Film

Lust to love?

OUT NOW! Thanks to skilled, candid writing Berlinale crowd pleaser THEO & HUGO successfully addresses love in the lonely, post-AIDS generation.

You don’t even realise how deep-rooted our Disney-enforced notions of romance are until you see the titular heroes of this sizzling film d’amour lock eyes for the first time. The connection is unmistakable, but the context seems all wrong. Kudos to the director duo for opening their 90-minute movie with a near 20-minute orgy in the basement of a gay sex club, where reason is drowned out by lust and no names are involved. Can there be love? Thanks to skilled, candid writing addressing the proud but lonely post-AIDS generation, the affirmative answer doesn’t feel lazy or sugarcoated. If anything, it’s characterised by a tenaciously uncynical tone of voice which, despite recognising the elusive quest for happily-ever-afters, wouldn’t trade anything for the ride.

Theo & Hugo | Directed by Olivier Ducastel, Jacques Martineau (France 2015) with Geoffrey Couët, François Nambot. Starts October 20

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