Paul Dawson Movies

John Cameron Mitchell, who created a cult sensation as writer and director of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, blazes a brave new trail with this comedy-drama which combines the stories of a handful of emotionally unsatisfied New Yorkers with some of the most explicit sexual material to ever appear in a mainstream motion picture. Sofia (Sook-Yin Lee) is a couples' therapist who has a major relationship problem of her own -- she's never had an orgasm, and her husband Rob (Raphael Barker) doesn't seem capable of giving her one. Sophia's clients include James and Jamie (Paul Dawson and PJ DeBoy), a gay couple who have been together for five years and are beginning to grow tired of one another. As James and Jamie discuss the possibility of bringing another man into the bedroom, Sophia accidentally mentions her problem, and they tell her of an upcoming "Shortbus Party," a sexual free-for-all in which straight, gay, and lesbian couples are all welcome to either talk about sex or take a more active role in the main ballroom. As James and Jamie hook up with Ceth (Jay Brannan) for some mutually satisfying action at the bash, Sophia experiments with Sapphic diversions, and begins to truly find herself when she encounters Severin (Lindsay Beamish), a professional dominatrix. However, while Sophia begins to find what she needs with Severin, she discovers that while Severin is able to casually enter into a sexual relationship, she's never been able to emotionally commit herself to someone else. Shortbus was screened in competition at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Jerri (Amy Sedaris) struggles with a lesson in motherhood on this "painfully special" episode of Comedy Central's demented ode to the after-school special. Clueless as to how to care for the baby that was assigned to her in Coach Wolf's (Sarah Thyre) health education class, Jerri takes Principal Blackman's (Greg Hollimon) advice and heads to the library to watch a film on single motherhood. The film seems to have little impact on Jerri, and after taking the baby home, Jerri nicknames it "Dizzy" when it falls into a laundry basket after being left unattended on top of a dresser. Subsequently learning that her family is housing criminal Cambodian war refugee Kim Luc in their basement, Jerri decides that the baby is cutting in on her social life and abandons Dizzy in the park. Discovering the abandoned infant in the park later that same night, Mr. Noblot (Stephen Colbert) and Mr. Jellineck (Paul Dinello) report the incident to Principal Blackman the following day. In an attempt at resolving the situation, Principal Blackman teams Jerri with Tammi Littlenut (Maria Thayer) despite Coach Wolf's insistence that Jerri learn to be responsible on her own. Quickly assuming the role of the abusive husband, Jerri gives Dizzy to Kim Luc to sell on the black market and books a cheap room at the Horizon Motel in hopes of seducing her new partner, though Tammi tips Principal Blackman off to the rendezvous behind Jerri's back. When Jerri notices Principal Blackman arriving at the motel, she rushes outside and pins the crime on Tammi, causing Principal Blackman to believe Tammi is lying when she reveals all-too-familiar sounding truth. Exhausted after her brief brush with motherhood, Jerri finally learns that it's much easier to be a single mother when you're neither single nor a mother. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi