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Last updated on September 27th, 2024 at 07:13 pm
I hadn’t watched Sebastian before the film’s director, Mikko Mäkelä, and a producer of his asked me to take the streamer down. Mäkelä did so in a terse, slightly bitchy comment which you can read at the bottom of this page. His producer found my actual phone number, which shouldn’t have taken more than a couple clicks. I imagine he thought his message would feel more threatening if he messaged me directly and called me by name. He/she doesn’t bother identifying themself by name. I had been napping, but, of course, I immediately complied.
Based on a quick Google search, it looks like the film will premiere in the UK in mid-October. Streaming it now anywhere, even legally, could poach on those ticket sales in that market. I wouldn’t want that. (I guess someone with a screener leaked the film. That happens all the time.) This blog is devoted to the dissemination of gay film culture, even if I don’t think any one film is, ahem, particularly good. If it looks interesting and you can afford to go see it, by all means do. Nothing replaces the theater experience as far as I’m concerned. It seems most people don’t agree these days, however.
Of course, there are people who would never, could never go see it, and that’s why this blog exists in the first place. Most of my visitors come from other parts of Europe, primarily Italy, as well as India, Indonesia, and elsewhere. (One of the things the collection provides to those who donate is subtitles in their own languages. I subscribe to an online service just for this purpose.) I give away access to verifiable students, independent journalists, and researchers. If someone donates a couple of films that I don’t have, I’ll also provide access to the collection. But the collection has anything and everything — rare films, hard-to-see films, films that are unavailable on streaming platforms because of arcane copyright laws, country-specific series and films, etc. If a film I want to see is not allowed to be or can’t be shown where I’m at, sorry, but I’m going to pirate it. And so will a lot of otherwise upstanding people. It’s human nature.
Further, I’m just not that impressed with the word illegal. Lots of common things have been illegal in my lifetime, including gay sex and marijuana possession in some places where I’ve lived. I’m not all that impressed with the word copyright either. The imperatives of culture will always outweigh the demands of profit, at least for me. But then, I’m basically an anarchist.
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This blog does not make a profit and I never expected nor intended it to. All donations go toward storage costs, which are considerable. Any excess money, which showed up for the first time this past month, will go toward upgrading. I’ll move everything to a faster host in a country where I can more safely ignore takedown notices; I’ll buy a more appropriate theme; and I’ll buy DVDs to rip of films that I don’t now have in the collection. It would be wonderful to reward filmmakers directly, but this site doesn’t have the traffic to generate meaningful income anyway. It’s really just a hobby, if a purposeful one.
This blog is for the international gay audience, not the gay creators, who can always fend for themselves, with their lawyers and producers and other apologists and defenders of archaic copyright laws.
Finally, and more to the point, what’s with all the gay movies called Sebastian? Given that one of the film’s themes is assumed identity, does the film’s name refer to this phenomenon? Are there names that always sound like porn stars and/or rent boys? Anyway, here’s my slightly updated short review of the movie in question, Sebastian, directed by Mikko Mäkelä, originally published on Letterboxd.
It would take a second watch for me to decide whether this is an interesting failure or just a failure, but I guess I’m answering my own question when I say that I don’t at all relish watching it again.
There is, however, one short, quite beautifully calibrated sequence and sex scene that justifies watching it at all, and that’s when aspiring celebrity writer, rent-boy-by-choice Max/Sebastian realizes that sex between gay men and, particularly, gay men of different generations, can be social, not just monetary transactions (fiduciary, in other words), and a transmission of cultural information, not just bodily fluids. I’ve been saying that for about 30 years now, even before I got involved with sex workers, from both sides now. Veteran Australian and apparently straight thespian Jonathan Hyde carries these scenes masterfully (what a casting coup that was!), but young Ruaridh Mollica (also in the moving short, Too Rough, and Mäkelä’s apparent double) isn’t that far behind, despite some of his more mannered choices. He’s wonderful throughout the film, particularly in his character’s more self-critical and vulnerable moments. I think Mäkelä overplays and overwrites this a few times though.
(I’ve written favorably about other sex scenes in another movie of Mäkelä’s. If nothing else, he’s a deft and sensitive director of gay male sex scenes — no small feat. Both movies are full of good examples and most of them come across with different tones and purposes.)
But mere moments after this sequence fades like a golden post-coital afterglow, director Mikko Mäkelä can’t stop himself from spelling all that out in block letters as Max defends the transcription of these events to his book editor, part of a publishing milieu that I didn’t find convincing. In a Raul Ruiz movie, just for instance, or even an Albert Brooks one, Max’s failure/inability to communicate that what he’s writing is memoir and self-discovery rather than exposé would yield various ambiguous and suggestive effects and affects. In this movie, it’s just lying there on the table waiting for you to pick it up and eat it like a hamburger.
Is the final shot ironic, in which the character’s sex-worker pseudonym joins the author’s real name on a placard at an ass-kissing author Q&A at the magazine where he was previously fired?
“You can ask me anything. Anything at all,” Max turns and says, in some kind of way, to the camera. We have all kinds of reasons not to believe him, of course.
I guess it is ironic, sort of — at least as ironic as millennials get — but it’s about as subtle and rewarding as an episode of Will & Grace.
P.S.: According to my analytics, nobody watched the damn movie anyway.
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Sebastian
Directed by Mikko Mäkelä
110 mins, UK, 2024
Fiction feature
English language; no subtitles
Sebastian is a 2024 British film directed by Mikko Mäkelä, which explores the complexities of identity and the nuances of sex work through the lens of a young aspiring writer. The film centers on Max, a 25-year-old writer living in London, who adopts the persona of “Sebastian,” a sex worker, as part of his research for his debut novel. This dual life allows him to delve into a world he had previously only observed from a distance, ultimately challenging his own perceptions of intimacy and self-expression.
Perplexity
Plot Overview
Max is portrayed by Ruaridh Mollica, who delivers a compelling performance as he navigates the challenges of his double life. Initially motivated by the desire to write authentically about the experiences of gay sex workers, Max finds himself increasingly entangled in the complexities of his alter ego. As he engages with clients and writes stories inspired by these encounters, he grapples with the blurring lines between his true self and the character he has created. This internal conflict raises questions about authenticity, exploitation, and the transformative power of sexuality.
Themes and Reception
The film has been noted for its tender yet unflinching exploration of queer identities and the emotional landscape surrounding sex work. Critics have praised Mäkelä’s direction for avoiding sensationalism, opting instead for a nuanced portrayal that emphasizes the humanity of all characters involved. The narrative is described as a thoughtful investigation into how personal experiences shape one’s identity, particularly within the queer community.
This film is a pirated copy, illegally hosted here, and infringing my copyright. Please delete it immediately to prevent further legal action against the website.
Yes, sir!
Also, it’s not hosted here. That would be very illegal.