''Wild Side'' is a 2004

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Sébastien Lifshitz Sébastien Lifshitz (born 21 January 1968) is a French screenwriter and director. He teaches at La Fémis, a school that focuses on the subject of image and sound. He studied at the École du Louvre, and has a bachelor's degree from the Universit ...

and starring

Stéphanie Michelini Stéphanie Michelini is a French actress. Career She debuted in 2004, playing the leading role in the film '' Wild Side'', directed by Sébastien Lifshitz. (in French) For this role, she won the for Best Actress. (in French) She is the one o ...

Yasmine Belmadi Yasmine Belmadi (26 January 1976 – 18 July 2009) was a French actor of Algerian parents. He appeared in 13 films, and had completed his final role, in a television production, the day before his death. Biography Belmadi grew up in the northern ...

, and Edouard Nikitine. It premiered at the 2004

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

Plot

Stéphanie, a

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...

sex worker A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work is d ...

(

) travels from Paris to a small town to care for her sick mother. She is joined by her two

flatmate A roommate is a person with whom one shares a living facility such as a room or dormitory ''except'' when being family or romantically involved. Similar terms include dormmate, suitemate, housemate, or flatmate ("flat": the usual term in Briti ...

s, an

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

hustler Hustler or hustlers may also refer to: Professions * Hustler, an American slang word, e.g., for a: ** Con man, a practitioner of confidence tricks ** Drug dealer, seller of illegal drugs ** Male prostitute ** Pimp ** Business man, more gener ...

, Jamal and a

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n soldier on

AWOL Desertion is the abandonment of a military duty or Military base, post without permission (a Pass (military), pass, Shore leave, liberty or Leave (U.S. military), leave) and is done with the intention of not returning. This contrasts with u ...

, Mikhail. Both men fall in love with Stéphanie and she decides to have a relationship with them both.

Cast

as Stéphanie *

as Djamel * Edouard Nikitine as Mikhail * Josiane Stoléru as the mother * Aurélie Guichard * Anohni as the singer * Liliane Nataf * Christophe Sermet as Nicolas

Awards

In 2004 ''Wild Side'' won two awards, including the

Teddy Award The Teddy Award is an international film award for films with LGBT topics, presented by an independent jury as an official award of the Berlin International Film Festival (the Berlinale). In the most part, the jury consists of organisers of gay a ...

, at the Berlin Film Festival, the Special Jury Award at the

Gijón International Film Festival The Gijón International Film Festival ( ast, Festival Internacional de Cine de Xixón or ''FICXixón'') is an annual film festival held in Gijón, a city in northwest Spain. History The festival's origins date back to 1963. In the beginning i ...

, the Grand Jury Award at

L.A. Outfest Outfest is an LGBTQ-oriented nonprofit that produces two film festivals, operates a movie streaming platform, and runs educational services for filmmakers in Los Angeles. Outfest is one of the key partners, alongside the Frameline Film Festival ...

and the New Director's Showcase Award at the

Seattle International Film Festival The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees. The SIFF runs for more th ...

. Michelini won the for Best Actress for her role. (in French)

Reception

''Wild Side'' has received positive reviews from critics. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

the film has an approval rating of 63% based on reviews from 16 critics. Russell Edwards of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' stated, "A morbid and self-important homosexual Jules & Jim for the new millennium", "intention to shock is unmistakable" and "narrative-time shuffles only disrupt the flow". V.A. Musetto of the

New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com. It was established ...

on 10 June 2005, noted "Viewers are either going to walk out after 10 minutes or, like this tolerant critic, get caught up in the sordid lives of the three misfits and stick around for the ambiguous ending". Chris reviewing for eyeforfilm.co.uk on 7 April 2008 noted it is "beautifully photographed" and has "typically unpretentious French acting".

Timeout Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to: Time * Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team * Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken * Timeout (computing), an enginee ...

states the film follows a "non-linear tapestry" and it is "a meditative tone-poem on society’s marginals". Todd W. Reeser wrote in ''Studies in French Cinema'' in 2007 about the film's complex narrative.

References

External links

* *
Page at Wellspring Media
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wild Side (2004 Film) 2004 films Bisexuality-related films 2004 drama films 2000s English-language films British LGBT-related films French LGBT-related films 2000s French-language films 2000s Russian-language films Films about trans women British multilingual films French multilingual films British drama films LGBT-related drama films Films directed by Sébastien Lifshitz Films scored by Jocelyn Pook 2004 LGBT-related films Belgian LGBT-related films 2004 multilingual films 2000s British films 2000s French films Ad Vitam (company) films