker. Highest Recommendations!
Kino Cult’s Blu-Ray edition of The Drifter is out now.
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