Eastern Boys (2013)

Directed by: Robin Campillo
Country: France

Movie Review: Awarded at Venice Film Festival, “Eastern Boys”, is a realistic and inviting French drama focused on the homosexual relationship between a middle-aged man and a much younger illegal immigrant who is a member of a Eastern European gang based on a cheap suburban hotel of Paris. In a train station, Daniel (Olivier Rabourdin), a middle class man approaches a teenager named Marek (Kirill Emelyanov) who promptly offers him sexual services for the price of 50 euros. They set up an encounter for the next day in Daniels’s apartment, but for his surprise, a different boy appears followed by some other invaders, ready to begin their own private party. Tension grows fast in this first third, spreading an enigmatic feel that was quite positive, just to lose some grip in the second act, when Marek returns alone to Daniel’s apartment, this time for the sex they had agreed. The film enters in a more intimate and personal field as we see Marek’s insecurities increase as the relationship becomes steadier, although our doubts about his intensions remain. During the last third, tension is retrieved once again, to finish in an appropriate thrilling climax. “Eastern Boys”, although overextended and now and then unsteady, was a solid sophomore feature by Robin Campillo, known for his work with Laurent Cantet as editor and screenwriter (“Human Resources, “Time Out”, “The Class”), as well as for his 2004 zombie flick “They Came Back”. The leading pair of actors, Rabourdin and Emelyanov, had conspicuous performances.