WILD SIDE

Year: 2004
UK: Peccadillo Pictures
Cast: Stephanie Michelini, Yasmine Belmadi, Edouard Nikitine, Josiane Stoleru, Antony Hegarty, Liliane Nataf
Director: Sebastien Lifshitz
Country: France
Languages: French / Russian / English (English subtitles)
UK: 93 mins
UK Certificate: 18 contains strong sex and language
UK Release Date: 15 April 2005
UK Distributor

Synopsis

Stephanie (Stephanie Michelini) returns home to care for her dying mother. Having run away to the big city over 15 years ago, she is reminded of another lifestyle back in the desolate rural landscape of her childhood.

The bleak solitude of the countryside evokes a flood of memories and emotions, not only for Stephanie, but also for Mikhail (Edouard Nikitine) and Jamel (Yasmine Belmadi), the two young men who share her affections and her bed.

Experiencing inevitable flashbacks of her childhood as a boy, Stephanie is haunted by the early death of her beloved only sister. The monotony of streetwalking and turning tricks night after night is also difficult to forget.

Young Russian Mikhail lives illegally hand-to-mouth in a country where he hardly speaks the language. A former soldier but at present considered a deserter, he is still tormented by horrific images of war.

Jamel is a French-Arab who makes ends meet through prostitution. Not as tough as he acts, he secretly yearns for the days when he was still part of his family. His biggest fear is sleeping alone.

Their future is uncertain. Others may not understand them. But the three unlikely friends have found comfort and passion in each another's arms.

A haunting, poetic exploration of relationships from the director of Presque Rien.