On Dec. 23, 2011, Patrick Moote, a UCLA sports fan, proposed on the Jumbotron at a UCLA Basketball game. Moote’s girlfriend at the time, however, answered his question by fleeing the stadium speechless.
The following Monday, a video of the duped proposal hit YouTube. In just four days, the video was a viral hit, receiving 10 million views. When Moote discovered his girlfriend rejected him because she found him to be less than physically desired, he opted to make a documentary, “Unhung Hero,” in which he examines his perceptions of his own masculinity.
The film, which originally received positive attention at many international film festivals, including South by Southwest, arouses attention by addressing the taboo subject of male enhancement in the United States as well as a number of other countries. The film received a limited theatrical release, as well digitally and on DVD.
While “Unhung Hero” focuses on Moote’s personal exploration of the rarely addressed issue of male body image, the documentary also examines the dangers behind the male enhancement industry. It delves into lawsuits filed on the basis of false advertisement and medical harm. From pills to pumps to plastic surgery, Moote breaks down the effects of each method with less-than-savory results.
His willingness to listen and break down the facts takes the film from a juvenile place to an interesting commentary on body image. The documentary starts out much like a home-movie as he asks his ex-girlfriends and old high school friends about his manhood. Yet, as the film progresses, it adapts to a more mature and complex story as he travels through San Francisco, Los Angeles, South Korea, Taiwan and Papua New Guinea.
On his travels, Moote learns about the lengths men of numerous cultures go to in order to increase their physical sizes for the purpose of making themselves more attractive. The film becomes a crash course in little-known cultural practices.
In Taiwan, for example, he discovers one method called Qigong. Qigong is a form of martial arts that focuses on the male organ, and much of the practice involves lifting large weights using a harness attached to the male genitalia. Yet, for Moote, nothing is off-limits.
Most striking in the film is the use of humor and honesty. Moote comfortably speaks to sex experts, condom producers, medical professionals and everyday people. Moote himself achieves a lovely balance of self-deprecating humor and confidence, which keeps the film from going to a sad, victimized place, but also makes it really funny.
Moote’s message is conveyed in the most wholesome way possible. Human genitalia never appear on screen, and useful statistics are sprinkled throughout. At one point, Moote explains how female preference in men’s physicality is so potent that it has physically altered the average size of the male genitalia over the span of thousands of years. He illustrates by comparing humans to their primate cousins and shows how this adaptation is completely unnecessary. The film continues in good taste as it focuses on Moote’s personal journey rather than trying to make a jab at his ex-fiance.
The problem with “Unhung Hero,” though, is that it comes across a little bit like a YouTube prank video. The filming techniques give the effect of a handheld camera, which makes the viewer forget they are watching an actual film at a few points. While this adds to the movie’s realism, it also detracts from its legitimacy.
A few scenes come across as cheap as Moote takes a camera into illegal places like adult accessory shops and Korean saunas. These scenes may evoke a few cheap laughs, but they ultimately dilute the validity of Moote’s overarching theme, and the reactions seem almost staged from how perfectly they’re caught on screen.
While the camera techniques are a bit unsatisfactory, the editing that went into the film is very tasteful, and effortlessly unfolds the story. Voice-overs and graphics smoothly transition between segments such that interviews with the citizens of San Francisco easily blend into interviews with adult accessory vendors. By the end of the film, a clear arc of development is evident within Moote.
“Unhung Hero” is a documentary unlike any others currently circulating. It’s informational, funny and makes its audience think about how men have to deal with body image issues as well. Moote’s journey to self-acceptance is worth the watch, because there’s a lot more than meets the eye.