SummaryWhen an introverted cartoonist's girlfriend wants to redefine their relationship, he begins sleeping with sex workers and discovers a new kind of intimacy in the process. An adaptation of the Graphic Novel by Chester Brown.
Directed By:Sook-Yin Lee
Written By:Chester Brown, Sook-Yin Lee, Joanne Sarazen
Paying for It
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
82
User score
Generally Favorable
7.5
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Top Cast
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
82
100% Positive
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Jan 29, 2026
100
Paying for It is a tremendous effort that honors Brown’s source novel while digging deeper into its subtext. By further developing these characters and emphasizing the female gaze, Lee provides a compelling narrative that neither glamorizes nor denigrates the women Chester encounters. I highly recommend this film.
Feb 3, 2025
84
Thanks to Lee’s smooth construction and her performers’ carefully calibrated performances – Beirne is particularly engaging in a role that doesn’t automatically earn sympathy – it all clicks together.
Feb 3, 2025
83
This is a story that could easily have descended into something very seamy, but Lee keeps the film's tone light. Sonny and Chester are lovely people, who are on the level and really, really like each other.
Jan 29, 2026
70
Paying for It keeps its narrative tight, perhaps overly simple. There’s space to savor the retro intimacy, amplified by the film’s striking primary colors and lo-fi rock soundtrack. Lee — while only gesturing toward the complexities of open arrangements — captures Chester and Sonny in a fleeting time that feels soft, but not shy.
User score
Generally Favorable
7.5
83% Positive
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
17% Mixed
1 Rating
1 Rating
0% Negative
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
Feb 2, 2026
5
****.... I love the graphic novel by Chester Brown that this movie is based on. But I had some concerns that it might not translate that well into a movie. And I'm afraid I was correct. Almost nothing from the novel actually survives the translation, except the general idea and a few bits of dialogue. The results are honestly a bit cringe. It's not a bad movie but I feel like it misses the point of the novel: not really focusing on the issues of a man struggling to normalize seeing prostitutes as part of a healthy relationship.
