I really enjoyed this film, it has its limitations as the film overall doesn't seem to come together as a whole rather its more a series of vignettes,but wow some of these scenes are very powerful and tense.
The character liam in his early 20's played by Christian Cooke is a deeply troubled gay man who cant express these feelings for another man in a conventional gay relationship. So much so that his feelings and sexual attraction that he has for the 17 year old Owen ( the excellent Harry McEntire ) has to proceed on the basis of Owen dressing as and acting female and becoming Liam's ideal girlfriend.
Owen a naive 17 year old and twin looking after his ill mother with his sister who also likes Liam is coming to terms with his own sexuality, and liam exploits this to the limit via his emotional blackmail and offering Owen a taste of the good life, denied to him in his hum drum life on a council sink estate in the North East of England.
Christian Cooke plays Liam with an ever present and barely concealed rage against family, friends and strangers alike. ( I thought whilst watching Christian Cooke in this role what a wonderful Heathcliff he would make in Wuthering Heights when he's a little older ) He delights in taking out his rage and blackmail on Owen trying to bend him to his ideal, and Owen coming to terms with his new passion for liam returns time and again for more humiliation and mental cruelty,
Overall a film of great intensity with superb performances from the two leads its parts are greater than its whole though.
The character liam in his early 20's played by Christian Cooke is a deeply troubled gay man who cant express these feelings for another man in a conventional gay relationship. So much so that his feelings and sexual attraction that he has for the 17 year old Owen ( the excellent Harry McEntire ) has to proceed on the basis of Owen dressing as and acting female and becoming Liam's ideal girlfriend.
Owen a naive 17 year old and twin looking after his ill mother with his sister who also likes Liam is coming to terms with his own sexuality, and liam exploits this to the limit via his emotional blackmail and offering Owen a taste of the good life, denied to him in his hum drum life on a council sink estate in the North East of England.
Christian Cooke plays Liam with an ever present and barely concealed rage against family, friends and strangers alike. ( I thought whilst watching Christian Cooke in this role what a wonderful Heathcliff he would make in Wuthering Heights when he's a little older ) He delights in taking out his rage and blackmail on Owen trying to bend him to his ideal, and Owen coming to terms with his new passion for liam returns time and again for more humiliation and mental cruelty,
Overall a film of great intensity with superb performances from the two leads its parts are greater than its whole though.