A Rare Condition Leads to a New Definition of Gender Bending

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Androgyny rules in “Zerophilia,” Martin Curland’s audacious feature about a fictional chromosomal abnormality that wreaks havoc with one’s genitals. When the virginal Luke (Taylor Handley) is energetically deflowered by a mysterious Englishwoman he encounters while camping, the incident triggers a dormant condition known as zerophilia, which causes sufferers — if that’s the word — to spontaneously change their sex. Thereafter, every orgasm comes with a price, and it’s not one you can charge to your credit card.

A novel teenage comedy with an astute understanding of adolescent sexual confusion and the nebulous nature of desire, “Zerophilia” suggests an elastic view of gender that’s alternately gleeful and terrifying. As Luke sprouts breasts during a romantic dinner with a date (Rebecca Mozo), then awakes after a night of passion to discover he has morphed into a curvaceous female (Marieh Delfino), the movie balances nightmare and fantasy with cool agility. Helped by assured performances from his mostly young cast — particularly Dustin Seavey and Alison Folland as Luke’s closest friends — Mr. Curland fashions his bizarre material into a surprisingly subtle exploration of identity and anxiety.

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Slow to get going, but worth the wait, “Zerophilia” is ultimately less about sex than about the rewards of friendship. “Being a woman doesn’t make you any less of a man,” says one of Luke’s friends, encouragingly. It’s a line Dietrich would have been thrilled to utter.

Written and directed by Martin Curland; director of photography, Graham Futerfas; edited by John Randle; music by Kevin McDaniels; production designer, Kenn Coplan; produced by Jay Whitney Brown, Mr. Curland, Alan Grossbard, Gregory J. Lanesey and Matt Radecki; released by Microangelo Entertainment. At the Village East, Second Avenue at 12th Street, East Village. Running time: 90 minutes. This film is not rated.

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