In Portland, a young store clerk named Walt falls for Johnny, a Mexican migrant worker. Despite the language barrier and Johnny’s indifference, Walt pursues him, drawing himself into a tangled web of desire, frustration, and fleeting connection on the city’s fringes.

In the 80s, American cinema entered a grungy Golden Age, as a generation of indie films blossomed from modest origins. Made for $25,000 on 16mm, this debut from Gus Van Sant (Elephant, Milk) is a quintessentially American classic, as well as a vital precursor of the New Queer Cinema movement.