This Toronto director’s provocative new film, ‘Paying for It,’ takes an unflinching look at sex work and love

“Paying for It,” Toronto filmmaker Sook-Yin Lee’s forthright and autobiographical new movie, begins with a confession and a request.
Lee’s alter ego, Sonny (Emily Lê), awakens in the arms of her romantic partner, Chester (Dan Beirne), and announces she might be falling in love with someone else.
Sonny tells the astonished Chester she still wants to live with him, but she also wants to see other people: “I guess I’m just asking for your permission to see where this goes.”
That’s an invitation to the audience, too. Writer-director Lee and co-writer Joanne Sarazen lead us through a shaggy dog story that includes much dogged shagging, as the extroverted TV VJ Sonny dates a succession of beaus while introverted cartoonist Chester embraces sex-for-hire hookups.
Sonny rolls her eyes at Chester’s new sexual pursuits, as he does at hers. Chester’s cartoonist pals, who function like a Seinfeldian Greek chorus, express astonishment, but he reasons it’s cheaper to pay for intimacy than to spend money on dating rituals like dinners out — and he’s guaranteed sex every time. He no longer believes in romantic love.
There’s a rough logic to Chester’s argument, especially in Toronto’s Kensington Market neighbourhood where he and Sonny abide, and where non-traditional lifestyles seem the norm.
We see how Sonny’s experiment plays out in the real world of unexpected emotions, awkward encounters, hurt feelings — and a few meaningful meetings. The actors inspire empathy and understanding. There’s also a cute attention-grabbing pooch named Mo.
“Paying for It” becomes a provocative romance in the style of Pedro Almodóvar (check out those bold primary colours) crossed with a documentary about alternative life paths (many of the sex workers in the film are real). See where it goes.