House of Boys

It is 1984. Frank (Layke Anderson) is a determined teenager who runs away from high school to find an alternative lifestyle in Amsterdam. He finds a home and a job at the House of Boys, a bar-cum-brothel run by a strict Madame (Udo Kier) who has an eye for what his punters crave. Frank works his way up from barman to on-stage dancer and falls in love with some of his housemates. The first intimations of what is described as 'gay cancer', later known as AIDS, casts a long shadow over proceedings. The outstanding cast (with special kudos to Anderson in the lead role) includes Benn Northover as a straight-ish rent boy and Stephen Fry who plays a pioneering doctor. A great soundtrack and some fine musical numbers add up to a richly satisfying film.