'God's Own Country', 2017

It’s an odd coincidence that almost all the movies I’ve reviewed so far were released in 2017, and now I have another to add to the list. ‘God’s Own Country’ was truly a beautifully crafted movie, and, impressively, was Francis Lee’s directorial debut. The movie takes place in rural England and depicts the relationship between Johnny, the only son of a sheep farming family, and Gheorghe, a Romanian migrant worker who comes to help on their farm. The farm in Yorkshire is isolated and is run mostly by Johnny and his father Martin, but after Martin suffers from a stroke, Johnny is left to do much of the work on his own. Johnny numbs his isolation with reckless decisions and binge-drinking, which disappoints his father and results in the death of a calf, born breech in his absence. So, Martin hires Gheorghe to help in the lambing season. Encounters between the two men are initially gruff and reticent, but they grow closer after having to spend a few days camping in an isolated spot that is nearer to the animals. There’s lots more to the movie, but it’s so beautiful to watch it unfold that I refuse to say anything more!

Some things I liked: Oh my gosh, everything. First of all, the cinematography - almost all of the movie was filmed on-site in Yorkshire, and as the film description read at the Sundance Film Festival, “you can smell the mud in this movie.” I grew up in rural Vermont, and though it’s in another country, several parts of this movie felt very familiar (the depiction of a family dependant on farming, always seeing the same faces in your small hometown bar, the loneliness of rural isolation, etc.). But the real beauty of the film is watching Johnny’s and Gheorghe’s relationship develop, in a warmer and more tender way than you might expect. I won’t give away the ending, but I will say it’s always a pleasure to watch a movie about LGBT+ people that does end happily.

Some things I didn’t like: Honestly…pretty much nothing comes to mind. Johnny has some habits and behaviors that he exhibits throughout the movie that might make viewers upset or disappointed, but it’s part of what makes him such a realistic and human character (and it gives him a tough but redeemable edge).

Five words I would use to describe this film: tender, moving, beautiful, intimate, vulnerable

My queer take: I can’t recommend this movie enough - and it’s on Netflix, so it’s (relatively) easy to get your hands on. The movie has almost a 100% approval rating by critics on Rotten Tomatoes (and 86% by viewers), so you know it’s gotta be good. The film was also nominated for, and received, many awards, including the Harvey Award (given by the German LGBT magazine Männer), for LGBT-related films.

CW: animal-related gore

Fun fact: The film is partly based on the writer and director (Francis Lee)’s own life, as a queer man growing up in rural Yorkshire. “I wrote this film about a community that I live in, that I am from, and that my family lived in," he said in an interview.