Eastern Boys (2013)

You won't be disappointed!

To me, this movie is perfection.

So much average

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

This film is really very good. It is beautifully paced and tension builds throughout and I would say that the last act is quite thrilling.I felt I was in for a good film when I saw how the opening scene was shot and constructed so well. This introduces a number of the characters hanging around the Gare du Nord in Paris. The whole film is very well directed.There are different acts which are given titles and each has a unique feel and this variety helps to maintain interest.The character development is impressive. In addition to the main characters we get a very good feel for the nature of the secondary characters in the film even though they don't do a lot of speaking.Overall I think anyone will find this to be rewarding to watch except those unfortunate enough to have hang ups about gay relationships.

EASTERN BOYS is the story of a middle-aged man developing a love interest with an Ukrainian rent boy. The boy's still caught up in gang life and his troubled condition as an immigrant in France complicate the relationship. EASTERN BOYS is part drama, part romance, a story told with relatively little words and carried by superb performances.All of the characters appear to be very real, and even the movie's "villain", the gang leader, is relatable and not one-sided. The relationship between the two main protagonists is similarly multi-faceted and interesting.Overall, the movie did keep me interested... but at times it just prodded along, bugged down by pacing issues. Especially the middle part of the movie had far too many short scenes with short musical interludes, which made everything seem blur together. Cinematographically, EASTERN BOYS looks decent but it also has a lot of generic shots and cuts... and a pretty bad overlaid images shot in a dance scene.All in all, a decent gay-themed romance drama that will keep you entertained, but it won't blow your mind.

I was only prepared to give this film just half a chance (which I'm glad I did), and bail out as soon as it got too "Euro" for me.Aside from one semi-painful and overly long techno-music / dancing scene early on, the film was perfectly palatable to this particular Mid-Western American's tastes.As others have noted, it starts off a bit slowly, and you're left wondering if there will ever be any dialogue.Turns out there is, and in multiple languages too. I loved the realism of the two initially only being able to communicate through their own broken English, instead of their native tongues (each being unfamiliar to the other).Really well acted by all, and beautifully filmed. It had a documentary feel to it, without the obnoxious jittery camera work that some directors think that look requires.There are some mildly graphic gay sex scenes, so if that's too much for you, consider yourself warned. It's hardly gratuitous though, and nothing you haven't seen between heterosexual characters in other movies over the last thirty years.The story could have used a bit more background on the primary characters, which is what prevented me from giving it an 8 or a 9. I can see how time constraints might have gotten in the way of the film maker's doing that however.Anyway, it's a breath of fresh air from the usual formula and is much recommended.

Illegal immigrants from the former Soviet Union come to major European cities where they eke out an existence as grifters. In this compelling drama from former editor turned director Robin Campillo (The Returned, etc), a group of young former Russian youths linger around the main Paris railway station, looking for potential victims. In particular, they prey on middle aged gay men, using good looking youths to lure the men into a trap. One such victim is Muller (Olivier Rabourdin, from Taken 2, etc), a well dressed businessman who catches the eye of the handsome youth Marek (Kirill Emelyanov). He invites Marek back to his lavishly furnished apartment, but is surprised when a gang of thugs turn up, who party hard while systematically looting the place. And of course Muller can't go to the police, which is what the gang count on. Shortly afterwards, Marek turns up alone, and a relationship begins between the two. Marek tries to keep the relationship a secret from his gang. Eventually Muller develops a more paternal concern for Marek and convinces him to leave the gang and start a new life. Which is when the situation grows more intense and dangerous. An exploration of gay male sexuality, xenophobia, and the immigration problems plaguing Europe in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union, Eastern Boys begins slowly and undergoes a number of tonal shifts. There is an extraordinary sequence in which the gang strips Muller's apartment while throbbing disco music pounds on the soundtrack. But Campillo ratchets up the tension and suspense as the film moves towards its climax, which is quite gripping and claustrophobic. The moderately explicit sex scenes are handled delicately. Campillo uses long takes to develop the narrative tension. The two central performances are also solid. Rabourdin looks like a Gallic Kevin Spacey with his perpetually downbeat and gloomy expression, while Emelyanov is sympathetic as the naive and vulnerable Marek. There is a wonderful chemistry between the pair and the audience cares about their relationship. And Danil Vorobyev is quite menacing and chilling as the gang's psychopathic leader, simply addressed as "boss".