Aleksandr's Price

One unkind reviewer infers that friends etc are putting in the high ratings. They do not seem especially high to me and I give it a 6 because I believe Pao Maso gave an uneven, but in many ways a convincing interpretation of a lost Russian in America. At times I even thought he was filming for Russia as the depiction of gay men in this film showed up a lot of ' Western Decadence '. It could even be shown as a dreadful warning in Russia (it would be laughed off the screen in Moscow and St. Petersburg) but the provincial cities would lap it up. The message to me seemed, do not go West unless you want to experience rape, incest, being forced into female clothes and as Thelma Ritter said, immortally in ' All About Eve ', " Everything but bloodhounds at her rear end ". In fact as one disastrous encounter piled on another I could not help think that this was a kind of Lana Turner film from the 1950's. And at the end I asked myself, did the main character make all the wrong choices or was it dear old Russian fate!!! The shock ending was unbelievable, but then as some wit said, so is life. I just did not buy it, some may. And as for the general acting abilities of the other actors, well they could have all done better. So did I like the film at all ? Yes, because I truly believe Mr. Maso could make a truly good film one day. This had a certain pace and I was not bored. The sex scenes, given the unpleasantness of some of them were not realistic enough given the subject matter ( please Mr. Maso watch the French masterpiece ' Sauvage ' ) and there was a lot of fake clutching at sheets and crazy camera movements. Too many fig leaves do not make a savage film, and this set itself up to be one and half succeeded.

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.....

Aleksandr was dealt a bad deal in life. He lost the only family he had and he'd undocumented. Two things that make a bad combo. Yes, lonely undocumented people in a city can fall into things they don't want.

Aleksandr is trying to figure out who he is and what he wants. He hooks up with a guy, tells him it's his first time, and the assumption is that he's a prostitute. How does that make sense? Another guy hands him money after being together and says he's so good that he must be a professional and throws money at him. There are plenty of people who are good at it who have never been paid for it. It's just such a weird thing.

Aleksandr also has a penchant for completely ruining relationships but they always come back and want to be his friend. They say he's a nice guy but his actions don't convey it.

Wherever he goes people seem to know he's a rent boy even when he looks sullen and doesn't so much as glance their way.

This could have been a decent movie but it wasn't. There are much better movies of a similar vein. Skip this one.

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.

A poignant, powerful character study of a tortured young man. Pau Maso may be new to Americans but he is a seasoned actor. Beautifully composed. The narrative engages heart and mind. I have watched this marvelous movie five times. Each time Pau's nuances reveal themselves. I want to see all his works.