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...
Alain is a middle age lawyer, who wants them all, another way to say he doesn't know what he wants. He likes both men and women (men more than women) and perpetually runs away from commitment and prefers token his freedom. There is so much going on in his life. His boss/work partner wants to marry him. She fears being lonely and even though they both know they can't love each other, they both openly talk about making beautiful babies and living together. Surprisingly, she gets pregnant the first night they sleep together. Then you have a young boy Christophe, who is totally smitten by Alain. Alain likes the attention but also keeps wondering why this young boy is so much in love with him. The more he pushes Christophe away, the closer he wants to come. And then we have Marc, a client of Alain, whom he couldn't save from murder charges and he is in prison. Alain finds himself totally smitten by the rawness and raunch of the young man, who also knows it very well. Hoping to seduce Marc, he agrees to pass his messages to his crazy hairdresser ex girlfriend and surprise surprise finds himself getting involved with her, too. The film gets complicated with Alain trying toggle all these people in his life at the same time, while being extremely confused about what and who he really wants.
As I said before, I personally quite enjoyed the film. Its nowhere close to being free of problems, but overall it was quite Nic with some very nice and witty dialogues. Yes, it is all over the place and no one actually gets a closure. In fact you see Alain flirting with the nurse in the end even when clearly cries of his boyfriend and his wife's baby is in front of him. Message is that Alain won't change, not for anyone not for himself. All the actors do a fantastic job but clearly its Alain, as the middle ged confused man who shoulders the film and actually does a very good job it. Everyone else around him gets a raw deal from a character perspective. You can't help but feel bad for Christophe who is giving his more than 100% to the relationship except Alain was incapable of commitment and coming to terms with his sexuality. What is a bit difficult to comprehend is why a series of people with apparent low self-worth chase about the confused and disrespecting Alain. There is enough nudity and sex scenes to keep you happy without being in your face. The film might not be politically correct for today's time but if you just want some harmless fun without applying too much logic, its not a bad film at all to invest your time in. (6.5/10)
Comments