Le prix de l'innocence

Poor script, poor cinematography, poor direction, poor acting (though not sure if it's the actor's fault. Just a titlilating tale of one dimensional characters.

Terrible, awful movie starring Pau Masó as Aleksandr, a character I couldn't care less for. Apparently, I was supposed to feel sorry for, but I soon didn't. Poor, poor Aleksandr, who had all these terrible things happen to him, abandonment, dead mother, and more. But any sympathy I had for him was soon lost. I got so tired of that pathetic expression on his face through the entire movie I wanted to scream!

Yeah, yeah, prostitution is bad, and it leads to all sex-workers wanting to kill themselves. Whatever. Except I think Dan Savage for one would disagree.

Poor rambling script. Poor acting. Annoying "hero" who cried and threw up so many times I wanted to scream. Mediocre acting. I don't even think the main actor's accent was real. Poor filming. Poor sound. Only Josh Berresford as Keith (the client with a heart of silver, if not gold) was really any good and even his part was cliché—he had to struggle to get anything decent out of the part he was given. The therapist was decent but we don't even know how our guy got there. Keith Dougherty was absolutely terrible—and his part worse as he made no sense. Was he a nice guy or a jerk? Who knows? Did even the writer?

The twist ending was ridiculous. And the sudden turn around after that in about two minutes totally unbelievable.

I also highly suspect the couple good reviews for this movie. I'm not saying they're fake, but I wouldn't be surprised. They praised a bad film so highly, I can't help but be suspect. Brilliant? Not in any way. What a total waste of my time! I'm downright angry. And while one reviewer's thought that he wished the protagonist would just kill himself seems harsh? Well.... I sure stopped caring about the "hero." So hmmmmm.....

As my review title suggests, this is a very real and emotional repreentation of what it's really like in the world of escorting. There are a lot of strange people out there who use and abuse escorts or 'sex workers' as we now more affectionately refer to them. People forget they are real human beings with real feelings. Pau Maso as Actor, Writer, Director and Editor really hammers home the reality of this largely hidden world. A low budget film with a real meaningful punch. I will be watching this again for sure. Given also the film was shot using equipment relative to a low budget feature, it really does look great on screen. I watched this on my large cinema scren at home and was very impressed.

I thought I'd better offer an honest opinion to balance out the high ratings apparently conferred by writer/director/star Pau Maso's family and friends. This film is an amateurish, muddled mess.

It's framed as a therapy session for gay hustler Aleksandr, who tells his story in a series of flashbacks. This setup is completely unnecessary, and detracts substantially from the film by repeatedly killing the momentum. The therapist, "Dr. Mary", shows no compassion at all for her patient; she sounds like she's reading her lines off a Xeroxed sheet. She asks questions that I hope no professional therapist would ask, and says things that I hope no professional therapist would say (telling an extremely distressed guy he's "strange" won't win any awards for bedside manner).

Aleksandr, who seems to have developed his Russian accent by studying Mr. Chekov in the 1960s Star Trek series, makes one incredibly bad decision after another, to the extent that we feel even less sympathy for him than his therapist does. Suffering one traumatic experience after another, he continues to let bad things happen to him with no resistance offered or judgment exercised whatsoever. After the THIRD TIME a trick hands you a glass of mysterious liquid and says, "Drink it," you either turn and run away or you give up your right to feel you've been taken advantage of.

Tom, the character who seems to be Aleksandr's greatest potential ally, is confusing at best. His dialogue is written as if he's genuinely concerned, but the actor's delivery is so flat - a perpetual cheeriness that sounds like he's speed-dating - we aren't sure if he truly wants to help Aleksandr, or is just looking for a quick and easy hookup.

And then there's the "twist" near the end - not really a plot twist at all, just a ridiculously improbable happenstance. Based on everything we've learned so far, there's no reason to believe this particular incident would be so much as a blip on the radar, compared with a dozen or so other traumatic experiences little Alek has been through. Apparently, this is the one that lands him in therapy - although how and why are never explained.

Mr. Maso isn't a bad looking guy. Too bad he can't write, direct, or act.

The story, told in flashback sequences in a therapy session with a psychiatrist, follows the story of a young Russian man brought to New York by his unstable mother searching for his father. After her suicide, Aleksandr, who lacks immigration documentation, goes for a "dancing" job in a gay strip bar, and ends up as a high class prostitute. He does not enjoy his work, but finds himself with no viable choices. His horrendous experiences take him further down to the brink of suicide. Many of the scenes are frightening and appalling. This is a damning look at the seamy underside of New York gay life. It is never made plain whether Aleksandr is gay or not (I do not believe he is). None of the gay characters is sympathetic. Well worth watching. Pau Maso is outstanding as Aleksandr. The other actors turn in creditable performances.