The Exchange

The setting: 1986 in Hobart, an economically depressed small town "in the middle of fucking nowhere" Ontario according to high school student Tim Long, who laments that it doesn't even have a McDonald's. In that lamentation, he, self-described as cerebral, detests that the town mascot is the white squirrel, a none too bright animal for which the townspeople hold an annual parade. He has no friends in this cultural wasteland as his tastes for foreign films, especially of the French new wave, and alternative music, and his somewhat geeky looks, don't tend to endure him to his classmates. So when Vice Principal and French teacher Mrs. Fleming mentions an exchange program, Tim applies for his family to host an exchange student specifically from Paris, which he considers the cultural center of the world. In doing this, he is trying to import "a best friend". While Tim's mother and father, Sheila and Glenn, welcome that exchange student Stephane Belmonte with open arms into their home, Tim's arms are lot more closed in Stephane being his worst nightmare: cologne-doused, chain smoking, alcohol guzzling and sex obsessed. While that latter issue should not be a problem to fulfill in Stephane's raw sexuality, he may have a problem in certain circles in this primarily homogeneous white town in being olive skinned. While exuberant Stephane does not have any issue with Tim, he can see that the feeling is not returned. As such, Tim and Stephane will have to find a way to survive with each other for the duration of Stephane's stay, which is only complicated by Stephane seeing that classmate Brenda has a crush on Tim, the issues that Sheila and Glenn are facing in their marriage, and gym coach and part time cop Gary Rothbauer being threatened in more ways than one by this foreigner.