Freelance writer Max (Ruaridh Mollica) has his sights set on becoming a literary star. Competing with other writers in his job for a chance to interview his idol Bret Easton Ellis, Max decides to embark on writing his own book about a sex worker called Sebastian. To research his character, Max sets himself up on an app called DreamyGuys and ventures into the world of escorting, servicing mainly older men. After meeting academic Nicholas (Jonathan Hyde), Max starts to form a connection much deeper than he expects and his two worlds come crashing together as he struggles to remain in control.
‘Sebastian’ comes from writer/director Mikko Mäkelä and it arrives in cinemas in the wake of ‘Anora’, the Oscar-winning film about a female sex worker who falls in love with the son of a Russian oligarch. Stories about sex workers, particularly in LGBTQ+ cinema, are fairly common and often film-makers attempt to deliver a profound insight into a world that many of us aren’t familiar with.
For ‘Sebastian’, 25-year-old Max is trying to balance his ambition with the pressure to succeed in his field and his reasons for venturing into sex work aren’t very well explained. Mäkelä simply expects the viewer to believe that someone would go to the lengths that Max does purely for research, but that’s a bit of a stretch. After his initial foray into escorting, Max becomes addicted to the new life he’s opened his eyes to and the line between where Sebastian begins and Max ends starts to blur.
His freelance gig becomes precarious so sex work becomes his main source of income. Max initially sets out rules for himself but they quickly go out of the window when he arrives at the door of a client to discover he’s going to be part of group sex. His attempt to push back is weak, and he inevitably gives in. While many of his encounters are transient, it’s his burgeoning relationship with Nicholas that becomes the focal point of the film. Mäkelä attempts to explore why an older man would look for solace in a younger man, but there’s not a lot of substance there.
Ruaridh Mollica carries the film on his shoulders. With handsome good looks, plenty of charisma and a commitment to the part of Max, he shines despite the limitations of the material. At times the film gets bogged down with obvious social commentary passed off as off-the-cuff conversation, but for the most part Mollica convinces. Jonathan Hyde is very good too, but I wish there’d been a bit more depth to his character besides ticking the lonely old man trope.
‘Sebastian’ doesn’t really deliver any answers, instead leaving the whys to the audience to figure out. Max is a character that is driven by impulse rather than sound decision-making, and it’s hard to get on board with his logic at times. While the film certainly packs in the sex, it doesn’t seem to really understand what it’s trying to say. If you’re expecting a pivotal realisation from Max before the film’s end, you’re going to be disappointed and that leaves you feeling a little cold by the time the credits arrive.
Cast: Ruaridh Mollica, Hiftu Quasem, Jonathan Hyde, Ingvar Sigurdsson Director: Mikko Mäkelä Writer: Mikko Mäkelä Certificate: 18 Duration: 110 mins Released by: Peccadillo Pictures Release date: 4th April 2025
