Synopsis
Documentary filmmaker Erik and closeted lawyer Paul meet through a casual encounter, but they find a deeper connection and become a couple. Individually and together, they are risk takers — compulsive, and fueled by drugs and sex. In an almost decade-long relationship defined by highs, lows, and dysfunctional patterns, Erik struggles to negotiate his own boundaries and dignity and to be true to himself.
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Cast
- Thure LindhardtErik Rothman
- Zachary BoothPaul Lucy
- Julianne NicholsonClaire
- Souléymane Sy SavanéAlassane
- Justin ReinsilberDan
- Ed VassalloThomas
- Paprika SteenKaren
- Marilyn NeimarkMarilyn Neimark
- Sebastian La CauseRuss
- Sarah HessKatie
Recommendations
- 100
Time Out
This is a drama about finding one's self-worth; you simply have to see it. - 90
Salon
Not only does this film gloriously fulfill the potential that Ira Sachs has tantalized movie-lovers with for years, it also help explains what took him so long. Out of lost love comes a terrific work of art; it's the oldest story in the world, but it always feels new when it's done right. - 90
Village Voice
With its naked but never self-indulgent depictions of sex and all manner of addiction, Keep the Lights On is disarmingly, at times exhilaratingly, human. - 83
IndieWire
Sachs skillfully explores dangerous extremes -- not only drug addiction, but the slipperiness of attraction. - 80
New York Magazine (Vulture)
Sachs hits notes we've rarely heard in gay cinema, in which the hedonist bleeds into the humanist, the ephemeral into the enduring. - 75
Slant Magazine
More than just a relationship drama of striking specificity, this is a naked confession about addiction. - 70
The Hollywood Reporter
A stiff central performance diminishes its emotional impact, but the visually alluring film's sensuality and tenderness give it a lingering spell. - 70
Boxoffice Magazine
It seems odd to call a detailed portrait of toxic romance lovely, but Keep the Lights On truly is.
