Nick (Ruben Bansie-Snellman) is a teen-aged post-modern graffiti artist who decorates exterior walls in downtown Seattle and Portland using the tag name "Rapture". He is a loner, keeps journals of his drawings, photographs of his graffiti, stays alive by shoplifting cans of spray paint and his vegetarian diet foods, and gets around on a skateboard. Nick is a man against the world and is arrested for his art. When released, he meets a fellow tagger Jesse (Pepper Fajans) and finally speaks--to this point there has been no dialogue from Nick--and follows him around, sharing art and tagging. A "tagger" is a graffiti artist who spray-paints his name or symbol on a public wall. Jesse has some money and provides Nick with food and shelter. They travel to Seattle to tag, create some beautiful grafitti art, and bond to the point where Jesse invites Nick into his bed. There is an impressive sexy yet understated gay sex scene. By morning Jesse has conflicts about the gay sex. Nick appears satisfied yet anxious about Jesse's response. They continue to tag, using their new partnered tag name "Elusive". Jesse eventually distances himself from Nick and returns to Portland. Nick tries to maintain his lifestyle but living in the streets and tagging in dangerous places results in problems with the law. But primarily because he misses Jesse, the only person with whom he has bonded, Nick returns to Portland, leaving tag messages signed "Rapture" wherever he sees Jesse's signature "Flip". At last Nick finds Jesse, who doesn't want to have anything to do with him. Alone again, Nick returns to his solitary life and the way he deals with his dream ends the movie.
There is almost no dialogue in this film. It relies on body language to tell the story of why Nick and Jesse like each other, what the sex meant, and what the long-term impact is likely to be. The magnetism of the actors' body language and especially eye language is more effective than dialogue. Ruben Bansie-Snellman creates a character so convincingly simple in his complexity that he pulls us into the strange world of the graffiti artist subculture. The music score is by Kid Loco. Written, produced, and directed by Peter Paige.
