Jump to the good stuff: The Story | Some Thoughts | The Final Verdict
The Story:
Our Paradise is a drama about Vassili (Stéphane Rideau), a Parisian hustler who can’t accept that he’s getting older. The film opens with an encounter in which Vassili’s client mentions that he lied about his age, so Vassili grabs a cord and strangles him.
After leaving the apartment, Vassili goes to a cruising park (the Bois de Boulogne) and finds a young man (Dimitri Durdaine) who had been roughed up and left unconscious. Vassili revives him, then takes him to his apartment, where they have sex. When Vassili asks what his name is, the young man insists that he doesn’t remember, so Vassili names him Angelo because he has an angel tattoo on his abdomen.
Vassili and Angelo begin dating and turning tricks together. If their client mentions Vassili’s age or prefers Angelo over him, Vassili finds a way to linger after Angelo leaves to murder the client.
Angelo doesn’t know about Vissili’s murderous ways until they’re hired by a john who gets rough with Angelo. Upset about the way Angelo is being treated, Vassili murders him, then convinces Angelo that it was done to protect him, which puts Angelo at ease.
One night while they’re at a club, someone points Vassili out as being dangerous and they quickly duck out. Concerned about being arrested, they decide to leave Paris and start a new life outside of the city. They move in with Anna (Béatrice Dalle), an old friend of Vassili’s who is living with her mother and her son, who is also named Vassili. Anna’s son takes to Vassili and Angelo, which makes them consider living a more conventional life. But can they?
Some Thoughts:
Our Paradise is a crime drama that humanizes the criminals, which gives it a subtly disturbing quality. It sets the tone from the very first scene and allows the story to unfold gradually. The film is visually appealing, with well-crafted shots that often hint at what’s to come. The overall visual flow is smooth, as is the pacing.
Writer/director Gaël Morel knows how to put a movie together and make a story about criminals palatable. It has a decent cast who add nuance to their characters, a fine script, and thoughtful cinematography.
Both Rideau and Durdaine give quiet and subtle performances that define their characters. They also have a chemistry that makes their doomed relationship believable. Vissili admires Angelo’s youth and beauty while Angelo wants the security that Vissili is able to give him.
Vassili’s calmness has a chilling quality that makes the murders he commits even more disturbing. They’re done so smoothly that they blend in with the overall tone of the film. It’s unsettling, especially when the young Vassili becomes attached to him and Angelo. And like most crime dramas, how it will end is uncertain up until the conclusion.
The Final Verdict:
Our Paradise is a discomfiting romance that will turn off some viewers. It may not be as gritty as a Jim Thompson novel, but it has style and an equally disturbing story.