Skip to main content

On The Sea (UK)

By Golu
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...
Post a Comment

Boy Meets Girl

By Golu
I just saw this film in "Out In Africa" film festival in Johannesburg and boy was I in surprise or what. I expected a cheeky gay-chick flick by the title and synopsis but it turned out to be a very mature, intelligent, poignant story about friends and coming out and being comfortable in your skin. I am running out of words to say how beautiful and exciting this film was. Right mix of emotion, comedy, maturity and acceptance. Big applause for the makers to make this film.

Set in Kentucky, Robby and Ricky have been the best of friends since childhood but never dates each other.  But their closeness and affection is very apparent. Only a small hitch, that Ricky is a transsexual undergoing hormonal changes to become a woman. Enter Franchesca, a rich girl engaged to be married soon to her boyfriend serving in Afghanistan. There is some sort of instant connection between the two. They become great friends which somehow is not acceptable to her fiancé. On Robby's insistence and constant flirting, the two girls end up coming really "close". They both don't know whats going on. Is Ricky now straight or Franchesca now Lesbian? Its so funny in a poignant sort of way when Ricky discusses this with Robby. and then her fiancé returns and gets angry seeing that they girls are hanging out still. Turns out there is a history between the fiance and Ricky which no one knows of. Meanwhile  Ricky's dreams of becoming a fashion designer and living in NY coming to a crash when she doesn't get accepted in the college. Her best friend Robby is her support even at this time and finally they both admit their love for each other. Things slowly start falling in place for everyone. Robby comes up with a marvelous idea of supporting Ricky with her dreams and Franchesca and her fiancé talk out their differences and love and promise to work together. A new journey begins for everyone.

As I mentioned before, I was very happy and pleasantly surprised to see how maturely the whole story and concept was thought of and presented. This story had the potential of going hugely wrong but thank God that it did not happen. The direction was top notch and choice of the actors was incredible. Everyone was just perfect in their roles. Special credit to dialogue writers because some of the one-liners were just spot on. Ricky asking if it smells like fish down there, 2 old ladies remembering how they were fat in high school and Ricky saying he was a boy, tea bagging and many more like that. The story never got too serious but still remained true to the core of the heart. I also absolutely loved the 2 fathers being supporting of Ricky and Franchesa's father as well. Robby had more of a supporting role but very key to the movie plot. You see a selfless and unconditional love and friendship. How many of us can say we have such a person in our life? Something that I have not mentioned above is that this film also deals with a very sensitive and important issue of teenage suicide. We keep seeing bits and pieces of a video that Ricky made as a teenager about how her mom left them. And its only in the end we see the whole thing and that was such a nice way to end the film. I wish the film makers were present at the screening for us to ask questions. Its an important concept and message that we all need to see and be aware of.

I am very very happy that I saw the film. I just hope that this film gets the right market and viewership that it truly deserves. Big applause. (8.5/10)
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Tuxedo (Thai Series)

By Golu
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...
25 comments
Read more

Heartstopper: Season 2 (Web Series) (UK)

By Golu
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 ...
19 comments
Read more

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

By Golu
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...
23 comments
Read more