Holding the Man
Starring: Ryan Corr, Craig Stott, Sarah Snook, Guy Pearce
Directed By: Neil Armfield
Reviewed by Brendan Dousi
[rating: 4.5/5]
I don’t know about you, but I feel this year has definitely been lacking in the ‘emotionally devastating’ category of cinematic experiences. Bogged down by what Hollywood has to offer cinema, a lot of what else is out there has either fallen by the wayside or seems to be altogether non-existent. So, in the midst of our inevitable explosion-fatigue, I believe this is the perfect time to release something a little more substantial. And what better to whet our dramatic appetites than an adaptation of the memoirs of a dying man who is diagnosed with AIDS? Yep, this seems just about right. Get the Kleenex ready.
Timothy Conigrave (Ryan Corr) is positively obsessed with Johnny Caleo (Craig Stott), the star-player on their high school footy team. He watches practice, stares at him in class and tries his best to become friends with him. Despite the odds, Tim the theatre nerd gets Johnny the football player to become his friend. It’s when this friendship starts to blossom that their life-long romance comes into fruition, following them through their high-school years, into University and ultimately into a young-adulthood tragically cut short.
Holding the Man has a real sense of duality to it. On one hand, it is light, romantic and life-affirming and on the other it is a tragic tale of wasted potential, misplaced blame and horrendous guilt. In a way it is two completely different films, you could even potentially cut the entire film down the middle and end up with two whole, satisfying stories. You could have the teen romance, the story of unrequited love where two cherubic young boys overcome bigotry and insurmountable odds to find each other and fall in love, defying society and those in their family that would damn them for who they are. It would have its ups and downs, but ultimately these two love-sick boys would thwart their oppressors and end up together happily ever after. Or you have the story of woe, of a once happy relationship that hits upon tumultuous times as both parties grow into their own people and separate, only to finally look past themselves and realise they are meant to be together but then for fate, in it’s cruel and unjust abandon, to strike down onto these young men in one of the most horrible ways imaginable. In a way, I would have preferred this as two separate movies. I would have loved to have the vision of young love and then separately experience a tale of heartbreak, loss and existential horrors. But this would not be doing justice to the memory of Timothy Conigrave, and his lover Johnny Caleo, whose memoirs inspired one of the most beautiful and heartbreaking films that 2015, and Australian cinema as a whole, has to offer.
The pacing may suffer at times from having to cover such a long period of time, over different life stages of these young men, and the early-years 70s hair can be a little distracting but ultimately this is a beautiful, tragic and necessary story to be told. Fearless is the word that comes to mind when thinking about Holding the Man. No punches were pulled when it comes to the wonderfully written screenplay by Tommy Murphy (who also adapted the memoirs into a play), the crisp visuals and raw direction by Neil Armfield and the outstanding, career-defining performances by our two leads, Ryan Corr and Craig Stott.
Corr and Stott completely embody these characters in every period of their lives, giving some of the best performances I’ve seen all year. Just as convincing as fresh-faced teenaged lovers as they are experimenting young adults and equally as soul-wrenching as two devastated men being physically and emotionally torn apart by the worst epidemic of the modern age, these two performers give this their absolute all. Embracing both the physical and emotional vulnerability innate in these roles, both of these young actors have on their hands career defining performances that can only mean great things for their careers. I personally can’t wait to see more from both of them.
A well needed infusion of emotionally resonant cinema, Holding the Man is a beautifully acted, wonderfully directed and lovingly written tale of young love that ultimately gets torn apart by the cruelty of reality. This film deserves to be seen by as wide an audience as possible, do yourself a favour and go see it as soon as you can.