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...
Growing up in 70s in New Zealand, homosexuality was generally viewed as an aberration. But still mostly men found ways to find a sexual partner. And even in those less tolerant days, there were people who had happy stories to share. As Paul moved from NZ to London to film making to multiple trips around the world, he recounts and even tracks some of these men to give interviews for this documentary. While on the surface it’s a highly personal tale of one man’s liaisons, in the course of the telling, the tale encompasses profound societal and legal changes from the 1970s to the present day, and how quickly that history fades if we don’t keep the memory alive. The interviews are interesting individually, and are edited together in a narrative that holds your attention through to the end.
A competently made and fun documentary that struggles somewhat to find its focus. A much as the interviews were fun and personal, I was able to enjoy it and find a personal connection. There were years when I used to keep a list of men that I was hooking up with, so I got a little bot of chuckle myself seeing a documentary like this. Through interviews we hear stories about religion, AIDS, clubs, partying, sex, relationship, love, monogamy, pretty much everything. I would recommend this just as a harmless documentary trying to bring a spunk with a general exploration of gay history since the 70s, the film struggles to quite stick the landing and live up to the genuinely moving material it's working with. (6/10)
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