Director: Andrew Haigh
Screenplay: Andrew Haigh
Starring: Tom Cullen, Chris New
One-sentence summary: Two men have a one night stand that eventually grows into more over the course of a weekend.
Review: Let me tell you a story.
Back in June, I met a guy off Grindr; we'll call him Jason. I was getting over a very bad breakup and I wasn't even sure how Jason and I would regard each other. Sure, we only wanted to be friends (and Jason needed them because he had just moved to the area), but what if feelings developed? This wouldn't be good for either of us because he was planning to leave for Japan at the beginning of October, and he would be gone for at least a year. I think it was that deadline that kept him from wanting to make really close friends with anyone while he was here.
Fast forward a couple more months. By this point, Jason had met the rest of my friends and he got along very, very well with everyone. It was almost like he had always been friends with us. Jason even met a guy he fell head over heels for! But now he had to make his final decision: stay with the people whom he began to regard as family, or leave for Japan in pursuit of his studies?
I won't tell you what decision he made. That would spoil the movie.
This story is relevant because as I watched Weekend, I realized that I was watching a version of Jason's main dilemma, with Glen (Chris New) serving as the representation of Jason. Glen thinks he's got his life all figured out until one night with Russell (Tom Cullen) makes him seriously reconsider, albeit in his own brash way, if he should just stay in England and give life there another shot. The film's protagonist is clearly Russell, so it takes a bit of extra work to figure out exactly who Glen is. I suppose that's one criticism I have of the film, though it's sort of a minor one in the long run because, as I said, Russell is the central character. If we're seeing the movie through his eyes, it only makes sense that Glen is something of an enigma.
You usually see this sort of plot play out in a fairly clichéd and predictable way in romantic comedies, so it was refreshing to see Weekend try to put a realistic spin on it. They spend a lot of time together over the weekend, and we end up learning quite a bit about each man through their conversations with each other. By the time the movie is almost over, it's not hard to believe that they both feel a very strong connection to each other. The road there isn't rainbows and puppy dogs; Russell and Glen discuss a lot of topics and get particularly serious near the end, which doesn't make for a fun watch because you're not getting any of the cute romantic comedy-type laughs that were present in small doses early on.
Weekend doesn't pull any punches when it comes to depicting sex. There weren't any flesh-colored socks on set, it seems. It would be fair to say that the movie doesn't cross the line into hardcore porn but the sex scenes are definitely more intense than you would normally see in comparison to a studio-backed picture, so be prepared to see (and hear) things that they didn't even let Brokeback Mountain depict.
The cinematography is beautiful. It switches back and forth from a cinéma vérité/mockumentary type style to static scenes where the camera sits there and we watch Russell and Glen converse for minutes at a time. I almost think Haigh went a little too far in making the movie beautiful because there are "transition" shots that, while pretty to look at, could cause a viewer to think they were unnecessary. There's virtually no score present in the film, and I applaud Haigh for making that decision because there's no reason for a score anyhow. It creates a quiet atmosphere perfect for the feel of the movie.
I actually wouldn't be surprised to learn that Tom and Chris adlibbed or improvised the occasional line. The dialogue comes so naturally and nothing felt forced. They have fantastic chemistry together. (For the record, Tom is straight and Chris is gay.) Even the rather self-referential lines concerning creative endeavors involving gay themes, which I'm positive Haigh put in as an in-joke, fit well.
Above all, I think Weekend does something quite well: it's believable. You can believe that these two people met, and in a short span of time, formed a connection that will impact them for the rest of their lives. I've known Jason for only four months, but I know--I feel--that he will remain one of my closest friends for the rest of my life. Sometimes you meet people and they affect you in such a way that they become a part of you no matter how little you know them. That's when you know it's right.
Final word: I'd buy it on DVD/Blu-ray but it might be a film I revisit sparingly only because it's not really a fun watch.
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