jandesimpson "Come as You Are" is an all too rare example of a film featuring physical disability that actually succeeds. Let's face it. Which of us would normally expect to be entertained by the spectacle of three young men, a paraplegic, one with hardly any vision and one semi-paralysed as a result of terminal cancer, struggling to go on a holiday sex adventure? I have to admit that on reading the blurb in the Radio Times I thought this could not possibly work. It sounded like some sort of "Inbetweeners" effort in the worst possible taste. However as it was taking up time in a BBC World Cinema slot I felt duty bound to give it a "ten minute" test particularly as too little attention is given to foreign movies by our TV companies. That the film grabbed immediately and survived those initial scenes I can only attribute to the likability of its characters. Admittedly Philip the paraplegic, the mouthy one of the three, needed getting used to, but his companions, Lars and Jozef, had those endearing features that make for good company on a long journey. But even Philip was to reveal a more sympathetic side towards the end. I suppose in a way it worked because it was a comedy that skilfully sidestepped the mawkish, with each scene however embarrassingly uncomfortable for the characters at the time - the hotel bedroom scene where a key is mislaid or the misadventure where Jozef accidentally rolls down an embankment into a lake - tending to come right so that the overall feel-good factor was never quite dissipated. Claude, the lads' overweight female chauffeur holds the whole thing together beautifully. She develops a bond with her charges as we do with both them and her. In the end their sexual fulfilment is what matters all round. Admittedly the scene where death finally catches up with Lars is terribly sad but somehow it speaks for the honesty of a film that faces up to the fact that life is a balancing act of laughter and tears for most of us.

LincyTy I think this movie is absolutely amazing! And no that's not just because I'm Belgian. What makes this movie so great? It has got everything in it: one moment you will fall of your chair laughing, the other you will a tear escaping your eyes. It's got the drama, the humor,... everything you need in a good movie.Another thing I love about this movie: its an original story. Unlike some other movies you will not mix up this movie with any other movie. It's a story the grasps your attention from the beginning of the movie and never loses it. You really sympathize with the characters. On top of that the acting of the three 'disabbled' persons is outstanding. They all shine in a different way. The chemistry between the trio (or perhaps I should say foursome) of actors comes across as very real.I can only recommend everybody to watch this movie. You might not like it as much as I do, but you will definitely not hate it.

DopamineNL While Dutch/Belgian movies often try to replicate the big budget action (or suspense) from US cinema, they would be much better off trying to master the art of creating something charming and heartfelt within the budget range that is there. Like this film! No fancy effects or smoky rooms with people staring in the distance contemplating the state of the world, but actual people with actual needs and a little challenge at that.Because what do you do when you're a young horny bloke, and paralysed? Or blind? Or dying? It's simple questions like this that probably arise a lot more in regular life than we (I) might think. Luckily, the Spanish have a solution: a bordello for just that sort of need. On with the road trip!

butterflyripo Also known as "Come As You Are", a beautiful film from Belgium starring Tom Audenaert, Robrecht Vanden Thoren and Gilles De Schrijver as three disabled friends who want to go to Spain, to lose their virginity, the story is based upon a real-life experience. They get help by nurse Claude, played by Isabelle de Hertogh, who drives them through Belgium, France and Spain, in her own way."Hasta la Vista" is beautifully shot and realistically written - funny and sad - in the end a fantastic movie about 3 friends who learn the beauty and the horror of life. Philippe is paraplegic and hilarious, Lars sits in a wheelchair because he has cancer, and Jozef is almost blind. The actors are nothing but great, and very likable. They meet Claude who becomes the 4th friend and all together they enter a wonderful journey in which everybody learns something about themselves - but not in a cliché way! The movie is different and original, we can relate to everyone, which shows how well its done, because we're not necessary disabled like them. The end is moving and one of the strong points of the film. Absolutely recommended!