Rialto is a neighborhood or suburb of Dublin, Ireland. It seems as if this film was shot in the area and takes advantage of Dublin as a location, specifically the port of Dublin, which is a huge shipyard where huge freighters enter to deliver shipping containers. The shipyard is in fact one of the locations used in this adaptation of actor-writer Mark O'Halloran's stage play called
Trade (2011). O'Halloran's play took place all in one room between two guys. Yet, O'Halloran is able to expand beyond that one room and take us to the shipyard, as well as up-and-down the streets of the titular area. One could say this film is yet another about gay prostitution or gay hustlers, which could be its own subgenre, but most hustler films focus on the hustlers and not the so-called johns.
Eastern Boys (2015) and
Boulevard (2015) are two recent examples where the focus is on the johns. This film, directed by Peter Mackie Burns, is another to add to that list.
Tom Vaughan-Lawlor (Avengers: Infinity War and The Infiltrator) stars as Colm, a 46-year-old dock worker. He's been working on the Dublin docks or the shipyard there for decades. He's married and he has two children. Both of whom are teenagers. His father recently passed away but there were issues within his family before then. When his job is threatened, it triggers him to detach from his life the way it is. At the heart of him wanting to change is due to a repressed homosexuality that he has seemingly ignored until recently.
Tom Glynn-Carney (
The King and
Dunkirk) co-stars as Jay, the aforementioned hustler. One might assume that Jay is gay like most hustlers in a film like this would be. However, Jay is straight. He has a girlfriend and even a baby daughter. He lives in a crappy apartment and he merely propositions men strictly for the money. His situation isn't even something like
Beach Rats (2017) where Jay is struggling with his homosexuality. No. Jay is very straight, but that doesn't stop Colm from developing feelings for him.
Colm obviously enjoys the sexual stuff, but he likes just being able to talk to Jay about things. It's reminiscent of a recent short film Max (2020), starring Jono Mitchell, which is also about a john who prefers not to have sex with his hustler but rather talk to him. That film like this one explores not just the sexual desire of men but the desire for same-sex companionship that embraces things like communication and expression of thoughts and feelings, leaning away from the typical masculine stereotype. Sometimes, men just want to talk.
Not Rated but contains language and sexual situations.
Running Time: 1 hr. and 29 mins.
Available on VOD.
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