Please note: This was screened in Oct 2022
Like a forgotten treasure from the golden age of British cinema, this sweeping romantic drama boasts an arresting performance from Harry Styles as the titular law enforcer.
In late 1990s Brighton, married couple Marion (Gina McKee) and Tom (Linus Roach) welcome terminally ill old friend Patrick (Rupert Everett) into their home. As years of unresolved feelings resurface, Marion plays peacemaker, but the ice between the two men will not thaw. It wasn’t always this way. Some 40 years earlier, on that same British coastline, schoolteacher Marion (Emma Corrin) met charismatic copper Tom (Styles) and they instantly fell in love. But Marion wasn’t the only one powerless to Tom’s cheeky charms. The couple’s new friend, art historian Patrick (David Dawson), was also rather smitten with him. As burgeoning desires lead to passionate affairs, simmering jealousies surfaced that would ultimately tear the trio apart.
Adapted from Bethan Roberts’ novel, this perfectly pitched romance is the kind of decades-spanning tearjerker we see all too rarely. Aided by phenomenal performances across both generations, including a star turn from Styles, Michael Grandage has crafted a love story that is epic in scope, but intimate in its attention to detail.
Presented in partnership with Queer Vision Film Festival.