Sook-Yin Lee directed one of the most exciting films of 2024, Paying For It, which premiered on September 6 at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film is adapted from a confessional graphic novel written by none other than her ex-boyfriend.

In Chester Brown’s 2011 ‘comic strip memoir’ of the same name, he documents the aftermath of his breakup with Lee — renamed to Sonny in the film and played by Emily Lê — as she begins falling in love with someone else. Disillusioned by heartbreak in Toronto in the ’90s, Chester (Daniel Beirne) begins visiting sex workers to explore questions about romance, monogamy, and intimacy. 

Having co-written the screenplay with Joanne Sarazen, Lee created a film with thrilling layers of meta-storytelling. During the Q&A section at the film premiere, Lee described it as “auto-fiction,” explaining that they shot in the same house where everything originally happened, reconstructing the lives of Chester and Sonny.

With its quirky, whimsical cinematography, a film score that transports you back to the ’90s alternative scene, and a script oozing with dry humour reminiscent of Juno (2007) or Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010), it’s only a matter of time before Paying for It becomes the newest cult classic for Toronto hipsters and beyond.

A celebration of sex work

Throughout the film, Chester visits several sex workers across Toronto. However, during these sexual encounters, the narrative rarely focuses on him, instead highlighting the women. The audience is welcomed into the lives of the sex workers as they share how they started working in the industry and why some prefer it over their previous jobs. 

With unabashed nudity throughout, Paying for It seeks to dismantle misconceptions about sex work, opening up a candid conversation about sexual empowerment. Notably, the final sex worker that Chester visits, Denise, is portrayed by actress and author Andrea Werhun: a former escort, stripper, and harm reduction worker. This not only strengthens the film’s ‘auto-fictional’ element, but also demonstrates that the creators took care to consult and collaborate with people who have lived that experience. 

Injected with tongue-in-cheek humour in scenes of nervous first-time sexual encounters, awkward silences during intercourse, and — occasionally — finishing too early, the film ultimately highlights sex workers’ autonomy and advocates for stronger workers’ rights. 

Toronto’s youthful charm

Throughout the film, we see Chester working on his cartoons — many of which are directly drawn from Brown’s graphic novel — alongside clips of Sonny’s music broadcast show, which recalls Lee’s time as a host at MuchMusic, a program that featured Canadian musicians. The interwoven silly illustrations and punchy grunge-rock music, which interrupt emotional or politically-charged dialogue, checked all the boxes for what I look for in a film: funny, cool, and sentimental.

The youthful charm of Toronto in the ’90s electrifies the film. U of T students who have come to call this city home will undoubtedly spot a few familiar places, including Kensington Market, Sneaky Dee’s, and even Buddha’s Vegan Restaurant at 666 Dundas. 

It’s about remembering “the tender and precious spaces left in our city,” Lee explained in the post-premiere Q&A. Paying for It also explores the cringe-worthy and confusing feelings of being young in a big city. “There’s something about youth — there’s an openness, a willingness to make mistakes,” she said to the audience.

Is love just a selfish possession?

The big question driving Chester on his odyssey of new sexual experiences is whether love necessitates ownership.

Lee, along with Brown’s novel, invites the audience to ponder whether love requires possessing someone else or surrendering oneself to another. Though these ideas sound like a mimicry of each other, I suspect you may find clarity in witnessing Chester’s unconventional relationship with Denise, Sonny’s failed flings with new boyfriends, and most importantly, the evolving nature of Chester and Sonny’s bond which transcends the platonic. 

Among powerful performances throughout the cast, Lê stood out to me, with her erratic outbursts and vulnerable tears of despair — and I found myself in awe. 

Although the film begins with Chester and Sonny’s breakup, it offers much more than that. It takes you on an empathetic journey, highlighting the lives of sex workers, discussing women’s sexual rights and queer liberation, and challenging stereotypes about Asian women.

Paying for It embodies the fiery ambitions of youth by trying to be many things at once. While you might expect it to stumble — much like many of us twenty-somethings do — it somehow manages to stick every damn landing.