Brad Davis, appearing in very form-fitting white canvas pants, portrays the sailor at the center of the story, drawn into an underworld when their vessel arrives in Brest. The city operates under a system where same-sex relationships are highly valued. A bad gamble could lead to significant losses. Captain "Seblon" (Franco Nero) understands this reality and recognizes that sexual encounters can be used to prevent frustration from escalating into violence. It would have been simple to dismiss this as an old-fashioned depiction of homosexuality, but there’s considerably more depth present. The young man's personal growth; the unreturned feelings his employer has for him; his complicated connection with his equally attractive brother "Robert" (Hanno Pöschl); and the infrequent appearances of the man’s girlfriend “Lysiane” (Jeanne Moreau) – a key figure at the "La Feria" bar/brothel/general place of questionable activity – all contribute to the film's appeal. Wassbinder's final movie isn’t his finest work, and truthfully it has aged noticeably over three decades, but it possesses an engrossing, stage-like intensity, and the sexual content—though not explicit—has a sense of corruption that allows for greater suggestion and, in my opinion, is more impactful and provocative. Our own thoughts and desires are tantalizingly provoked and revealed without anything overtly shown on screen. It’s unlikely to appeal to all viewers; a film about men having sex and dealing drugs in a French harbor won't resonate universally—but it proved to be a more substantial cinematic experience than I initially anticipated. While the conclusion eluded me, I found it strangely captivating.

Source on TMDB