This is the second vertical AI BL drama I've sat through, and honestly I went in knowing better. I had it on while I was doing cardio at the gym, and what struck me was just how much the plot echoed the last one I watched. Same step brother romance angle, same mystery girlfriend showing up near the end, same extra guy pining after one of the leads. Genuinely the only thing going for it was the runtime, the whole thing wrapped up in forty five minutes flat. The setup kicks off with Finn moving schools because his mom just married into money. He finds out his new step brother Aiden goes to the same place, and he's warned to keep his distance from him. Their first run in at school is rocky, just like you'd expect, but there's this odd pull between them neither can shake off. Finn keeps telling himself not to read into it because Aiden's straight and openly homophobic. Things shift when some kids start bullying Finn and the student council president, Ryan, steps in to ...
Johny, a young lad, lives on the farm in Northern Yorkshire. He is helping his ailing father Martin at the farm, while occasionally getting drunk. There is a huge communication gap between father and son. Johny is also having random sex with strangers. When Martin get’s super frustrated , he hires help for lambing season. Enter Gheorghe, a Romanian migrant worker, to whom Johny is initially very standoffish. Gheorghe is good with animals and with work. He is also handsome, confident & friendly; something that annoys both Martin and Johny. The two lads need to go work with lambs and fix a remote part of farm. We witness 2 scenes of lamb birth, very carefully yet confidently handled by Gheorghe, while Johny is still indifferent; thats cos he is beaten up with life. A sincere fight one day, leads to mud wrestling and a quick sex session. When Johny wants it again, it’s Gheorghe, who introduces him to the pleasures of pleasures of intimacy, his life-giving hands caressing Johnny’s face and pulling him in for a kiss. Finally Johny starts smiling and opening up to Gheorghe. When they return from hilly escape, Martin has another stroke, which weighs down on Johny with reality of what his life and responsibilities are going to be. This is when Gheorghe takes good care of Johny and continues showing him love and helping hand at farm. But Johny is still not ready for it and goes back to old ways of random sex which pisses of Gheorghe and he leaves. Johny soon realizes that he is in fact in love and he will have to give himself to reality and love and somehow win back Gheorghe is life and so he does.
God’s Own Country is not a movie about coming out and the collateral damage that ensues. It’s a universal tale about giving yourself over to love, even when you seem hopelessly broken. The pain and agony and loneliness that you see in Johny is real. You sense it and you feel it. Its a brilliant performance of a guy stuck in a farm life, is gay, not very sure of how to go with his life while continuing with family responsibilities. Gheorghe is so handsome, and confident that he stirs up Johny’s life completely and you can feel it. He is not afraid to be who he really is. And needless to say that he is a brilliant actor. The chemistry that the two share and the entire sequence in the remote hills for few days keeps your attention. The way the two men come together is awesome. Tough and tender brought together and ultimately , by the end of the film, getting along like a house on fire. The film is real, very real. Its not for everyone, when you see scenes of lamb birth, killing a baby calf, daily mundane farm chores; but all that is needed to understand and relate to the loneliness of Johny. You need to feel why he is, the way he is. And hence, when you see his gradual transformation from arrogant, I-don’t-give-a-damn attitude young man, to a sensitive young adult who needs and yearns for love, your heart goes out for him. All the scenes in this regard are handled with extreme sensitivity. The actors playing the father and grandmother are absolutely terrific. They have the look of being beaten down by the farm life and have no spark left in them.
Getting back to the comparison’s with Brokeback Mountain, yes, they will stay there, but I am happy with a few things in this film. Firstly, it is set in present time and comes with a happier ending. Secondly, when the boys come together, they never fear the possibility of exposure or what society would think, they are more worried about would they be able to make it work; which is a huge development. All said and done, this is a pretty exceptional film; a solid story about how committing to what you believe in requires finding out what you believe in first. Life may be harsh and unforgiving, love doesn't have to be. Highly recommended. (9/10)
Comments
The homage to Ang Lee from Francis is even when Gheorgiu wash himself in the open air ( You can see Heat and Jack )!
Very sexy , mature and ,You are right , real . The rough farmer twists slowly to a tender lover . Can I say the best movie of the season ?
Please review "Maurice" (1987) and "Jeffrey" (1996). "Maurice" especially is a classic, I can't believe you haven't seen it yet.
Please continue to put down more recommendations if you have any. That helps me prioritize what to se from the huge list and backlog of movies and TV shows that I need to still watch.
You should watch the great sitcom 'The Other Two' season 2 has been delayed but is on the way.
But I did. The emotions and thoughts were SO different this time, it was like watching a completely different film. I was just mesmerized about the abundance of textures it showed - the sticky mud, cutting-cold wind, iron-cold stones, thick fleece of the lambs, the coarseness of Georghe's sweater... and the smells! Again - mud after rain, daffodils, hay, lambs, dung in the barn, cigarettes, ramen, stale beer in the pub etc. If the scenery weren't so cold and wet and cloudy, sensuality-wise this could have been an Italian film made by an Italian director. I didn't expect such sensations from a film I had already seen. Wtf happened :D ?!
P.S! I know I'll watch it again, this time pausing the scenes with Georghe's sweater because I really want to knit a similar one. Great pattern!