A
film that brings together two “Internet boyfriends”, actors
Andrew Scott (Sherlock, Fleabag)
and Paul Mescal (Normal
People, Aftersun).
Scott is Adam, a lonely screenwriter who lives in London, and
falls in love with his enigmatic neighbour, Mescal’s Harry. When
he goes to visit his childhood home (to find inspiration for a
next project), he discovers that a phantom version of his
parents (Claire Foy and Jamie Bell) is still there.
– Hello Miguel! Here I am to write you about one of those rare films that appears, tears you apart, stays with you and consoles you: All of Us Strangers.
Andrew Scott, Paul Mescal and Andrew Haigh, the magnetic trio that is the foundation of the film.
There’s vampires on my door… This is how it all starts.
– For me, it’s the music that “kills” me. All the musical references in the film remind me of specific moments from my adolescence. It also reminds me of my audio cassettes, which have been re-recorded many times. And then there is the relationship with the parents. The difficulty of telling. The difficulty of looking into their eyes and seeing our reality mirrored, but which has to be expressed by us to be real. And the parents are still there, even if they are memories. And our hearts are full. And you, what did you feel?
– The songs are like hymns that made Adam resist a marginalized youth, and they’re terribly timeless as Harry shows us. In music and film: Loss. Loneliness. Tenderness. Passion. Universal feelings are the matrix of this queer story. And what an explosive ending! Dreams are like angels / They keep bad at bay / Love is the light / Scaring darkness away
It’s been a while to write you. I write in stream of consciousness. I delete. I try to be cerebral in writing and linking ideas together. But I can’t talk about this film with reason, only with emotion. There is a certain magic here too. Andrew Haigh had the mastery of creating a piece capable of touching so many people in such an intimate and profound way.
IndieLisboa is the only opportunity to watch ALL OF US STRANGERS on the big screen in Portugal (it’s bizarre that a film like this will not be released here). Shall we go together?
– Of course, let’s go. We can never forget that our rights are not acquired. We need to remember them every single day. And if we do it with someone who is next to us to listen, we’ll never be strangers but we’ll be an immensity of people, strangers to each other, but with the same heart. If there is one point to highlight at IndieLisboa 2024, it will be the absolutely majestic session of All of Us Strangers.
(Alexandra Ferraz / Miguel Valverde)
