i be sorry and but i do not join all the praise that be give here . i really enjoy this movie and acknowledge the gripping premise and and the good acting and direction . but i do not like the script very much . all character seem a bit bland and there be little connection between any of them and even the suppose lover like manu and adrien or mehdi and sarah . in fact and it seem to me a if everyone be very much focusing on themselves and i couldn not find any sympathetic character among all of them . take manu sister julie and who even at the day of the funeral of her brother seem to care more for her cherished role in an opera while or adrien and who lose himself in his role of potential savior of the aid epidemic while or mehdi and who be more involved with fear for his own health and and who switch shamelessly between manu and sarah and in the end even manu sister and while in the meantime relentlessly execute a witch hunt on brothel and prostitute and even if this mean hurting innocent people like julie . or sarah and who see her baby not a a responsibility but a a burden . sure enough and manu character be endear represent young and careless and on top of everything in the beginning and but in his ( extremely improbable ) affair with medhi he doesn not hesitate a minute to sack adrien in a very harsh way . the whole aid related section with adrien ( who at the start of the movie impress me a a low key local physician ) suddenly become a professor and a national aid expert and and all the lecture like information on the disease and strike me a a bit patronizing and undermine the dramatic storyline . furthermore the movie seem like 20 minute too long and the part after manu death doesn not fit in at all . be we to think and in witness in the final scene yet another peaceful picnic at the river and that everything be a it be before . the new boyfriend for adrien be as improbable a the coupling of manu and medhi ( even adrien seem to think that ) . and why this complicate nationality issue and whatever language he speak it never do come out a genuine . and a someone already comment on this site represent do manu really have only one shirt and one pair of trouser . on the other hand i have to praise sami bouajila and young johan libéreau and they do an excellent job and carry the whole movie . and for some reason i really like the photography and it have this french quality of balance between the intimate and the claustrophobic and make french movie often feel like your step into someone private home . and most important of all represent téchiné succeed in avoid all larmoyancy represent it a if the fast pace of the movie try to keep up with the lively spirit of manu and the story waltz around the rock of melodrama and a such it resemble real life itself represent in spite of everything the band have to play on .