 Raising the subtext of "Fight Club   into text, "Shiner   depicts a pair of amateur boxers gratified by punching each others  lights out. Theirs is among a trio of twisted love stories in the narrative feature by 29-year-old Los Angeles director Christian Calson. There s also a woman literally fighting her male lover s affections and another boxer who stalks his own shy male stalker. "Shiner   transcends sadomasochism in that no one seems aware of what he or she is doing. "I m trying to look at desire head on,   the soft-spoken Calson said by telephone. "( Shiner ) is about the politics of wanting and being wanted and how people respond differently.   Rife with ugly behavior, "Shiner   rejects the trend of queer filmmakers seeking straight understanding. "In L.A., we have this kind of sadness we carry around, that the only way we can make gay stories is by making more like  Will and Grace,     Calson said. Like the activist-filmmakers tackling the marriage issue, Calson went into "Shiner   with clear results in mind. "I want people to respond on a visceral level,   he said. "I m not after their minds, I m after their gut. ... I m not trying to make friends with this film.   (from an article on the Frameline 28 Film Festival)