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...
The film starts with the audience meeting 11 year old Scott, a very feminine-ish boy. The story keeps going back and for the between his childhood, pre adult and finally his life as a drag performer. Scott/Thirsty always had this female persona, which despite being a girl, was much more freer and tougher. His only respite comes in the form of singing and he gets support from his uncle, from his best friend who encourages him to audition for musicals and finally realizing how he has an affinity for Cher, in terms of looks and voice. While all this happens, Scott/Thirst faces all sorts of hurdles like being bullied by neighborhood boy, basic homophobia, gender non conformity issues, even by his boyfriend Christian, who would prefer a masculine boyfriend rather than. Drag queen. Eventually with support of other drag queens, Scott rechristened Thirsty starts her fabulous journey as diva singing in her own original voice.
The film is at its best in its exploration of gender fluidity and the importance of being at ease with yourself. The idea of flowing between identities is shown as the drag acts get ready for their performance. In one of the scenes where Thirsty is trying to get people to come watch his show, he says that, when he is dressed as a man some people find his gender definition complicated but when he is impersonating Cher it is in some ways simpler because everyone is well aware its a guy in drag. Not many films today address this issue, which is a plus. Having said that, if I see this film just from an entertainment perspective, I am sorry, but I didn't really enjoy it. A patchy back and forth story telling timeline is something that didn't go very well with me in this context. I was quite confused initially. But the performance all all three actors (including Thirsty herself), makes this film for san interesting watch. Some of the songs were quite good while others was strictly ok.
This film is something that everyone would have a different opinion about. I can very well see people liking this movie from a critical and importance point of view, but somehow as a film, it didn't do much for me. (3.5/10)
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