Hustling and ageism in the films Eastern Boys and Brüder der Nacht

Abstract

This study aims at analysing the abject body of the elderly gay man in contrast with the marginal body of the Eastern European male hustler. The films in question—Eastern Boys (Robin Campillo, 2013) and Brüder der Nacht (Patric Chiha, 2016)—show a stark difference between young marginal bodies—the objects of desire—and older bodies—the agents of such desire. As we argue, the image of a young and callow, strong and healthy body is spreading within the gay community as a new stereotype associated to Eastern Europe, possibly through the emergence of several gay porn companies such as BelAmiOnline and CzechHunter (Brennan, 2019). Furthermore, the study addresses invisibility in male prostitution scene, the main topic on both films. While female prostitution is eminently visible, male prostitution is characterized by invisibility and discretion (Guasch & Lizardo, 2017). This is why we apply to the films a hermeneutical analysis based on an intersectional approach.