Best movie of this year hands down!

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

I have absolutely never seen anything like this movie before. You have to see this movie.

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

There's no doubt the production department of this film is accomplished. The cast, direction, photography and editing are all up to par. What the problem is a rather implausible plot. After Mr. X, obviously a seasoned professional, picks up a moody youth-hustler in the train station and makes arrangements for him to come to his apartment the next day, a motley gang (of which the youth is a member) shows up instead and ransacks the apartment. Then the following day the doorbell rings and there's the initial youth standing there wanting to come in! What does Mr. X do? Allows him not only to enter but engage in a lengthy affair. Sorry, but I don't buy that. Mr. X is not only unusual but must be a bit daft. The entire plot then centers around this odd couple's relationship, and unfortunately it lost my interest.All the production values are in place and the film is obviously the product of a polished crew. Still, the quirkiness of character motivation diminished my interest and appreciation of an otherwise interesting European drama.

This is an honest movie about hard subjects. It is not meant to please the politically correct. It is also not a gay movie. It is much deeper than a portrayal of one sexual lifestyle.I see it, on one level, as an allegory about migration and economic power. Whether or not it was intended to be this seems irrelevant to me. But, I also appreciated its honest portrayal of hustling as it relates to age and isolation in gay male culture.The choice to make Daniel, the middle aged gay client of Marek/Rouslan, a white-collar depressive who is not a slick English-speaker was brilliantly spot on. The interchange of language when the two main characters begin to forge a meaningful relationship from prostitution is paralleled artfully with the interchange of sexual positions between them. Sex, growing to meaningful verbal communication, growing to love, growing to individuation, and salvation for both.Very affective cinematography which is intensely personal or roughly realistic. Daniil Vorobyov, as the Boss, plays a truly frightening villain, whose beauty as an instrument of his sadism rang so true for me. The plot and the Boss character's personality take interesting turns which balance the subdued portrayals of Daniel and Marek/Rouslan.As an older gay man who came out at 17 on a hustler strip of an American city in the 1960s because I could not get into bars, I was impressed by how some things really haven't changed despite the progress in developed nations for middle class and wealthy gay men. The Eastern Boys were familiar to me, as was Daniel, the john. The oldest profession remains either stepping stone or downfall for the runaways and refugees. At least, this one film handled this reality with artful sensitivity and realism.

Around the Gare du Norde railway station groups of East European lads gather and seek opportunistic chances for an easy buck. Daniel Muller (Olivier Rabourdin 'Of Gods and Men') is a gay man who is attracted to one of them - he is not sure if they are for rent but approaches Marek and a date is arranged at Muller's apartment. Only when he answers the door he is not prepared for the visitor he gets.That is the start and what develops goes way beyond what I was expecting. We have quite a few issues being explored here from migrant integration, crime, pay for sex and affairs of the heart. I was at times feeling uncomfortable, angry, concerned and even happy. The main thing is that it is always engaging.Great performances from all the cast but Olivier Rabourdin was totally convincing and Krill Emelyanov as Marek as the confused yet caring Ukrainian was brilliant. This is for those who enjoy an intelligent gay themed film, but a lot of the issues here are very universal and as such I can highly recommend.

I had heard some things about the film before I went to see it, otherwise I had no idea what to expect. From the synopsis, there is a minor spoiler. So if you don't think about the synopsis too much, then you will enjoy the first 20 minutes of the film even more. Just an FYI, there are no subtitles when the characters are not speaking French. I don't understand why they did that, but it doesn't harm the movie. A caution to any people interested, the movie does begin slow for the first 10 minutes. Following that is a slow, tense build though, which works well.What makes this movie excellent is the twists and turns the story takes. You think it's going in one direction, then suddenly it does a 360 without any warning. I know that can be bad at times, but for this movie it's actually executed very well. The acting is great, particularly the main character, the leader of the gang and the female hotel manager (she is very important to the film). One of the most interesting parts of the story is its take on love and trust.The only issues I have are the technical aspects, such as dark lighting and some odd cinematography.Overall, I would recommend this film. I'm sorry I can't say a lot about the film because saying one thing would spoil something important about the film.