{"id":20349,"date":"2016-05-19T14:06:38","date_gmt":"2016-05-19T13:06:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/?p=20349"},"modified":"2016-05-19T14:08:30","modified_gmt":"2016-05-19T13:08:30","slug":"departure-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/2016\/05\/departure-review\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Departure’ – Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Departure_Quad_Final\"<\/h4>\n

‘Departure’\u00a0is\u00a0the feature length directorial debut of British film maker Andrew Steggall. It stars Juliet Stevenson as Beatrice, who\u00a0has returned to France to pack up the holiday house and in effect pack up her failed marriage. In tow is her teenage son, Elliot, played by Alex Lawther, who is going through\u00a0his own inner turmoil.<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"Alex<\/p>\n

It rains a lot in ‘Departure’, and in fact the use of water in the film\u00a0is a strong metaphor for what the characters are experiencing. Both Elliot and Beatrice retreat to the bath to think; Elliot feels he is drowning; the river and the reservoir dominate the landscape; the use of glasses and bottles reflecting the liquid inside; the stucco render on the walls of the farmhouse echoing the waves of the ocean. Perhaps the\u00a0most poignant reference is the interchange between Elliot and former theatre owner, Fran\u00e7ois. Speaking in the local cafe, Elliot\u00a0describes what desire means to him, as “the way that water runs through your fingers” – to feel desire is to feel what it is to be human.<\/p>\n

\"Juliet<\/p>\n

The object of Elliot’s desire is local boy,\u00a0Cl\u00e9ment (Ph\u00e9nix Brossard), whom he first sees preparing\u00a0to go swimming in the reservoir, an activity which is strictly forbidden. This in itself is a precursor to what is yet to pass, as Elliot and\u00a0Cl\u00e9ment struggle with and against each other in a love that is not so much forbidden as unbidden, at least on the part of Cl\u00e9ment. The French boy has\u00a0run away from his family in Paris, after the hospitalisation\u00a0of his mother, suffering from cancer. Initially lung cancer, it had eaten her up entirely, until even her personality was changed. Cl\u00e9ment professes to Elliot that he likes him:\u00a0Elliot\u00a0accepts this, although he loves deeply\u00a0in return.<\/p>\n

\"DepartureFilm\"<\/p>\n

His mother’s illness causes\u00a0Cl\u00e9ment to seek a maternal figure in that of Beatrice, who misinterprets his attention as something more meaningful.\u00a0Nonetheless, she is struck by the realisation that she’s not actually too old, not unattractive, and still “has it”. A passionate kiss between the pair (as well as a later kiss between Cl\u00e9ment and Elliot) illustrates\u00a0yet another constant theme throughout the film: that of the need for human contact, any contact. Love and be loved, in whatever form it comes. The arrival of Elliot’s father, Philip, to sign some final paperwork for the house, serves as\u00a0the catalyst for some revelations: we discover the true state of his marriage to Beatrice, some long-hidden skeletons were released from the closet, and Elliot recalls an horrific accident that happened to his mother\u00a0when he was a young boy.<\/p>\n

\"Juliet<\/p>\n

On the surface, ‘Departure’ is a simple LGBT coming of age film. Look deeper however and you discover it’s\u00a0a far more complex story of love and relationships, and a desire for human contact. The ensemble cast puts in a stunning performance, no matter how large or small their role: real life husband and wife team Finbar Lynch and Niamh Cusack are superb as Beatrice’s ex-husband Philip, and Sally, their next door neighbour, respectively. Although seen only too\u00a0briefly, the interplay between Niamh Cusack and Juliet Stevenson\u00a0shows how fine a pair of actresses they are. Mention must also be made of Patrice Juiff, who is entrancing as\u00a0Fran\u00e7ois, and whose back story is another movie that’s desperate to be made.<\/p>\n

\"DepartureFilm<\/p>\n

Relative newcomers, Alex Lawther (‘The Imitation Game’) and\u00a0Ph\u00e9nix Brossard,\u00a0are phenomenal in their shared scenes, and it’s for good reason Lawther won the\u00a0London Film Critics’ Circle Award for “Young British Performer of the Year” in 2014,\u00a0and nominated for Best British Newcomer, at the BFI London Film Festival.\u00a0Ph\u00e9nix Brossard is a young French actor discovered on the street and revealed by\u00a0his lead role in the French feature La Lisi\u00e8re.<\/p>\n

We were fortunate to have the opportunity to catch up with director and writer, Andrew Steggall, and asked him about ‘Departure’.<\/p>\n

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