a review of 上帝之国

God's Own Country is a British countryside remix of Brokeback Mountain. I was a bit disappointed by that, as the many raving reviews had made me hope that this film would be a fresh, more inspired take on homosexual romance, in stead of a Brokeback Mountain revisit, featuring another two emotionally restricted farm boys, shepherding in a desolate rural setting, and initially featuring the same emphasis on rough sex scenes in stead of a more subtle approach, as in most romantic films. God's Own Country improved in the second half of the film, showing more subtlety and tenderness, but some scenes still felt a little forced and contrived, such as the dramatic bar scene. When it comes to gay-themed movies my personal favorites are still Tom Ford's A Single Man (2009) and Nagisa Ōshima's Gohatto (1999).