Michael Daniels The problem with this movie is that the lead character is so flawed yet manages to dominate this movie in such a was as to make the movie flatline into what is ultimately suicide for the movie as a whole. The fault is that Simon is so utterly fallacious as to be unbelievable! He is weak, dull, pathetic, immature, soulless, sexually inadequate, aggressive, violent, cowardly, fragile, disinterested in the world around him and without any kind of direction whatsoever. There is nothing redeeming at all in this character. As the movie progresses we begin to dislike him more and more, yet we are supposed to believe that a woman is capable of falling in love with this man. Unfortunately this leads to what ultimately is a very boring and lack lustre film. The problem also is that the movie paints Paris as city of sad, lonely, desperate people used and abused as the make their way through city streets, backlit by prostitutes, and violence, and when, we superimpose this fragile character on this mis-en-scene we are left with nothing more than a dull voyage into senility.Many low budget movies achieve so very much more and with a decent script, characters and direction this movie could have been something really special. Somehow as a USA / French production it just doesn't work, and this is reflected in the lack of any kind of meaningful communication between the lead roles in the movie.This said, I recommend you watch it because it is a good example of how a movie will never work if the camera hates what it sees. When an idea such as this is done brilliantly we end up with a film like "Alfie", (original version) in which yes, we see a deeply flawed character, dominating the movie, yet the camera loves him and so do we.

Girish Gowda Recently heartbroken, Simon (Brady Corbet) travels to Paris to clear his head. After several days of wandering aimlessly, Simon finds himself drawn into a sex parlor and has a sexual encounter with an exotic prostitute, Victoria (Mati Diop). The chemistry builds between the two until they find themselves in a serious relationship, one that leads to blackmail and betrayal through Simon's penchant for other girls and the ultimate revelation of Simon's true nature.Simon is an American white boy in Paris. A compelling character study of a man who might or might not be a sociopath since sociopaths have minimal need for other humans or attachments, but definitely has a major personality disorder and he likes to have control over women, but not in the traditional way. He starts by making them sympathize with him and then takes over their lives which is even worse than it sounds. The acting by the lead actor, Brady is fantastic. You can sense that there's something wrong with this guy from the beginning even if you don't know the name of the movie. His relationship with Noura/Victoria is deliberately weird without any underlying chemistry between them. In fact, both the actors (both leads are the writers as well) are very emotive and also free with their bodies.The score is intense, the camera-work is voyeuristic, claustrophobic and acts like a peripheral vision effect throughout. Then there's the periodic throbbing strobes of blue and red light through transitions which drains you out, all of which are meant to showcase Simon's view of the world. This is almost an art movie. The ending with Noura still alive and Simon walking away thinking he had killed her was really inspired. What makes the movie though is the fact that Simon could be any regular guy you meet on the street, which makes you feel very uneasy for the safety of the people you know. A realistic take on a disorder very close to sociopathy and a good movie, but not really recommended for everyone. 7/10

peter07 I read the reviews about the film and they stimulated my interest in seeing this flick at Pifan 2013 in Bucheon, South Korea. The movie seemed to go in several directions, but yes, I found the film a bit hard to like, especially the ending.Simon is a recent college grad who visits Paris after breaking up with a longtime girlfriend. He befriends Victoria, who works as a prostitute, and soon moves in with her despite planning to hit other places in Europe. He tries to scam her other customers and trouble starts brewing.I found that Simon wasn't a likable guy at all. He had a couldn't-care- less attitude like the character Zach Galifianakis played in "The Hangover." I also found implausible Victoria immediately liking Simon and letting him into her troubled life, and he ends up making things more complicated for her. He seems to really show what a true a-hole he is toward the end.I'm glad I watched it but would I recommend it? Not sure.

saad_sa11 Oh boy oh boy oh boy oh boy. Thankfully, was able to catch this in the Institute of Contemporary Arts here in London. I was expecting to be disappointed because I had such high hopes after AFTERSCHOOL and was ready to agree with my friends that this would be wanky, but they actually really dug it. Even with all the nudity and visually arresting red-and-blue strobe transitions. Maybe I just have more open-minded friends who just trust my taste in movies, but they really took something out of it and we discussed quite a lot on the way back which was mostly about Simon's psyche.Simon is a fascinating character. Brady Corbet really commits to an incredibly personal and unsettling persona.Disturbing, confusing, creepy, trippy holiday from hell. Yes, it's about an American who's just broken up and goes to France to hook up with a prostitute but it's done in the most arty, otherworldly style. It's just so primal from the cinematography (lots of behind person camera tracking shots) down to the score of drones and drums getting you right into the head of Simon. GOOD LORD THE SOUNDTRACK! "It Takes A Muscle To Fall In Love", LCD Soundsystem. I think this one has SPRING BREAKERS beat for this year in terms of foreboding score and licensed synth-pop tracks. But just as you're about to get comfortable, the music is abruptly stopped which fits Simon's character.The way the camera operates in this very voyeuristic, CCTV robot-like manner (just like in AFTERSCHOOL). It'll have the camera focus on a table with a girl laying down the groceries (bananas and bags of cocaine), then to her movements, characters talking, and eventually resulting in a long shot where you're just been immersed into everything rather than just the dialogue.It just makes for a very claustrophobic experience, and you can't wait to breath for the next day to come.