Isolated Canadian Matthew (Antoine Lahaie) is trying to make a fresh start in Berlin but finds himself an alone without any friends or support. He meets the beautiful Matthias (Nicolas Maxim Endlicher) at the local swimming pool and he quickly becomes infatuated with him. Watching his every move, Matthew’s infatuation turns into obsession and he slowly begins to transform himself into the object of his desire. An accident gives Matthew the opportunity to truly become Matthias and the lines between reality and fiction start to blur.
M/M is the feature debut of writer/director Drew Lint and it’s a sizzling, erotic story of obsession. Painting Matthew as the voyeur of the piece, at least in the film’s first half, Lint draws out the dark eroticism from the subject matter. Watching Matthew creep around Matthias and fantasise about him should be disturbing but Lint stirs feelings in you that you probably wouldn’t want to admit in polite company. He constantly keeps you on your toes as you question if you’re seeing reality or fantasy. It’s not always clear and that’s one of the things that makes this film such unique viewing.
Lint really draws you into the world he’s created and I found myself willing Matthew and Matthias to have a proper face-to-face meeting, something which does eventually come to pass. When that moment comes, it doesn’t disappoint and it actually surprises, taking the story in a direction that you’re very unlikely to expect. Prior to that though it’s an entertaining ride watching Matthew take over Matthias’ life while he’s lying in a coma following a nasty accident.
One of the things that makes M/M such a triumph is Nicolas Maxim Endlicher. He’s completely believable as the kind of guy that you’d fall for and be unable to stop thinking about. The character is a little rough around the edges, and from what you can tell from the film not all that selective about who he’ll sexually engage with, and that makes him incredibly attractive to Matthew. Antoine Lahaie allows himself to fall down a rabbit hole and he embodies the character of a man obsessed with frightening realism. The way he interacts with the world around him and reacts to Matthias is startling to watch.
At times M/M tries a little too hard to be clever but for the most part it works well. It’s a taut sexually-charged thriller with two beautiful, and talented, male leads. Lint’s story and direction is something a little different for LGBTQ cinema and he’s a breath of fresh air. M/M will unnerve you, it’ll draw you in and it’ll most likely turn you on. It’ll probably also make you think before you social media stalk the next beautiful guy you come across.
M/M Festival Trailer from Drew Lint on Vimeo.
Cast: Antoine Lahaie, Nicolas Maxim Endlicher, Nina Kettiger, Vika Kirchenbauer, Lynn Lahaie Director: Drew Lint Writer: Drew Lint Duration: 81 mins Certificate: 18 Released by: TLA Releasing Release date: 22nd October 2018 Buy M/M on DVD now
