A 'moneyboy' with no love to give, and to give no love to.
This was very artsy. The way it was filmed, shot, directed-- it's like one of those indie films you'll fall alseep to if you aren't paying enough attention.
The story isn't anything extraordinary, but it sheds light on the lives of those who are engaged in sex work in a conservative society such as Asian countries-- precisely the life of the main protagonist of this film, who is a character I never truly understood or found myself rooting for. He's self-centered, pushes away or cuts off people who genuinely cares about him, and doesn't know how to appreciate the small but positive aspects of life. You want to care for him since his family situation is sad and frustrating, but at the same time, you can't find the urge to. You can't tell how he feels, if he cares or if he... well, anything. It's not the acting, because I thought the few actors this film had are great, but rather how the ML is written to be. He was, in conclusion, a snob-- and what's the good thing? This film is aware that the main protagonist is a snob.
One thing that bothered me, since I'm a pretty regular film person, is how this movie was entirely filmed. There are many gorgeous artistic shots (which I couldn't screenshot at all because I had to watch it in 360p lmao), but the single-camera stiff distant shots at a constant began to get on my nerves at one point. Besides that, they only ever play a single The Shining-esque background music every three scenes which suddenly makes you wonder "is there gonna be a jumpscare soon?" just for you to remember that you're not watching a horror film. The only reason I didn't rate this any lower than 7, though I could have based on how much I was entertained by this, is the club dancing scene because it made things feel alive for once.
Do I recommend this? Sure. At least it's not another depressing LGBTQ film where someone dies at the end or the couple can't get together. I appreciate their attempt at a different angle for LGBTQ films.
The story isn't anything extraordinary, but it sheds light on the lives of those who are engaged in sex work in a conservative society such as Asian countries-- precisely the life of the main protagonist of this film, who is a character I never truly understood or found myself rooting for. He's self-centered, pushes away or cuts off people who genuinely cares about him, and doesn't know how to appreciate the small but positive aspects of life. You want to care for him since his family situation is sad and frustrating, but at the same time, you can't find the urge to. You can't tell how he feels, if he cares or if he... well, anything. It's not the acting, because I thought the few actors this film had are great, but rather how the ML is written to be. He was, in conclusion, a snob-- and what's the good thing? This film is aware that the main protagonist is a snob.
One thing that bothered me, since I'm a pretty regular film person, is how this movie was entirely filmed. There are many gorgeous artistic shots (which I couldn't screenshot at all because I had to watch it in 360p lmao), but the single-camera stiff distant shots at a constant began to get on my nerves at one point. Besides that, they only ever play a single The Shining-esque background music every three scenes which suddenly makes you wonder "is there gonna be a jumpscare soon?" just for you to remember that you're not watching a horror film. The only reason I didn't rate this any lower than 7, though I could have based on how much I was entertained by this, is the club dancing scene because it made things feel alive for once.
Do I recommend this? Sure. At least it's not another depressing LGBTQ film where someone dies at the end or the couple can't get together. I appreciate their attempt at a different angle for LGBTQ films.
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