Tag Archives: Eastern Boys

Sex and Politics with EASTERN BOYS director Robin Campillo

When he was in the UK for his promotional tour of EASTERN BOYS, we asked director and writer Robin Campillo to pen a few words on the complexities of his home-invasion-thriller-come-love-story. This is what he wrote:

“Far from casting judgment on the situation of illegal immigrants, or from being a reflection on paternity, this film first and foremost follows the logic of its fictional narrative. It portrays characters living clandestinely that represent both a danger and a promise for one another. Much like Daniel who, when faced with these young men from the East, oscillates between fear and desire, the film threads its way through ambiguous feelings, borderline, indeed marginal situations, but also, I do hope, through moments of pure jubilation.”

ROBIN CAMPILLO – BIOGRAPHY

Robin Campillo was born in Morocco on August 16th 1962. Because his father was in the army, he and his family moved around a great deal during his childhood and part of his adolescence. During this period, movies became a main theme of his existence. In Madagascar, at the age of 9, he discovered Godard’s ALPHAVILLE in a military theatre where the film was booed. Following this experience he developed a passionate interest for cinema and an array of filmmakers ranging from Jacques Demy to Mario Bava. In 1983 he enrolled in the IDHEC film school (Institute for Advanced Cinema Studies). After graduating, however, he took a break from his film career to dedicate his time to the fight against AIDS. Finally, in the mid-nineties he began a long and fruitful collaboration with Laurent Cantet as co-screenwriter and editor. In 2004 Robin Campillo directed his first feature film THEY CAME BACK, which later became Channel 4’s THE RETURNED.

The Times’ ★★★★★ Review for EASTERN BOYS

On 6th December 2014, the day we released EASTERN BOYS in the UK, the wonderful Wendy Ide from THE TIMES published the following ★★★★★ review of our ‘nail-biting’ film. Have a read below:

Some films take a while to engage their audience. Others, like EASTERN BOYS, grip you from the first frame. This constantly surprising picture by Robin Campillo (writer of THE CLASS) opens enigmatically. The camera hovers high above the Gare du Nord in Paris; it might have been shot by a surveillance drone. We pick out a group of young men, eastern European immigrants, looking for the opportunities that a crowded station offers. Daniel, an older man, moneyed and suited, gazes at Marek, one of the younger men, with something between hunger and longing. They arrange a meeting at his apartment the next day.

Then the tone of the film changes dramatically – the whole gang turns up. He watches as they drink his booze and empty his home of everything they can carry. It’s a brilliant sequence – sexually charged; fluid; dangerous. The camera gets in close, weaving through the dancing bodies at a party that the host has no choice but to join. It’s a credit to Campillo’s confident writing that despite this trauma a persuasive relationship grows between Daniel and Marek. And that, in a meticulously structured, nail-biting final act, Daniel will do anything to secure a new life for Marek.

– Wendy Ide, The Times

Oo-la-la! C’est Paris on Film

Ever since the Lumiere brothers screened their 46 seconds of footage of Workers Leaving the Lumiere Factory in December 1895, Paris and film have been romantically (what else) entwined. It’s both the city of lights and the city of love – so let’s raise a big class of Bordeaux to Paris.

1. Les Chansons D’Amour (2007)

A real favourite of mine when it came out – an intimate film from Christophe Honore which depicts the fallout of a menage-a-trois – this film could not be more French. Everyone’s sexuality is totally fluid, everyone reads books between threesomes, everyone smokes and everyone’s hot. Plus – in a flamboyant nod to The Umbrellas of Cherbourg – it’s a musical.

2. Angel A (2005)

This little known gem from LEON director Luc Besson – Angel A is pure cinema. Oddly enough, Paris looks most vital when in black and white; this film literally looks like a moving a picture, as in, a photograph that moves. It’s magical, serene, very, very funny and will have you grabbing your beret and blonde bob wig and rushing to St Pancras Intl as fast as you can.

3. Man At Bath (2010)

In this film, another from Parisian Christophe Honore, Paris’s beauty is arguably eclipsed by porn-star Francois Sagat’s bum. A film about accepting that a relationship is over, however painful that may be, but also very much about a hot naked guy in a flat, Man at Bath reinvigorates Gay Paris as something relentlessly hard-core. And I’m ok with that.

4. Ratatouille (2007)

No film captures the magic of Paris better than – ironically – this animation. The scene where Remi the Rat chases that little bit of paper around with the chef that looks like Ronnie Corbett is unforgettable, and I really feel sorry for anyone who watches this film and goes to Paris expecting to get what they watched in Ratatouille. As much as I love Paris, Ratatoiulle quite rightfully omits the stampede of tourists, the drunk men who try and beat you up with a baguette (literally once happened to me) and the pigeons.

5. Eastern Boys (2014)

Political. Sexy. Edge-of-your seat thrilling. The story of Eastern Boys is pure Paris, taking in all the complications that come with this world capital. Dealing with the clash between the middle class, homosexuality, and immigrants from the banlieue, this is an unforgettable cinematic experiences that captures Paris with all its problems, sex and brutality.

Since the days of the French Revolution, Paris has always been a city of extremes. The first and best exposure we had to this in English was unquestionably through Dickens’s Tale of Two Cities, where Dickens added the necessary final clause to the englightened French dictum: ‘Liberty, equality, fraternity – or death.’ Vive la Paris.

– by Will C-H

Oh my VOD! – watching films in the digital age.

The internet introduced itself to the film world like a screaming child; shouting, demanding constant and rapid change, giving us many sleepless nights and quite frequently reducing us to tears and custody battles.

But that angry child is here to stay. Here at Peccadillo we get a lot of questions regarding the difference between VOD and EST, which is fair enough (we’re still getting our heads around them!) Basically, the difference between the two is the difference between renting and owning.

Rent EASTERN BOYS at Curzon Home Cinema now

VOD stands for ‘Video-On-Demand’, which usually translates to ‘Download-to-rent’ or something similar. So, 4OD (4 On-Demand) allows you to watch Channel 4’s programme but not to ‘buy’ the content and own it. This is where EST comes in.

EST is a lovely and pointless acronym for ‘Electronic Sell Through’, which sounds like some jargon a bank would spurt at you whilst showing you images of a family rambling through a lake and reminding you that you can’t afford a summer holiday. But it’s not, it simply means ‘Download-to-buy’, like buying a DVD, but an ‘Electronic’ (digital) copy of the film. Once you’ve bought it, the film is downloaded to your hard drive and you can watch it as many times as you like and it’ll never expire.

We asked Olivier in our technical department if he could sum up the difference for us, the computer illiterate: ‘VOD is much better for those of you with commitment issues. EST is for the needy among you, those who can’t let go and want to watch the film over and over again.’ Olivier’s sarcastic tone was not appreciated and he has since been spoken to. He may also need therapy.

Peccadillo Pictures uses all the biggies when it comes to both VOD and EST: our films are readily available on iTunes, Google Play, Amazon Instant, Curzon Home Cinema, BFIplayer, Talk Talk, Filmdoo, Volta and BT Vision. So, for instance, when it says £1.99 To Rent on iTunes – that’s VOD, £8.99 To Buy – that’s EST. Bot VOD and EST frequently fall under the umbrella term ‘On-Demand’, which is our preferred phrase here at Peccadillo. But, as I said, the internet is a precocious child which changes what it wants and needs every 5 minutes. Once embraced, however, it’s a beast easily tamed. And then you can sit back and rent, download or own a bevvy of LGBT and world cinema titles whenever you want. I guess that’s why we put up with it.

Highlights of 2014 – Part Two

In the second part of our 2014 highlights we present favorite moments from three more Peccadillo staff members.

Jude Watson-Abell is our youngest staff member and joined Peccadillo as apprentice graphic designer.

YOU AND THE NIGHT UK Cinema Poster

The highlight of the year was getting to design my first cimema poster for the film YOU AND THE NIGHT. It was the first time I had designed anything like it and it was a great learning experience. At first it was rather daunting but with the right direction I was able to create a poster that I was proud of. Finishing this poster and seeing people’s positive reaction helped my confidence grow and allowed me to go on to create two more cinema posters. One for the film THE SAMURAI ,which sold rather well at FRIGHTFEST, and another for the film EASTERN BOYS.

Our new Home Entertainment manager Olivier Namet joined Peccadillo in November 2014:

THE WAY HE LOOKS UK Cinema Poster

My highlight for 2014 was starting work at Peccadillo. I have loved their films for years and now I can continue loving OUR films. My film highlight would have to The Way He Looks. I first saw the short film version (which is one of many extras on our DVD and Blu-ray) at Iris and it was fantastic seeing it become a brilliant, funny, and heart-warming feature.

And finally Rob Fowler is the Peccadillo Pictures finance manager and rarely gets let out of the office…

TRU LOVE DVD cover

My highlight was going down to the IRIS PRIZE FESTIVAL in Cardiff which is so friendly and welcoming due to the care and attention of Berwyn and Grant and their team. Particularly getting to meet many of the filmmakers showing their brilliant short films – obvious super talented future feature makers. Our film THE SAMURAI was very well received there and the wonderful Kate Trotter won Best Actress for her role in our film TRU LOVE.

Why you should see EASTERN BOYS

At Peccadillo we have literally hundreds of films recommended to us every year and there just isn’t enough time to see them all. EASTERN BOYS was recommended by a sales company that we regularly work with, was premiering at the prestigious Venice Film Festival and the previous work from director Robin Campillo indicated he was definitely someone to watch, but the title of the film and the subject of Eastern European rent boys made it all sound so… 90’s.

It would have been very easy to skip the 9am market screening, but we’re glad we didn’t, because the film was definitely one of the best of the year and in Venice it picked up the Horizon Award for Best film – but that was after we had acquired it.

Eastern Boys Final UK Quad

EASTERN BOYS opens with what can be described as a classic cruising scene. Daniel spots Marek hanging out with friends at the Gare du Nord station in Paris and virtually stalks him until he gets him alone, agrees a price and arranges for the young man to come to his apartment the next day.

When Daniel opens his door it’s to a young boy called Marek, the trap is sprung and then “that scene” happens. It’s the scene that everyone who has seen the film talks about, a celluloid moment that is impossible to erase and is certain will go down in film history as one of the most memorable moments in film – ever.

EASTERN BOYS is both an edge of your seat thriller and an intimate exploration of the evolution and meaning of love, it seamlessly moves between one genre and the other toward an unexpected but ultimately very satisfying ending. The film is one hell of a journey and one that Peccadillo is very proud to bring to you.

So please seek out those few cinemas brave enough to show something different to mainstream holiday fare (there are fewer of them every year) and settle back and enjoy an utterly brilliant cinematic experience.

Director Robin Campillo will be in London to present the film On Friday at The Curzon Soho and on Saturday at The Hackney Picturehouse, click below for details of these and other screenings around the UK

For more and to book tickets: http://bit.ly/EasternBoysCinema

Oops