Boarding Gate

Aroview: Grubby, intercontinental intrigue, starring the slinky Asia Argento on the lam from sleazy ex-lovers and drug deals gone wrong, vis-à-vis the contrasting cityscapes of Paris and Hong Kong.

Loosely inspired by cheap Cantonese thrillers and forgettable European B-movies, this is made confidently, although far less successfully, in the style of dir. Assayas’s free-floating and urbane 21st century dramas, namely DEMONLOVER and CLEAN. A messy post-modern homage of diminishing returns is rescued, partly, by the strangely beguiling and uncouth Argento, and a wacky cameo from Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon.