Moustroll Good movie but grossly overrated

Teringer An Exercise In Nonsense

Anoushka Slater While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

Fleur Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Johnny Myo Not the best film ever to come out of Spain, but makes some pertinent points about some contemporary issues, which must surely be (almost) as timely in the US as for us in "federal" Europe at the moment. Not least of them, how much are our perceptions of love, loyalty and honour shaped by our perceptions of our relative socio-economic and geographical circumstances?Personally, I agree with the reviewers who felt the Bulgarian interlude is very important for assisting characterisation - particularly for helping explain the motivations of Kyril and Kalina. I can understand some bristling at what they see as offensive clichés about disenfranchised eastern Europeans, but hey, it's the work of one director, not some Party committee. However, he does seem to tread the line between thriller, comedy and Almodovar-style melodrama with the unease of someone who's a bit rusty (and the clunkingly obvious "tribute" scene to Almodovar's "Law of Desire" when Kyril and Daniel are returning home from a drunken night out as Madrid's municipal cleaners hose down the street could only ever make you pine for that earlier, greater work).Having said that, I think it bears repeat viewing. But, as for the "gratuitous nudity" - uptight Americans get over yourselves, please. There is hardly any.

Didier (Didier-Becu) Gaymovies are most of the times a rather boring experience as most of the times the base is just the same : not being accepted. In this movie from director Eloy de la Iglesia (unknown, but so far he made 23 movies) is a bit different but the movie looses everything due to an unbelievable story. "Los novios bulgaros" stands for the new Bulgarians and that are, in Iglesia's eyes, men who come to Spain and in return for illegal papers they play gay whore for some rich men. I can imagine that for most of the Bulgarians this item is quite insulting and Iglesia thought it was even better to add some cliché in it as well by making the Bulgarians criminals who are smuggling radio-active weapons. I dunno if Iglesia wanted to make a James Bondmovie in his dream rather than coming up with some real issues but if it was his goal to touch some modern problems of the current society (refugees who have to sell their body) then he lost it completely here. All by all the film is quite okay to watch but at one point Iglesia tries to defense a minority group by offending the others. From a cinematographic point of view you don't have to seek for surprises as well as is it just a bland job.

esh04676 Overall this film gives the viewer a good picture of the gay night world in contemporary Spain, but the focus is on the relationship between stolid, bull-like Kyril and emotional passive Daniel. Daniel is the successful and well--to-do middle-aged business consultant who spends much of his free time cruising for sex in night spots. He hooks up with much younger (supposedly age 23, but Biba looks older) Kyril, a Bulgarian immigrant, missing his fiancée who is in Berlin. (Why these two young lovers are separated is not clear.) But Kyril is ready to meet Daniel's needs for friendship and more. The nature of the developing relationship is made clear at the outset with Kyril making love to Daniel in an overpowering and explicit manner. Daniel is much in love with Kyril, but Kyril sees Daniel only as a convenience, a source of money, shelter, and help with his working papers in Spain and with a project that evidently deals with international atomic fuel smuggling. In connection wit the last, Daniel often finds himself involved in skirting the law. The performances by Dritan Biba and Guillen-Cuervo as the older man are excellent and make this movie fun to watch. Both actors should get special awards for their sensitive portrayals of men having a sexual relationship.

jotix100 The end of Communism in Eastern Europe has opened the borders from the old satellite states allowing the young people to go to neighboring countries. In most cases these voluntary exiles cannot speak the language, not even find a job that is not menial, at best. The end result is that, in most cases, these young men and women, living illegally in Europe, turn to prostitution because it's the simplest job they can perform without the proper working papers.This is the basis for Eloy de la Iglesia's film. It appears, that the star, Fernando Guillen Cuervo, who plays Daniel, the yuppie architect, contributed to the screen play. Perhaps the director of the film is asking us: who is the exploiter, and who is exploited. Somehow the Eastern Europeans have a way to live well by entering into love affairs with gay men, as in the case of these Bulgarian types in the film.In this story, Daniel ends up paying for his lover, Kyril's wedding to Kalina, his girlfriend from Bulgaria. One would suspect that in most cases these upwardly mobile Spaniards end up as victims themselves because their lack to savvy into seeing a con job in front of their eyes, or maybe they are blinded by the sex they are getting from these exotic types.Daniel finds out the hard way that Kiryl only wants him because what he can get out of him. Also, as it's the case here, these immigrants have their own agenda and are using the gay men for whatever benefits they can extract from them. The film is mildly funny.