Fluffer, The (2001) - Synopsis

The Fluffer is a movie about obsession, submission, money, and sexuality.

The story centers around the adult entertainment industry and three industry staffers: Johnny Rebel ­ a porn star with a paradox. Although he is a hot-blooded heterosexual male, Johnny makes his living as a gay porno star. The reason: money. Sean McGinnis is young, naïve, adventurous, and pure. Moving to L. A. to pursue a career in movies, he becomes diverted to working for Hollywood's illegitimate stepchild ­ the porno industry. The reason: Johnny Rebel. Julie Disponzio, also known as Babylon, is the fieriest of the dancers at the strip club, Leggs. She and Johnny have been in a relationship for three years. She's hard as nails, willful and charismatic, and can play power games at Johnny's level, but ultimately she's at a disadvantage. The reason: She loves him.

When Sean rents Citizen Cane from his local video shop, he is accidentally given a copy of a Johnny Rebel video Citizen Cum. Sean becomes obsessed with the beefy star and gets a job as a cameraman with Johnny's production company, hoping to be near his porn idol. It doesn't take long before Sean strikes a curious connection and steps beyond the bounds of his job to become Rebel's fluffer.

Although The Fluffer is full of humorous observations about the porn industry, it is ultimately a dark tale of obsession.

While Sean fixates on the icon Johnny Rebel, Babylon deals with his day to day reality. Johnny just focuses on himself. The sex industry provides the setting for the triangle, Babylon navigating her prurient clients while Sean negotiates the inhabitants of the porno underworld. Both submit to, yet struggle with, the role of fluffer and struggle to keep the man they love from falling into a world of drugs and despair. Both cling ferociously to their self-respect as they go down on their knees. Both have to reckon with their deepest desires while engaging in a precarious balancing act.

Then, Johnny Rebel starts to implode. ..