Skip to main content

On The Sea (UK)

This one's a beautiful, tender, quiet romantic drama with a moody atmosphere, set in a tight knit Welsh fishing community. It's a touching story about a man waking up sexually in the middle of his life, and how he, his family, and everyone around him deal with it, which makes it emotional and sentimental without ever getting over the top. The slow burn plays out against a landscape that's as bleak as it is gorgeous, where quiet, closed off men are stuck inside rigid ideas of what masculinity should be. Some people might be reminded of "God's Own Country," but I think both films are lovely in their own way. Jack is a middle aged guy who co-owns a mussel farm with his rough around the edges brother Dyfan, and the tension between the two of them is simmering under the surface right from the start. Dyfan's three sons all help out with the work, while Jack's sulky teenage son Tom keeps skipping out. Jack's been with his wife since they were both 16, and...

Abrupt Decision

Abrupt Decision looks at how a gay couple are impacted by life-altering events. The thought behind the film was good but sadly the direction and the acting by its lead left a lot to be desired. There were moments when I could just not wait for the movie to end. It seemed it was going nowhere and at the same time it was going everywhere. The movie could have been a brilliant short film of 30 odd minutes but stretching it into a full length feature film was probably not the best idea.

Dennis is having a bad day. He gets laid off from his job of 20 years. His relationship with his long term boyfriend is going through a rough patch for a while. The boyfriend, works (read blogs) from home, so dennis is the primary bread earner. They live in suburbs so that they can be close to Dennis' mother who soon gets ill. Not knowing what to do after he loses his job, he thinks of a couple of things but none of them goes anywhere. When his ailing mother suggests them to get a dog. He goes to the shelter and is shocked to learn that older dogs are routinely euthanized there because of lack of space. To his boyfriend's irritation and disapproval, he brings 2 dogs home and then brings even more when he finds out they are gonna be soon put to rest. Dog after dog, finally Dennis realizes what he can do and ultimately for better, they keep all dogs to save them and the relationship of the couple is also saved.

Story sounds odd, doesn't it. Trust me, while watching I felt the same. Dennis just did not look natural. His helplessness just did not come across even 10%. On the contrast his boyfriend did a pretty decent job. Although the 2 of them did not share any decent chemistry and it wasn't also very clear why they had grown apart per the years. Dennis' mother was over the top with heavy southern accent but still fun to watch.

This is not a great film by any stretch of the imagination. DIfferent cinema doesn't always end in good cinema. (3/10)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Tuxedo (Thai Series)

When I saw this series with 8 episodes of about 20-25 minutes each, I thought, good: Finally someone has come to senses and made a show which is not stretched out and they have tried to squeeze in a decent storyline in a good small episode format. But unfortunately, despite a decent premise on hand, the clunky writing, bad screenplay and an extreme tasteless portrayal of mental illness makes this show, not a fun watch. By the time it finishes, you just want to laugh off at the entire absurdity of it all. Aioun is talented tuxedo designer and very much in demand but he has handful of clients and he builds suits only for people who he feels a connection to. One night when his younger brother is about to get mugged, he is helped by a total stranger named Sichol. Since he tears his suit in the fight and has an interview the next day, Aioun gifts him a suit form his design as an expression of thanks. Sichol's interview is for. Personal assistant of a man named Nawee, a wealthy heir to h...

Heartstopper: Season 2 (Web Series) (UK)

Heartstopper Season 1 was a universal hit. You could not have read one bad review or heard from anyone who has seen the show not liking it. It was the kind of series that is easy to love, with sweetness exploding out of every scene without overwhelming you. So naturally, when Netflix greenly Season 2, expectations were naturally high and the same happened with me. I didn't know what to expect, but I had high expectations of this very very sweet teenage love story. And with eagerness and being a little late to the game by a few days, here I am, pouring my t thoughts down having just finished one of the most anticipated shows of the year. The second season also has 10 episodes and has all of our loved ones from the original season. The show continues from where it had left off in Season 1. Charlie and Nick are a couple and only their very close circle of friends know about it. This includes Charlie's best friend Tao and his trans best friend Elle. The center of the show is still ...

Gaya Sa Pelikula (Filipino Series) [Like In The Movies]

Pinoy BL series seem to be catching up to the popularity of the Thai shows. And I must say that they are doing a pretty good job at it. Where Thai series started to get repetitive with so many shows based in a college setting with seemingly similar storylines, Pinoy series are offering the viewers with new and interesting stories and some really good sets and surroundings. This series was 8 episodes of about 25-20 minutes each. Karl, a 19-year old introvert architecture student is in the middle of an identity crisis. Prior to the start of the second semester in college and forced by his parents, he moves into his uncle's condominium unit so that he can learn to be financially independent. Karl takes on odd jobs online to do so. But when one of his major clients suddenly goes MIA, he is left short on funds and without a means to pay for his utilities. An opportunity presents itself when his cocky neighbor Vlad has to hide from his family and proposes to share Karl's space for th...