My Policeman
Michael
Grandage (director), Ron Nyswaner (writer), Ben Davis (cinematography), Chris Dickens (editor)
Harry Styles, Emma Corrin, David Dawson, Rupert Everett, Gina McKee, Linus
Roache (cast)
Content warning: Homophobia
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| Image credit: Courtesy of TIFF |
To be honest, I got a little confused about how many films Harry Styles is starring in in 2022. Aside from Don’t Worry Darling, My Policeman is the other one. Premiering at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival, My Policeman is based on the book by Bethan Roberts, and the film takes place in two timelines. One follows the main characters in the 1950s and the other when the characters are older in the 1990s.
In the
1950s storyline, Marion is a young schoolteacher besotted with her friend’s
brother, Tom. Tom expresses interest in spending time with Marion and soon
introduces her to a friend of his who shows an interest in the same subjects as
Marion. Patrick is a museum curator and captivates Marion with his knowledge
and love of art. But the love triangle that ensues is not the one that you
would expect.
In the
1990s, Marion and Tom live in remote Peacehaven when Patrick re-enters their
life. Nothing is the same and we slowly learn what became of this central
friendship.
The first
half of the film felt like a retread of queer stories we’ve seen before. A
clandestine romance and an ever-present fear of being found out is par for the
course in period dramas featuring gay characters; honestly, this felt a lot like
watching Brokeback Mountain. That’s not to say these stories shouldn’t
be told, but I do wish the visual language of these stories could be
different.
I also
would have liked it if we’d got to see the main queer protagonists get to
know each other but the film falls into the usual trap of the gay characters
meeting and getting intimate almost immediately. What draws them together aside
from a feeling? Or better still, what keeps them together? We don’t know
because the film never lets the characters spend time to get to learn about one
another.
I also
think Harry Styles making a big deal about how different the love scenes in
this film are is unearned hype. We have seen these scenes before, with the same
kind of angles and performances. Granted, at least the camera doesn’t tilt away
like in Rocketman, but that’s not the standard for queer sex scenes anymore. What I did like is that there is one scene (and one scene only) when one
character checks in with the other to gain explicit consent. That’s probably
the one moment that stood out because most stories are too much in a rush to
demonstrate consent.
I can
pinpoint exactly when the film took a turn for the better. A character
discovers that there are more gay people in her life than she knows and from
that point on the film becomes an arresting, heartbreaking narrative. The
filmmakers should have sped up the first half and concentrated on the second
part of the storyline. Once the sensationalism is over, the film becomes much
more moving.
I was
apathetic towards the film up until this point but it became a poignant look at
how much the world has changed in a few decades. And yet, as director Michael
Grandage stated at the press conference afterward, it feels like we may be
going backward again.
Near the
end of the film, there’s a moment featuring one of the older characters that is
so crushingly sad, that it’s impossible to recover from. And that’s a good
thing.
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| Image credit: Courtesy of TIFF |
All of the characters have flaws, but they’re also products of their time—desperate, naive, scared even. They pay for their flaws though they don’t deserve to.
I don’t
know why Harry Styles is given top billing when this is more of an Emma Corrin
and David Dawson show. Both actors are understated and believable as young
people lost and confused in the 50s. Styles tries his best but he’s better at
playing the innocent one rather than in the more emotional or overwrought
scenes.
Among the
older actors, I’m confused by Rupert Everett’s choice to take this role. I
think he’s convincing but they could have achieved the same with a lesser-known
actor. Gina McKee is good as older Marion but there was something
whimsical about her performance. I think she needed to be a bit more
constrained.
Linus Roache has very few scenes but he also got one of the most powerful moments in the film. His scene-stealing moment comes out of the blue and hits you in the gut. It’s a perfect combination of writing, directing, and acting. Wow, just wow.
There was a great film buried in My Policeman, but it’s undermined by a first half that feels so familiar you’ll think you’ve seen it all before. But the denouement is impactful, poignant, and unfortunately still relevant today
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