This amazing tone poem of a film released last year (2017) stars Josh O'Connor as Johnny Saxby, a young man who lives on a farm in Yorkshire with his disabled father and grandmother. Life is hard for him as he is the only able bodied person on the property to do any of the immense, backbreaking, endless work. He is young and there is no outlet for himself, no time for friends, no time for a boyfriend, no time for a real social life. Instead, he has quick anonymous sex at a cattle auction, and goes to the local pub at night to get blind drunk. After he wakes up in his own vomit in the morning, the grind begins again. He hates his life and is filled with obvious rage and repressed emotions that he drowns in alcohol...
...Until his father hires a worker to help with the springtime lambing season. Handsome and sexy Romanian migrant worker Gheorghe played by Alec Secăreanu shows up for the job and Johnny is his usual sullen and unfriendly self. But when they must set out with sleeping bags and provisions to go to the far, far end of the property where they camp and repair dry-stacked stone fences, and care for lambs, their awkward relationship takes a turn and they become lovers.
Interestingly, the fact that Johnny is gay never makes it to the list of problems. Seems his family knows, his old school mates know, and Johnny himself never displays any kind of angst or guilt. Likewise, Gheorghe seems highly acclimated to his true self as well. The tensions come from the situation both of them find themselves in: one of them stuck on a farm in God's own country (aka the middle of nowhere) unable to leave, and the other a foreigner who must travel and scrounge for work. Johnny is not good at identifying and expressing his feelings which is also a hurdle. And Gheorghe seems the kind of person who not only can identify and express his inner self, but will not wait while someone else dithers about such matters.
The film was written and directed by Francis Lee who says the film is semi-autobiographical: he grew up on a farm just a stone's throw from where the film was made. Shot in the Silsden area of Keighley in West Yorkshire, the backdrop is sweeping, harsh, and empty. There is a beauty to the landscape but Lee chose to emphasize the harshness and brutality of the bare, windswept terrain. Between the bitter cold and wind and the amount of exhausting work coupled with Johnny's confinement amongst it all, the first half of the film weighs heavily. I found myself unable to breathe at certain points. But despite this, it is clear to see that shots were beautifully composed, almost like a Malick film. And also like a Malick film, Lee chose to let many scenes unfold wordlessly since Johnny is a man of few words. The silence between him and Ghoerghe has a physical presence. This is a wonderful way of letting film be the visual story teller that it is. To be able to show the story instead of tell it is a hallmark of cinema, one that more filmmakers should aspire to.
Josh O'Connor is simply spectacular as Johnny...not a misstep in his heartbreakingly real performance. And as Gheorghe, Alec Secăreanu is just as assured and strong in what he brings. Their struggle and romance is immediate and vital and we end up rooting for them, to overcome life's obstacles, and without telling you spoilers, I will say there is a satisfying ending.
Recommend? YES. Gorgeous on so many levels.
https://www.godsowncountry.film/
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