A Home At The End Of The World
(2004)
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From the moment they met, Bobby and Jonathan were inseparable. For Jonathan, the unconventional Bobby is a connection to a larger world. For Bobby, Jonathan's family - and in particular Jonathan's mother Alice - represents a kind of stability that he hasn't known. As they grow up, the boys grow apart only to reunite in New York where together with the free-spirited Clare, they invent a new kind of family... |
The Hours author Michael Cunningham adapts his own earlier novel for the big screen in this warm relationship drama. Spanning three richly detailed decades from the 1960s onwards, it explores the complex bonds of love and friendship between former childhood friends, played as adults by Colin Farrell and Dallas Roberts. Reunited in early 1980s New York, the duo form an unconventional family with free-spirited older woman Robin Wright Penn. In a trio of beautifully nuanced performances, the actors breathe life into Cunningham's multilayered but meandering script. Farrell is particularly delightful, displaying a gentleness and vulnerability far removed from his laddish media persona. First-time director Michael Mayer skilfully balances the highs and lows of this left-field tale, marrying poignancy with a strong vein of wry humour. Despite some niggling clichés, it's an endearing ride — although the concentration on emotion rather than action won't appeal to everyone.