A One Mann’s Movies Film Review of “All of us Strangers” (2024).
Romance? Drama? Ghost Story? Yes – all of the above! “All of us Strangers” is an extraordinary tour-de-force by writer and director Andrew Haigh. An exquisitely made film that systematically destroys your emotions and leaves you wrung out to dry.
Bob the Movie Man Rating:
Plot Summary:
Adam (Andrew Scott) is a struggling screen-writer living virtually alone in a high-rise apartment in London. One of the ‘virtually’s is Harry (Paul Mescal) living on a lower floor who sees Adam watching him and strikes up a relationship. Meanwhile, Adam is researching a new script involving the house where he grew up in Sanderstead, south of Croydon. Visiting the area he is surprised to meet his Mum (Claire Foy) and Dad (Jamie Bell). It’s a surprise because they died when he was 12.
Certification:
UK: 15; US: R. (From the BBFC web site: “Strong sexual detail, sex, drug misuse, very strong language”).
Talent:
Starring: Andrew Scott, Paul Mescal, Claire Foy, Jamie Bell.
Directed by: Andrew Haigh.
Written by: Andrew Haigh. (Based on the novel by Taichi Yamada.)
Twitter Handle: #AllOfUsStrangers, #AOUStrangers.
Running Time: 1h 45m.
“All of us Strangers” Film Review:
Positives:
- This feels like a very personal film for Andrew Haigh. It was even filmed in the house where Haigh grew up! And it is a STUNNING piece of filmmaking. It plays half in reality, half in dream, with the supernatural encounters being treated as entirely normal and matter-of-fact.
- The script is magnificent, deftly weaving the music and outdated beliefs of 1989 with those of today and delivering moments of heart-stopping beauty:
- The film starts and ends with a flash of light. What does it mean? A cosmic connection? The arrival and departinure of souls? It’s never explained. Never needed to be.
- A sequence where Adam finally comes out to his mother is both hilarious and heart-rending. It reminded my (like the film “Pride“) how far society has come in normalising homosexuality since the 1980’s.
- A drug-induced trip for Adam is incredibly well done, ducking and weaving between past and present and past again in dizzying fashion.
- I’m afraid I really lost it when The Pet Shop Boys came on Top of the Pops singing “You Were Always On My Mind” and Adam’s Mum sang along to it. It’s a moment of utter movie magic.
- And I’m afraid I totally lost it again at the end of Adam’s Mum/Dad story arc. Despite starting with a smile at the ordering by Adam of the ‘family platter’ (“that’s a lot of food”, LOL), the next five minutes are simply devastating.
- A twist in the tail is astonishing. One of those movie WTF moments.
- The acting is simply superb. Andrew Scott is one of the very finest actors in the UK, and he has yet to receive the international recognition he deserves. Give the man an Oscar for fucks sake, or at least a nomination! Moreover, it seems utterly criminal that he didn’t get a BAFTA Best Actor nomination for this, whereas both Claire Foy and Paul Mescal did get Supporting nods. (Both are very well deserved by the way: and particularly a hats-off (and trousers off too) to Paul Mescal for his portrayal of Adam’s gay lover. It is amazing to me how a straight actor can play a gay character so convincingly, particularly with such a… erm… physical portrayal. Jamie Bell, rather overlooked in all the acting discussions, is also terrific.
- The music score by Emilie Levienaise-Farrouch is superb, pitched at just the right level of “sonorously creepy”. Add to that the immaculate music choices from the 1980’s and you have a winning soundtrack. The music is almost another star of the film. You feel that Adam is locked in a bit of a personal time-warp of his own making, with the music being an anchor that always drags him back.
- Technically, the film is wonderfully put together. The cinematography by Jamie Ramsay (“Living“, “Mothering Sunday“) is really gorgeous, with long lingering reflection shots of Andrew Scott, all beautifully lit. And I was intrigued by a few scenes in the apartment lift, which are all mirror-lined. Where oh where was the camera??!
Note:
The physical love scenes between Adam and Harry are (as the BBFC calls them) “strong”. This makes this film (like “Poor Things” and “Saltburn“) one that young people might feel uncomfortable watching with their parents or grandparents. (At my Everyman screening this evening a man in front had clearly brought either his mother or mother-in-law. During the sex scenes, he seemed to be trying to earnestly rearrange all of his dinner plates and glasses on the shelf below his seat!)
Negatives:
- I personally have nothing here… for me, this was close to cinema perfection.
Triggers
It goes without saying that the film covers themes of grief and loss. If you’ve lost your parents, particularly if in an accident, then you may find this film emotionally hard work. If you haven’t… make sure to give them a call and tell them you love them.
Summary Thoughts on “All of us Strangers”
What a film! It’s one I will be thinking on for days. A mini-masterpiece. There are only five Best Film slots at the BAFTAs: so… fair enough. But there are ten slots for the Oscars Best Film. I’d be really curious to know where “All of us Strangers” sat in the ranking. Because, for me, there are a number of films on the current list (including “Maestro” and – sorry fans – “Barbie“) that I would personally displace to make room for this one.
Trailer for “All of us Strangers”:
The trailer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O97iSjvqBlY .
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