MovieChat Forums > Holding the Man (2015) Discussion > Great movie, sad story (spoilers ahead)

Great movie, sad story (spoilers ahead)

posted 9 years ago by winonaforever2
9 replies | jump to latest

I recently saw the movie and I thought it was very good. I did not know much about it so I was not aware it was based on a real story. That makes it even sadder. At the end I thought Tim would find some solace after John dies so tragically. I kind of thought he and that Italian waiter would be happy and it would lead to a nice closure, but I was so saddened to find out right after that scene, Tim only died three years later of the same condition, and he was only 34! It's so heartbreaking. Poor guy, and the way John's family treated him. It's as if they didn't have a right to be happy. What a sad story. Does anyone agree? I loved the movie, I just thought it would be a bit more uplifting. The actors were great, particularly Ryan Corr. I liked the fact that for once the Catholic priest was not the bad guy. Usually when something like this happens in movies about this period both students are expelled or something, or sent to a psychologist. I liked how the priest was sympathetic with them even though it wasn't a big part of the story. I also liked how their friends did not shun them or bully them after finding out. I thought that was great. What are your thoughts?

[–] robyn65 9 years ago

I agree - very sad. I went in knowing it was a true story, and knowing that they had both died, so I knew there was no happy ending. The school stuff was really interesting - both the priest and the friends acceptance of their relationship. Definitely not something you expect to see in a movie (or real life in Australia in the 1970s).

[–] CarrieWhite500 8 years ago

Movie was spoilt by rushed scenes and too much background music. Storyline wasnt that amazing. No wonder it has jnot receieved much attention overseas

[–] Aunt-Peg 8 years ago

So very true I'm afraid. The book and the play based on the book were great. But the film failed for exactly the reasons you outlined. A TV mini series running 6 hours or so may have worked much better.

[–] ProfessorPatPending 8 years ago

I thought the music was fine, maybe because I liked the music they played. I do agree that it felt rushed and a mini series would have been a much better idea. The chemistry between them was great though and the acting very good, especially from Ryan Corr and Anthony LaPaglia

[–] matanil 8 years ago

I agree with you that the music was fine and in fact in at least two places, I thought its usage was particularly clever. The scenes where "I Feel Love" is stopped as John's father enters his son's room and lets him know he'll get over not seeing Tim, etc. and then the second he leaves, John gets up and goes out the window to join Tim, I thought it was really lovely how the music kicks back in, and on a note that feels like a rush, which is exactly how John exits his teenage room.

As someone who hasn't read the book, only watched the movie (thus far), I didn't feel it was rushed. There was some going back and forth with the timeline that I'm not sure necessarily helped propel the connection of the audience with the subject matter, but overall it didn't feel rushed. It could be that when you read the book/see the play first, the impression is different.

The one thing that did kind of bother me was the decision to have the same actors for the teenaged and adult Tim and John. For me, that got in the way of my suspension of disbelief to a degree, so I wondered if it wouldn't have been better having younger actors for the school scenes.

[–] londonviewer 8 years ago

the question about using the same actors came up in the Q&A after the london LGFF screening yesterday ... the screen writer and the actress Kerry Fox both replied ... that it would be wrench for the audience to see different actors play them ... so it was just a decision as to which wrench to have. they seemed to accept that it was hard for the audience, without actually admitting that the wrong decision had been made (by the director).

[–] dazzaler44 8 years ago

Seen the stage version and way too sad...no thanks...this ain't my kind of movie..i want to be entertained and not to be reminded of that dreded disease that keeps claim thousands each year.

[–] jonaloin 8 years ago

Pretty good movie but too rushed! I mean.. I really wanted to know more about how John's family dealt with it and how Tim's family dealt with it. The contrast would have been interesting. Did they both move out? Did they drop out of school? How did the Catholic school react to this? I mean there was tons they could have explored here.

They really should have explored this whole open relationship idea more. Who infected who? I mean, I guess you could argue "it doesn't matter now" but it's natural for the viewer to wants these kinds of questions answered.

I think the movie could have been just a bit longer, 15-20 minutes. Or a miniseries perhaps.

[–] ItalianBuju (793) 4 years ago

I just watched it for the first time and I thought it was amazing but it also ruined me emotionally.
I had no idea what it was about going in except that it was a gay love story, and no idea it was a true story until the end!