NEW YORK - "Wild Tigers I Have Known," a first feature by 24-year-old director Cam Archer, demonstrates a striking flair for visuals and a strong will to experiment with narrative ideas. A desire to do something different sometimes renders the story murky and indistinct. But stylish flourishes hold things together in the absence of strong plotting.

"Tigers" could follow such dramas as "Bubble" and "The Chumscrubber" into art house theaters, though its free-ranging approach to storytelling will test less patient viewers. At the very least, Archer's uncompromising approach should open some doors for the young director. The presence of Gus Van Sant and Scott Rudin as exec producers also should provide a boost.

The story revolves around 13-year-old Logan (Malcolm Stumpf), a gay teen who lives in a frighteningly dull suburb of Santa Fe, N.M. Logan is awkward about his sexuality and indulges in masturbatory fantasies for comfort and security. Then he meets the slightly older, much cooler Rodeo (Patrick White), who is straight. Logan starts telephoning Rodeo and pretending to be a female admirer. The two meet to have sex, and Rodeo's rejection forces Logan to confront his sexual worries head-on.

Exposition is daydreamlike with narrative jumps, weird sound effects and atonal conversations. The sound effects, which range from monotonous to psychedelic, perfectly express Logan's confusion. Color also is manipulated to good effect. While the main theme - that it's OK to be different - frequently gets lost, these atmospheric flourishes evoke a suitably paranoid tone throughout.

"Tigers" shares a penchant for rigorous self-analysis with such relatively recent films as "Chumscrubber," "Mysterious Skin" and "Tarnation." Indie features have generally looked inward during the last decade, and these are no exception. But the ironic introspection which characterized the 1990s now seems to have been replaced with something much more brutal and relevant to today's times.