The cinemas are yet again filled with both film fanatics and hard-core music fans as Mr Harry Styles features in his second movie over the last couple of months. After releasing an award-winning new album this year and featuring in Olivia Wilde’s Don’t Worry Darling recently, it seems the singer’s talents are extended further as he takes on the role of Tom Burgess in Michael Grandage’s My Policeman. Based on the book by Bethan Roberts, this moving tale set in 1950s Britain focuses on the continuing effects of societal homophobia, allowing unrelenting strain to spread across communities.
We see the story unfold between policeman Tom, curator Patrick (David Dawson) and school teacher Marion (the Crown’s Emma Corrin), as their love triangle unfolds. The trio is first introduced to the audience in the 1990s, where Patrick (now played by Rupert Everett), having suffered a stroke, has been taken in by Marion (Gina McKee), who is married to Tom (Linus Roache). Previous pressures have clearly left their mark on the friends, as tension runs high, the dulled colour palette of these scenes accentuating scars of the past. When Marion finds Patrick’s diaries from 40 years prior, we are transported back in time with her, allowing us to be shown where the friction seen earlier originates from.
After having my calendar graffitied with the release date for many months, the anticipation of seeing My Policeman could finally end. Barely knowing what to expect, I readied myself for the next 1hr 53 minutes of heartache. Don’t get me wrong, the story-line of the film was excellent, portraying the struggles of being gay in the 50s, with these issues unfortunately nowhere near extinguished for many of the LGBTQ+ community today. The beautiful freedom between Patrick and Tom, whether romantically smoking in the nude in Venice, or simply taking a stroll on a pebbly beach, contrasts to the more forced passion and awkwardness between Tom and Marion. Although a bit wishy-washy at times, the performances by Corrin and Dawson carry the film for me, with powerful scenes of struggle and distress, well mirrored by McKee and Everett, playing their older counterparts. Of course Roache also pulls it out of the bag, successfully portraying the internal conflict of Tom that has stayed with him throughout his life.
Unfortunately, the one thing that doesn’t quite fit is Styles. The star, who no doubt has a talent for acting, is already so famous in a different industry that I struggled to get fully immersed into the movie. Flashing images of him performing ‘Watermelon Sugar’ in a feather boa forced themselves into my head at the most inconvenient times, detracting from the movie itself. Whether this will be my continued outlook for any future movies featuring Styles is an entirely different question. His role as Jack in Don’t Worry Darling also gave off the same vibe; however, I did feel his current role in My Policeman showed more varied emotion and potential for the future.
However, by the end of the film, all thoughts of criticism temporarily disappeared as streams of tears flooded onto my sleeve, with a silent journey home vital to recover from this compelling display of persecution and prejudice. Generally, although a bit tedious at times, I would have to recommend this film to others due to the importance of the issues focused on and the skillful talents of the actors and actresses involved.
