Needy Hunk in Making Love (1982)

Michael Dudikoff was a young hunk actor when I was in high school. His career never took off, but apparently, he’s still working. IMDb says one of the things he’s known for is American Ninja 4. Well, who could forget him in that?

What I remember him for is a bit part he played in Making Love (1982). He was a lovesick youth pining for hard-to-get, use-them-and-drop-them Bart, Harry Hamlin’s character. Michael’s character came up to Bart in a gay bar and practically begged him for attention. There is a strong suggestion that Bart has already had Michael’s character, so he’s no longer interested, but he doesn’t want to be openly rude to the lad. Michael stood out for me because I recognized him. I guess I had seen him in a TV show. At the time, it was surprising to me to see such a hunkish young man not only play a gay character, but one that was needy and obviously submissive.  I suppose if you got a taste of Harry Hamlin, you couldn’t help but become his sex slave.

I’ve been watching Making Love again for the first time in many years. It’s aged a bit. Looks more like a made-for-TV production than a feature film. The acting can be a bit stale. The writing is often flat. But I think it does capture something of the mood of the time and gives a glimpse of how terrifying it was to come out in 1982.