Marco Berger, the most celebrated and prolific queer Argentinian filmmaker is back with his 8th feature film. His second film Absent (Ausente) in 2011 that won the prestigious Teddy Award at the Berlinale is considered his breakthrough, but we have to admit that his very first film Plan B still remains one of our favorites.
All Berger’s films focus on the implications of his protagonist’s sexuality most of whom are dealing with it for the very first time. Young Hunter is no different, but Berger turns this coming-of-age story into something of a psychological thriller that has us sitting on the edge of our seats for the whole 90 mins
This is the story of Ezéquiel (Juan Pablo Cestaro), a 15 year old school boy who has been left at home whilst his wealthy parents are spending a few months in Europe with his younger sibling. Ezequiel has lost his virginity (twice) but is literally on heat so uses his large home and pool to lure back schoolmates back in the hope he can seduce them. Sadly for him it never works out.
However one day he hooks up with a more worldly older skater dude Mono (Lautaro Rodríguez) who meets more than his sexaul needs. Things are going well until Mono insists they hang out with with his older “cousin” Chino (Juan Barberini).
Immediately after that Mono stops hanging out at the skate park and more importantly, no longer returns any of Ezéquiel’s calls or texts. Ezéquiel is both hurt and confused, but very soon all is revealed in a phone call from Chino. The ‘cousin’ informs him that he had secretly filmed the boys having sex, and is now going to put the video out on a porn site on the dark web.
That’s not a total surprise as although we are used to Berger’s overly dramatic soundtracks, this one is more doom-laden and ominous than usual, so we knew something dire was afoot
Now Chino expects Ezéquiel to take over Mono’s role and procure even younger boys to be filmed having sex with. After showing reluctance he agrees and starts to befriend Juancito (Patricio Rodríguez), an overly confident 13-year-old. If anything this part of the story is not only implausible but is makes us feel rather uncomfortable to watch.
The ending thankfully puts us back on track and has us appreciating that despite this blip (!) Berger shows us once again his wonderful insight into the burgeoning sexuality of young queer boys.
Berger always casts his movies so well, and Young Hunter is no exception. Both Cestaro are pitch perfect as the two teens discovering the possibility that there is more to their physical love making than they had expected.
This very entertaining movie is now both out on DVD and on streaming platforms too.
Labels: 2020, Argentinian, coming of age, Marco Berger, nudity
