Brokeback Mountain set in 1950s Britain? That’s the best comparison I can give to Michael Grandage’s (Genius) understated and tender My Policeman, a movie that is beloved by audiences (96% on Rotten Tomatoes) but shunned by critics (46%). Much of the criticism has to do with Harry Styles (Dunkirk, Don’t Worry Darling), the singing superstar who, earlier this year, broke a Madison Square Garden record by selling out his concert for 15 consecutive nights. Much of the public was ready to declare him the next Justin Timberlake, based upon a single supporting performance in Dunkirk, a role that didn’t require him to do much. Styles was a late choice in Olivia Wilde’s highly anticipated but polarizing Don’t Worry Darling after Shia LaBeouf abruptly backed out. The film faltered for many reasons, including the less-than-flattering reviews of Styles’ inability to match his much more accomplished counterpart, Florence Pugh. My Policeman had been hyped as Styles’ acting breakthrough. He wasn’t nearly as miscast as in Don’t Worry Darling. His performance opposite David Dawson (most recognizable as King Alfred in the Netflix series The Last Kingdom) was one of the many highlights of the underseen My Policeman.
The film begins in the present day with the older versions of our three lead characters. Retirees Tom (Linus Roache – Non-Stop, The Apology)and Marion Gina McKee – Phantom Thread, Atonement) have peaceful, if not entirely happy, existences in their seaside town. Tom spends his days watching the coastline with his dog before coming home and performing his due diligence to what appears to be a going-through-the-motions type of marriage. Much to Tom’s surprise, Patrick (Rupert Everett – Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, My Best Friend’s Wedding), an estranged friend, surprisingly arrives. Marion, guilt-ridden from events from their 40+ years ago, has volunteered to care for him after a paralyzing stroke has left him almost entirely bedridden.
Flashback 40 years to 1950s Britain, where our film mostly takes place, Marion (Emma Corrin – Lady Chatterley’s Lover, Misbehaviour) first sees the dashing Tom (Styles) on a sunny beach. She is charismatically attracted to his dashing good looks and hospitable charm. The two, while seemingly opposites, soon start to date. Tom is a humble police officer, while Marion is high-class and educated. Then, Tom meets Patrick (Dawson), a museum curator. Tom, Marion, and Patrick strike an instantaneous friendship. At first, it seems like Patrick might be attracted to Marion and her to him. However, we soon learn that nothing can be further than the truth.
Tom and Patrick (much like Heath Ledger’s Ennis and Patrick Jake Gyllenhaal’s, respectively Jack in Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain) discover a mutual attraction to each other. However, an experienced Patrick swoons in on the impressionable Tom. Tom’s futile attempts at resisting Patrick’s advances are thwarted. This makes for a problematic situation for Tom, as he is suddenly thrust into this illegal, closeted same-sex relationship, simultaneously desperately trying to keep his marriage strong with Marion. The added pressure as someone required to uphold the country’s laws back to Tom into a dark corner, with no realistic way to escape.
The onscreen chemistry between Styles and Dawson is magnetic. I’ve read that the lives of Tom, Marion, and Patrick are so shielded that we don’t get to know any of them in any way that makes them memorable. I don’t see it this way. Tom and Patrick are doing their best to maximize their happiness in a country that wants to stifle it. Tom wants the best of both worlds. He wants to stay married and have a family with Marion but wants the unrestricted, lustful relationship that he has with Patrick. At one point, Patrick says something to the effect of, “I’ll take whatever I can get.” It’s his way of telling Tom that being even a part of his life is better than not having him. It’s somber that Patrick is made to feel this way, just as it is Marion, who, after witnessing the two men engaged in a passionate embrace, must force herself to confront Tom or pretend like she is unaware, which would result in her living a similar, dishonest life.
n a year when there have been so many original and well-made movies, there hasn’t been a better all-around movie that has also affected me with a sense of sadness and relational injustice like My Policeman. A film such as Till is undoubtedly more affecting. If Till doesn’t make your heart ache, I’m not sure you are human. There is no comparison between the injustices between Till and My Policeman. It almost feels derisive to include these two movies in the same paragraph. However, doing so shows me just how strong I felt the bond between Tom and Patrick was and the great lengths that a homophobic society will go to to inhibit any romantic relationship between same-sex couples. I’m uncertain how much of a difference there is between Britain in the 1950s and the United States in 2022. We are a much more accepting society of LGBTQ+, but I’m not confident that this is the case universally, as I would like to believe.
Plot 7.5/10
Character Development 7.5/10
Character Chemistry 9/10
Acting 8/10
Screenplay 7.5/10
Directing 8/10
Cinematography 8/10
Sound 8/10
Hook and Reel 7.5/10
Universal Relevance 8/10
81%
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