Eastern Boys

This film is not for the faint hearted - it's fairly full on - powerful and moving. The language bar is very low. Shot in French, English and Russian - you don't really need to know much of the other languages to understand it. It's tense and moody - especially the first half.

Strong performances from the leads and from main supporting actors.

Recommended

I was about to turn it off. The beginning where it was just walking around with the boys speaking to each other without subtitles was pretty boring. Then the second scene in his apartment dragged on and on, but the other reviews said if you keep watching, it's worth it. It sure was. It took a n unexpected turn and ended up being a really good movie. The last 15 minutes were especially exciting.

Around pass, laissez-passer the lover boys, where eastern is exotic for a French businessman spends his time roaming the streets and train stations, then sees an opportunity, making regular arrangements with a young Ukrainian prostitute, a pickpocket thug, his gang, his family, a mafia-Paris, his majesty.

I wouldn't go so far as to say it's a film that blows you away, keeping you on the edge of your seat. The story of prostitution and its shady/shady dealings that frighten everyone, the "laissez-faire" attitude that seeps into the postcard image of a Parisian apartment, the ending is far too beautiful, but... it always falls flat, for a gay romance that plays on opportunism, dream on 4.

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.

Pretty weird flick... Olivier Rabourdin is "Daniel", who thinks he has picked up a hustler at the train station; instead, things go from weird to weirder. The person who shows up at his door is NOT the person he thinks he hired, and when a whole group of eastern block people show up, things go south quickly. Daniil Vorobyov is "Boss", the chiseled, muscle-y leader of the pack, who runs the show. Then Daniel sees Marek, the guy who lured him into this whole mess (Kirill Emelyanov), and they strike up an odd relationship. The last two thirds of the film is mostly about their relationship, which has its ups and downs.

Written and directed by Robin Campillo, whose other works are related to gangs or different social classes and the issues that come with that. Not much info on any of these actors in IMDb. While this film is a bit off-beat, it's certainly entertaining, and one of the few films where I was not able to guess what comes next. English subtitle translation du français.