A businessman makes a regular arrangement with a Ukrainian prostitute, despite the youngster's involvement in a controlling street gang. It is a well-structured movie with shocking moments, especially the second part when the Daniel is robbed and he can't do anything about that. It is a good depiction of real life things that makes up an excellent film about the evolution of relationships and the danger of gangs.

Unusual, quirky and gritty.....

Strange opening act, but interesting and unexpected story.

Truly genre-bending. Is it a love story? Is it a crime thriller? Is it both or is it neither? The dialogue is often in three languages per conversation, spoken by competent actors. It is intelligent, it is tense, and it is touching. I could go on and on about the details that this movie gets right, but suffice to say that it's worth viewing even for people who normally wouldn't entertain the idea of watching a gay movie (though its sex scenes could make them uncomfortable).

Objective Picture about immigration and French Society before the attentats.

It certainly has its own dynamic,and has a lot to offer. Forgive me but at points I wasn queastioning if all this could really happen. In all the chaos that this movie is,many difficult themes arise, but what I'm uncertain about is the way they were discussed and the platform that was used. Personally I think the movie loses its focus and its path by unecessary plot devices such as the home invasion at the beginning of the film,which made it difficult for me to be convinced that this situation would ever have been possible to happen in the years after 2000. I'm at least glad that it had a positive ending.

What an intense, amazing little film. Bravo! I nearly gave up on it when O started watching it. The beginning is pretty pervy and disturbing. But it evolves into this magical little thing - powerful, thought provoking and heartwarming all at the same time. Brilliantly and artfully crafted, this film is supported by a talented cast of actors and stunning performances. I can't help feeling like this is a particularly important movie especially given current events. Its not an easy film to watch ... but oh so worth it. Highly recommended. ..

Whackjob plot. What was going on? These folks turn up at his house and dance; then the plot lulls for 90 minutes and it finishes in an adoption - really weird

Thrilling and intriguing

Unsettling because of the harshness of the Eastern hustlers but I grew to empathize with their plight. I liked how the protagonist handled all the situations thrust upon him. The film develops slowly but if you stick with it you will be rewarded. The cinematography is fresh and interesting.

Gard du Nord, Paris. Populated by commuters, shoppers and young loitering immigrant men. Director Robin Campillo opens his fascinating drama "Eastern Boys" with a bird's eye view following these titular boys from Eastern Europe. For a good while we get to observe their behavior in groups as people pass them by without paying them any attention. Then a stylish middle-aged businessman in a suit enters the scene. He obviously notices the boys, cruises carefully. We finally move to ground-level drama with dialog as the cruise by the businessman- who we now learn is called Daniel (Olivier Rabourdin)- ends in a conversation between himself and a young man who calls himself Marek (Kirill Emelyanov). They agree to meet the evening after at Daniel's apartment for paid sex. When the hour is due, a different, this time underage boy arrives at Daniel's doorstep, claiming to be the man Daniel agreed to meet. He forces himself into the apartment with mentions of blackmail, and is soon followed by a loud gang of young men, Marek among them. An oddly beautiful and intense scene follows as the gang's leader (Danil Vorobyev) orchestrates a peculiar party at Daniel's place. As the gang empties Daniel's apartment, loud music plays and the looters dance. Their boss strikes a nerve with a monologue that exposes the affluent older man's loneliness. The scene goes on for ages, the hypnotic dance enchants us along with Daniel. Greed, ruthlessness and divinity dance a dance of survival. Daniel does nothing. Out of enchantment, out of shame? The next day, Marek is at Daniel's doorstep, offering the promised sex for money. Daniel agrees. They start meeting regularly. The relationship between the two men begins to shift. Money changes into personal gifts and finally into comfort longed after. Daniel becomes concerned for the troubled younger man. Desire transforms into paternal worry. "Eastern Boys" is an ambitious mix of tones and genres. It's a crime story, a melancholy love story, an action-adventure of sorts, a meditation on the wounds of war. It shifts its flavor but always has an edge, a unique depth to everything. The twists, turns and changes in pace are handled superbly well. At its core this is a movie about society, power dynamics and post-Crimea crisis Europe as a whole. There is a sharp, socially observant analysis constantly going on, familiar from Campillo's praised scripts for Laurent Cantet's work. "Eastern Boys" is a story of our times told with artistic vision and expansive character dimensions, brought to life by a really good cast.

A historia te pega desde o começo e quando não sabe por onde vai continuar, é pq vc esqueceu que somos humanos, da um giro e te introduz em outro caminho inesperado e cheio de ilusão. Mas um dia, o protagonista se olha no espelho e vê que tudo não passa de ilusão e começam as duvidas. Essas duvidas vem pq já não crê na juventude, nem em sua forma de viver e ainda duvida que os jovens saibam o que querem. Com a chegada da maturidade acha que sabe e pode comprar tudo. Mas a realidade é teimosa e muito difícil de eliminar. Então ocorre o drama e muito bem feito. Nestes momentos de verdadeiro drama, o roteiro consegue chegar a altura da genialidade, no estilo dos melhores suspenses já feito no cinema. Tudo, do principio ao fim, esta realizado com maestria e com uma fotografia que o coloca longe desses filmes gays que parecem ser escritos somente pra gays. Filme imperdível que precisa ser assistido pra saber como contar uma historia com imagens e parar perder o preconceito com sexos e raças.

A strange film about a man who is quite naively bourgeois and he falls into an affair with a Ukrainian Guy who is part of a criminal gang. Be patient.

If you can get over the first 30 minutes, and the lead character's dopey response (to the 30 minute sequence), this movie is enjoyable. Good acting.

Kiril and Olivier (the main actors) are amazing in this movie I really felt the chemistry come together in the scenes they shared together. Every scene was gripping and I wanted to know what was going to happen next! Such a great movie!

I came close to hating it, but it's interesting enough to barely keep one involved for it's too long running time.

What a pleasant surprise. I knew very little about EASTERN BOYS (poor/non-existent marketing). I just happened to be near the theatre (Laemmle North Hollywood, CA) and decided to check it out. Really excellent direction and outstanding performances. Not for all audiences...but count me as a big fan.

What a pleasant surprise! I went in expecting very little since I knew little about it. Very impressive directing and strong performances. It's a shame that no effort went into the marketing.

An exhausting movie to watch, with some confronting disturbing themes.

this is a long movie, 2 hours, the first sequence, an in home robbery goes on forever. But, you know, for a French movie it is pretty good. Unfortunately no frontal nudity but an attempt at faux anal sex. Rabourdi and Emelyanov give credibility to their roles and it gives up Americans an insight to the problems of immigrants in Europe.