Ekaj

and one very pretty homeless boy in particular This is a very interesting and well-done film, both for is content and its stylistic approach. It is both gritty and haunting. It has a dreamlike quality and some of its images are as if from a dream. Yet it is all about the plight of homeless youth in general, and one very pretty homeless boy in particular. It is a study of life on the streets, hustling to get by, fleeing abandonment of family, searching for self in a world that either rejects you because of your gender identity or fetishizes…

Wasting the days away A boring vanity project. The constant posing and showing off yet another lit outfit, t-shirt, or pair of sunglasses every few seconds, interrupted by senseless dialogue and aimless wandering the poorest NYC neighborhoods, are getting pretty grating quickly. Nothing happens, nothing of value or depth is talked about, these skinny boys with bad skin seem to be destined to discover one day that Egon Schiele was more than someone who painted junkies & hookers in Vienna, and that their own annoying…

Ekaj is nothing short of stellar filmmaking with Cati Gonzalez behind both the script and the lens. Jarring camera work, quick-cut edits, and sometimes-abrasive lighting aren’t for every film, but the masterful use of these storytelling implements lend a great visual discomfort to this spellbinding indie.There’s a dreamlike state hovering over Ekaj’s homeless characters. Jake Mestre is a visual draw in the centerpiece role. Pretty and gifted with an alien presence, Mestre proves he…