Passion and lust can make people do strange things. Toto Forever, a short film written and directed by Roberto F. Canuto, is a dreamlike meditation about a doomed love affair.
While delivering a package, a young postman named Toto (Kylan James) discovers an injured man laying next to an inground pool and tends to his wounds. Mark (Kjord Davis) is in trouble with the mob and the two men flee together. While resting on the side of the road, Toto gazes longingly at the handsome fugitive. He touches the sleeping man's hand and leans over to kiss him... and is surprised when the kiss is returned.

Toto Forever is only 14 minutes long and so we don't get to discover much about these men. Toto functions like the widow in an old Western who falls in love with the wounded gunslinger she nurses back to health. Mark could be a killer for all we know, or perhaps he is just an ordinary guy who has gotten in over his head. Toto resembles the nice boy next door, Mark is a little rougher while still possessing a model's good looks. Toto may have just found the man of his dreams or he may possibly be making the biggest mistake of his life when he runs off with him.

A short film can be like a sketch for a painting and this one begins, appropriately, with rough drawings of the two leads. The emphasis here, undoubtedly, is what the young postman would remember from his abrupt adventure. Regardless of its brevity, Toto Forever effectively invokes an idyllic mood with an undercurrent of danger. The moments that Toto and Mark get to share are very romantic and sensual. Without giving away the ending, let us just say that their encounter is one that Toto will undoubtedly remember for the rest of his life and so his memories emphasize the erotic. Much of the film is silent. Canuto has a nice eye for the image and effectively exploits the language of close-ups. The lovers' faces fill the screen as they kiss; sometimes the camera lingers only on their lips. Mark's face, rough with stubble, is a nice contrast to the more boyish Toto. I'm a sucker for hot kissing scenes between men and the screen erupts with their passion.

Toto Forever is sexy and suspenseful. Despite not being developed into a fully fleshed out movie, Canuto's short contains many pleasures. I look forward to the day when he directs his first feature film.


Michael D. Klemm in Cinemaqueer.com