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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...

Passing Strangers

Apparently, this is a gay landmark film from the 70s. Somehow I would label this this as an aesthetic porn with a nice sweet storyline given the time period. The story is very basic, but other than that it's 75% full on sex scenes, so anyone who disagrees with calling it a porn should be questioned.

Tom is a 28 year old single man in SF. He is single and spends his time between clubs, bars and bathhouses on the weekend. He puts an ad in a local newspaper using a Walt Whitman poem. The ad is responded to by an 18 year old boy Robert. He is shy, naive, very new to the whole gay scene, just coming to terms with his sexuality and soon the exchange of letters begin. What unfolds in the first half of the film, in pristine black-and-white cinematography, is the lives of the two men, their fantasies and desires, the letters they send back and forth, and their eventual meeting at the popular gay spot Land’s End.

Yes, the film, which is shot on real locations, gives us a realistic portrayal of what gay scene was back in early 70s, but why so many unnecessary sexual scenes. I understand if that was limited to intimacy between Tom and Robert but there are many more of random sex scenes. But ots of moodiness and sex, shot in a way that conveys far more ambition than you average wham-bam porno. It is interesting to see how gay cruising and interactions were lot simpler and personal compared to quick fuck and go app cruising that we have these days. There was also more trust, it seems. The film ends with the newly couple attending a "Gay Freedom Day" parade. Watch it, only if gay erotica is your thing. I'd rather watch porn. :) (3/10)

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