Simon is a recent America graduate on vacation in Paris. Haunted by a previous relationship, he travels the streets, museums and theatres of the city, looking to connect with somebody. He is intrigued and excited by the anonymity that a city of this size allows, similar to the internet, and the possibility of a fresh start, a new venture with no social bonds. On a nocturnal outing he meets Victoria, a young prostitute, in a bar, and unsteadily begins a new relationship. At the same time as the camera pans slowly to reveal new elements within the shot, worrying elements of Simon’s personality become apparent. If at first he seems pleasant and well meaning, as the film progresses there is a growing ambiguity in his behaviour. Simon cannot let go of a dark interior that burdens and obscures his feelings, affecting his relationship with Victoria. Like a wounded animal and potentially dangerous, Simon both seeks the affections and attention from people he meets, while avoiding any chance of intimacy. It is this duality – to which Antonio Campos has returned, since his film “Afterschool” – with the addition of an emotional claustrophobia, which maintains the film’s tension until the end. (JA)