Another Country (1984)

Another Country. Another World. Another Place.

It is odd what Cannes would allow in 1984. Among them a British film at the cusp of the British Film Movement about a group of closeted homosexual boys, unwilling to leave the comfort of their university, of which one eventually becomes the coveted Russian spy Guy Burgess (or at least a small transgression). On several top ten lists of international critics, this viewer had trouble understanding the overall tones, themes, and relative points to the film. Was this a simple love story? Was this film created to symbolize the unsympathetic, yet hypocritical views of homosexuality? Was this a story about a scorned man and his distaste for what fellow Englishmen made him do? Who knows! Hating the idea of so many questions without answers, I challenged myself to watch this film a second time to ensure that obvious points were not being missed, and it faltered yet again. "Another Country" is a hodgepodge of different ideas, social inconsistencies, and covered with an obscure layer of homosexuality. It is a film about nationalism, about education, about love - but it never even scratches the surface of any of these - it just puts them on the table and expects the viewer to "get it". As an outsider looking in, I was confused by the structure of the school, the intertwined love connections, and the purpose behind the bookends with the aging Everett. "Another Country" was dull, trite, and overly presumptuous of itself without giving the viewer any foresight into the world created. It is a dated film about a culture that doesn't exist everywhere, yet oddly the DVD does.

Insult my intelligence if you must, but what sort of education were these students receiving? For the course of 90 minutes, students read book nonchalantly, played dress up for the guard, insulted little boys, ran out of windows, spent money, yelled about Marxism, and made out with each other. There was no visible structure; outside of being caught doing something wrong would mean lashes by the "Gods" of the House. There were no teachers, there were no assignments, and there were no exams that one could see, merely the openness to allow these students to do whatever they wanted to with rules that seemed as archaic as this film. Twenty-four years later, being an American with a structured University understanding, I was confused by this example. This was a major issue with this film, because instead of focusing on the underlying themes, I was too caught up in the basic structure of this school. It starts with a "teacher" finding two students making out, but from there these "teachers" become mere spirits of the mind - looming in the background as threats, but never seen. From a believable standpoint, I was disappointed. The confusion muddled the point, and the misunderstanding of how anyone could choose to stay longer merely to become a "God" of a house left the central focus lost in my eyes.

With the unexplainable introduction to British education bewildering me at every turn, I must also question the validity of director Marek Kanievska's choice to bookend this film with an aging Everett attempting to explain his reason for being a traitor by using his boyhood school days as an analogy of life and love. Was it necessary to convey the story by using a real historical figure as the narrator? This initially gave me a false impression of what this film would be about. I assumed it would be about his turn to Russia, while instead it focused on his love of Harcourt (a very floppy Cary Elwes) and disgust for hypocritical friends. The use of the bookends felt like it gave the film a more authentic feel at first, but when they were revisited at the end, I felt slightly cheated and still confused. Did the reporter get her story? What story was she after? Should "Another Country" have this many questions upon its conclusion? Perhaps the play was better structured, but as a film adaptation, I must admit it fails.

Leading us through the murkiness of "Another Country" are currently well respected actors in the British community. Colin Firth plays the only strong character in this entire film, Tommy Judd. His hatred for everything really exemplified my feelings about this film, which is why I connected to him the most. He was the Salinger-esque character that was well defined, strong, and understandable. The rest, well, the rest were as disappointing as this film. Everett was as weak as a wet paper towel. His character was unknown, attempting to be himself as well as a character, I kept seeing Everett be Everett - he was never Guy Bennett (Burgess - whatever!). The bewilderment of where Madonna was kept me at bay, but the sure comic genius of the film was that of Cary Elwes playing someone who caught the attention of Everett - somehow. Everett seems to attempt to play a smart, charismatic student that bends the rules and flaunts his homosexuality; Elwes is completely different - if one could even say that. He is awkward, boring, and honestly, a nothing. He is not a character, not Harcourt, not Elwes, nothing. During a first time dinner where Everett attempts to pour out his story about his romantic death of his father, Elwes responds with a grunt of a "No way" or something along those trivial lines. Elwes is reminiscent of a dog in this film, no real motive; he just follows Everett around pushing the plot into another dismal avenue.

Overall, "Another Country" was a disappointment. The lack of a focused direction, informative introduction, and defined characters sunk this film before it even had the opportunity to leave port. The characters were abysmal. A pre-Mr. Darcy Firth was fun to watch, but everyone else played themselves out of character, out of entertainment. This was a film about so many ideas that no real idea was able to surface. The onslaught of homosexuality was impressive to see in a film released in 1984, but midway through the feature it became cliché. Having recently viewed Alan Bennett's "The History Boys" as well as read the play, it was tough to watch "Another Country" sink into the water. Why couldn't there be teachers that understood, students that were less forceful with their homosexuality (perhaps just seeing it as the norm), and loves that broke the barriers, instead of jumping out of nowhere. Being a Cannes Best Film nominee, I had high hopes for this film, but the lack of everything solid soured it immediately. Kanievska's direction was more made-for-TV than worth of film. "Another Country" was just another cliché British schoolboy film that went nowhere, gave us lucid characters, and confused us by being too smart than what it is. Could not suggest it to anyone, nor would I!

Grade: * out of *****
March 18, 2008

Another Country, Another Movie

I was bored to tears!!! This is a real lackluster movie. Dialogue poor, cinematography ordinary and the acting boring. Believe me, you can't wait to see this sleeper....yawn!

F.Poe
NYC January 28, 2008

Another Country

Another Country, while very entertaining, lacks the necessary elements of a really good plot. Most of the men in the movie are beautiful and that makes it difficult to know which ones were involved in homosexual activity and which ones were not.

Rupert Everett was very young during the making of this film and to be honest his Oscar Wilde films (The Important of Being Ernest and An Ideal Husband) are far superior to this one.

Gay people can oooh and aaah over the pretty boys; but there's never any actual homosexual activity--not even kissing that would make this move more enticing to watch.

Colin Firth has gone on to do wonderful films. This role was a little weird in that he had what I call a speech impediment. December 17, 2007

The Betrayal of the Western Elites

A number of the British elites betrayed their country on behalf of the Communist utopian dream. They were the upper crust of the establishment---and above suspicion. Few ever considered the possibility that these scoundrels might possibly pose a security threat. Their leftist political views during their university years was shrugged off as not of great importance. "Another Country" is a fictional account of how these narcissistic individuals may have been seduced into joining Stalin's crusade for world domination. Both Rupert Everett and Colin Firth give fine performances.

This film increased my hostility towards traitors like Kim Philby, Donald MacLean, and America's own Alger Hiss. Such well educated adults had no long-term excuse for ignoring the hard evidence regarding the horrors of Communism. They were not mere useful idiots, but also cold and indifferent human beings. No, I did not feel sorry for them. They deserve only our contempt. September 3, 2007

I miss the Cricket

I truly wanted to love this movie. The one thing it is definitely not short on is potential. The ending however is one of the sorriest I've ever witnessed and leaves way too many unanswered questions. Although it is in English, the accents are extremely heavy and hard to understand, which makes it difficult at best to keep up with the plot.

In a shabby apartment in Moscow, an American journalist asks a retired spy why he betrayed his country and defected to Russia 50 years ago. The answers take them back to 1932, where in the closed atmosphere of a British Boy's School, young Guy Bennett (Rupert Everett) realizes his attraction for his classmates is more than a passing phase.

There, in an environment permeated by desire and in the wake of a gay classmates suicide, Bennett falls desperately in love with a younger student, James Harcourt (Cary Elwes) and is introduced to marxism by Tommy Judd (Colin Firth), his most loyal friend.

Rupert and Elwes shine in their performances and the rest of the cast of wonderful actors makes for a lot of eye candy. There is some male nudity, although not nearly enough and a tender romance is budding in the confines of secrecy that is a delight to watch. A beautiful setting helps make this film very enjoyable if you can understand what's going on. Other than the ending, and the thick dialogue, this is an enjoyable film. I do recommend it but I also recommend you keep expectations low, as not to be greatly disappointed. I cannot however recommend it as highly as I would have liked. You will have to fill in about 50 years of the plot with your own imagination, but perhaps that's the kind of ending other people like. I found it disappointing, but I also enjoyed the movie. July 18, 2007

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