(F. Est un Salaud)
Directed by Marcel Gisler
92 minutes
In French with English subtitles

This is an almost totally unknown Swiss flick, one that is a secret even within gay communities where I feel it should be cherished. It is about love and passion, and unfolds when a 15-year old high school student named Beni goes to a rock concert and falls for the singer. Beni starts a wild romance with the singer, who hires him as one of the roadies. Are you not gay and hesitant to see a queer film? All I can say is: just relax, let down your hair, and try something different.

Once again, the story isn't as important as is the mood, situations, nuances and details. It is about obsessive romance, adolescence, searching for one's identity, and music... things that anyone can connect to no matter what your orientation is. It's also about experimenting with sex, and at one point dives into some pretty wild S&M and roleplay. It's also about traveling, and the thrill of jumping into a new world. The soundtrack is great, knocking out tunes by The Stooges and The Velvet Underground, reflecting the music milieu of Fögi's band The Minks.

Because Hollywood became so huge in the last century it not only monopolized almost all filmmaking in America, it also forced much of European cinema to follow the same commercial approach as Hollywood... for example creating its own star system with actors like Marcello Mastrianni and Catherine Deneuve. But the European movies I often loved were the ones that weren't stuffed full of cash, had no stars or huge advertising campaigns. These productions were more humble and intimate, and as a viewer, I was on a more level playing field. They connected to my own life in a way that the big spectacle star-studded movies couldn't. And Europe was once teeming with these small independent productions.

This low-budget flick of unrequited love is based upon the novel Ter fögi isch e Souhung by Martin Frank. The acting by both of the main actors is great—Frédéric Andrau (Fögi) and especially Vincent Branchet (Beni). Both of the characters have moments of real beauty and tenderness, but both also have dark sides as well. It has a deep intimate quality and steers away from stereotypes... maybe a bit of the vibe of Todd Haynes' Velvet Goldmine, but it's more sensitive and has none of that glamour or spectacle. Personally I think it's a little bittersweet gem, set in seventies Zürich, with a kind of honesty that is rare in movies these days. 

As one viewer put it: "Gay, straight--whatever, this is the film to see. The heaven and hell of love, and then an ending which stunningly melanges the two--Drugs, sex, and rock and roll. And Beni transcends all. A real stunner..."