Watching Come Undone (Presque rien) can be an unsettling experience because it time-warps haphazardly through the life of its protagonist. If you see this as lazy filmmaking, you are certain to view Come Undone more negatively. Unlike Christopher Nolan with Memento, director Sébastien Lifshitz makes no effort to sequence his movie logically or use transitions that cue the numerous jumps in time.

Scenes shift from Parisian streets to a train, to a hospital, to a beach, and other locales randomly just as 18-year old Mathieu (Jérémie Elkaïm) vacillates emotionally from ecstasy to depression.

If you view Lifshitz's film as an experiment to capture the emotional content of its protagonist and put the viewer inside his head, Come Undone works much better. In fact, viewers who prefer character-driven films will likely appreciate its impressionism much more after it's over, but they'll still be confused while watching it. Attempts to make sense out of it during a viewing will only frustrate.

The acting (particularly by young Elkaïm) is the main factor to keep a viewer glued to the screen. After so many banal first-love stories, it's refreshing to see Elkaïm's honest portrayal of an introspective teen uncertain of his passions. His conflicts appear genuine and are acted out quite naturally, often with small facial gestures. Also effective is the more outgoing and athletic-looking Stéphane Rideau, who acted as a possibly bisexual teen in the more widely known The Wild Reeds.

Of course, the U.S. marketing campaign for the French film relies on selling it to gay audiences for its "hot" guys and sexually explicit scenes. Although passionate kissing between the two men occurs a few times, only a few brief scenes would never get past U.S. censors to allow a more acceptable "R" rating: Mathieu’s fondling of his uncircumcised member, another shot of full-frontal male nudity, and a fornication scene on the beach. The only gay exploitation going on involves the advertising campaign that will attract the wrong kind of crowd. The ads don't even mention that Come Undone contains subtitles!

Audiences expecting a dirty French film, or expecting a film with "feel-good" pat answers about gay sexuality will be wondering what the hell is going on. Forget about the plot. One of Come Undone's strengths is how it allows a great deal of space for ambiguity, trusting the audience to sort through the scenes to piece together the confused Mathieu.

Most of the story is set near Nantes on the western side of France, where Mathieu spends his summers with his mother and sister Sara (Laetitia Legrix), while his workaholic father remains in Paris.

Mathieu's dysfunctional family has problems, highlighted by his mother's clinical depression, caused by the death of a baby that died of cancer 3 years before. Mathieu doesn't get along very well with his sister, but she seems like a fairly normal isolated teen with a sarcastic sense of humor.

She's the first to suspect that Mathieu's newfound friend is much more than a friend--visuals show Mathieu and Cédric frolicking at the beach with Sara looking on.

Later, at the dinner table, she answers her mother's questions about Cédric's "girlfriend" by stating that "She's 18 years old. Mathieu knows her very well." Sara displays her brand of humor after Mathieu excuses himself from eating by quipping "He doesn't feel well; his ass is hurting."

The two male lovers contrast greatly in experience and background. Cédric comes from a working-class background and doesn't care for school; Mathieu expects to go on to college. As far as sexual experience, the gap is huge. Early in the affair, Cédric admits that he has hustled; Mathieu had never realized that he might be gay until this first love.

Contrasting with scenes that show the love between the two men are scenes that demonstrate their differences, with Mathieu being far more uncomfortable showing public affection and occasionally getting ticked off at Cédric's obsession with sex. The most disturbing scene takes place in a hospital where it is evident that Mathieu has attempted to commit suicide. The reasons are never spelled out explicitly but Come Undone gives viewers plentiful insights to piece together the "mystery."

Especially well-done are the melancholy Monet-like scenes that show the lonely Mathieu gazing at the French landscape in winter. Other seasons are shot against the countryside and ocean to beautifully match the protagonist's mood as well, and sensitive audiences should grow to feel the anguish of the lead character. Because that's what Come Undone is really about.

Don’t expect a tightly resolved love story, or a politically correct tale concerning sexuality and the benefits of a gay teen "coming out." Come Undone isn't filled with sensuality and cheap exploitative material. It impressionistically paints a portrait of a young man attempting to come to grips with himself and with life, without offering any simplistic solutions.

Like life itself, Come Undone may be frustrating during the experience, but it's likely you'll gain better perspective when reflecting back on it.