Retired teacher Marion takes stroke survivor Patrick into her home in Peacehaven in the 1990’s. Her husband Tom has agreed to having the house guest but wants nothing to do with him. A flashback to Brighton in 1957, when the three of them were friends, shows us the story behind Tom’s animosity.
I liked the initial set up and seeing the young Tom, Patrick and Marion becoming friends in a well realised version of the town at the time. However as Tom, although engaged and then married to Marion, begins an illicit, and illegal, affair with Patrick, the film gets bogged down. It feels very repetitive as the pair meet furtively and have sex a number of times, with the story stalling as a result. It is only when someone informs the authorities about Patrick’s behaviour, and he is arrested, that momentum is gathered. The climatic moments, back in the 1990’s, are then quite moving.
Harry Styles, who plays the young Tom has again been heavily criticised for his acting. This time, I feel that criticism is justified as he is very stilted. David Dawson and especially Emma Corin and the contemporaneous Patrick and Marion fare better. But the acting honours go to the older performers. It is no surprise that Gina McKee manages to do quite a lot with a thinly written part though it is Linus Roache as the older Tom who is truly outstanding. It is his most impressive screen performance since Priest in 1994. Rupert Everett as the near paralysed Patrick has little opportunity to show his talents.
Ron Nyswaner’s screenplay, based on a Bethan Roberts book, is quite plodding overall and Michael Grandage’s direction is purely functional. Decently made, but lacking life.
Rating: 5.5 out of 10