That Man: Peter Berlin (Documentary)

I knew nothing about the man Peter Berlin, who he was, what was his claim to fame or anything of that sorts. Despite that I was pleasantly surprised by this documentary. Peter Berlin, as how he rechristened himself, was a strong, complex, fascinating man who stays true to himself and lives his life to the fullest. It is fascinating, how he understood the human psyche of what would get him attention and love and played to that human need. He knew he was good looking and charming, so he created a character called Peter Berlin, turning it into a fixed figure of the streets of San Francisco, and photographing it himself in erotic and very very suggestive images, among other things. 

Told through a series of interviews by some famous people who knew him or of him, the story just gets better when we see footage of his wrk, his films and interview with the man himself. He had a great social life. He created this enigma about himself, where people wanted to be with him. Self admiringly, he was not a very sexual person per say but still most of the time he teased, attracted, played with emotion, toyed with his surface, like a living painting, an icon of sexual desire that slipped and faded with other men who he knew wanted him. Yes, he did feature in some porn movies but that was another of his way. He recounts the story of how he never had much money but once he realized how little it took to get attention, he needed off it. Having the "right" friends at right places, he was never shy of living a fabulous life that he enjoyed every minute of. For a man, who every avant-garde artist wanted, it is also good to see his human side when he talks about two important men in his life and also how he lost all of his friends during the AIDS crisis. He also talks of drug abuse. All the other interviews by celebrities also show what a fantastic guy he was. When this documentary came out in 2005, he was 63 but still very handsome and charming still.

We get to see so many images and photographs of his early career that Iw as completely unaware of. I can imagine, in those days with no internet etc, the kind of stir that these pictures would have had. They are not nudes, no penis shots, but even more erotic and sensational and some iconic sexual imagery. I bet even if you don't know of him, you would definitely have seen his pictures. My god! What a gorgeous and beautiful man he was. With the way he teased people sexually, you would think he is a bit of arrogant man, but he surprisingly comes across as an interesting character. The man embraced his sexuality and put it out here with the kind of confidence that few dare to. He believed in himself and his beauty and captured it all on film in a raw and spectacular way. His attire was exceptionally creative. One who has no inhibitions and lays it all out there. And this documentary fascinatingly captures it all. (6/10)