Elliot Page’s poignant performance is overshadowed by storylines that don’t fit together

Director: Dominic Savage, Near you marks Elliot Page’s return to the screen after a seven-year hiatus – and it’s an incredibly welcome return. This fact simply cannot be underestimated. A family drama that meets an unrequited love story. Near you offers its star the chance to remind us why Elliot Page is an Oscar-nominated actor, as it allows him to embody both tough and tender sides. Page’s portrayal of Sam is full of wit, vulnerability, strength and a burning authenticitya trans man venturing into his hometown for the first time in years.

While not appearing in feature films, Elliot Page served as executive producer of feature films and documentaries, including Backspot And Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Storyand appeared in television shows such as Stories from the city and the fourth and final season of The Umbrella AcademyWhile it is fun to see Page in roles like Viktor Hargreeves or use his platform to make other voices heard, It’s equally gratifying to watch him play a character whose life experiences at least partially parallel his own..

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Elliot Page returns to the screen with his best dramatic performance of his career

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In conversation with The GuardianPage noted that the shooting Near you Was “a highlight of my life as an actor” – and it’s easy to see why. In the opening moments of the film, Sam stares out his bedroom window, observing the world behind glass. Over breakfast, he tells his roommate Emily (Sook-Yin Lee) that he’s nervous about leaving their home in Toronto to visit his family. For Sam Just the thought of going to his family home was fraught with stress, frustration and emotional distress.

Although he means well, his family members seem to need a pat on the back just for respecting his existence. Intention is not the same as effect – something queer and trans people know all too well. On the train ride, Sam meets his former flame Katherine (Hillary Baack), who is now married with children. The two have a pleasant, if tense, interaction; obviously There is much that remained unspoken but was deeply feltAlthough Sam has a few other significant confrontations with Katherine, the film largely revolves around honoring Sam’s father, Jim (Peter Outerbridge), who turns out to be Sam’s greatest ally and supporter.

While Sam’s future brother-in-law Paul (David Reale) is the most blatantly transphobic character, Sam’s siblings and his mother Miriam (Wendy Crewson) underline a different kind of trauma. Sam’s sister Kate (Janet Porter) repeats a hackneyed but all too real talking point, proclaiming that she can’t believe she and Sam shared a room as children and that she didn’t really know him. Kate tells Sam that everyone, especially her parents, is worried about him and his prospects in Toronto.

“When I was at my worst, nobody worried,” Sam tells his sister. It’s cathartic to hear Page express these truths so precisely and honestly in the relative safety of a feature-length film. Page perfectly captures the terrible, depressing realization that comes when you know your family doesn’t really care about you when you weren’t feeling well. It was easier to overlook Sam’s misfortune because his story at least fit into their own narrative.

It’s incredibly powerful to see these scenes on screen, even when they’re serious. When Paul rants about having to follow the “rules” regarding Sam’s identity, Sam has no problem confronting Paul. Of course, it’s frustrating that none of his siblings intervene. Even more frustrating is when Sam’s mother suggests giving Paul a second chance – the chance to apologize. “I don’t have to just ignore it,“, Sam reminds his family. This is something that many supposed allies must not only hear, but also accept.

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“Close To You” cannot overcome its narrative and pacing problems

The film offers some memorable scenes, but it keeps the audience at a distance

Despite Page’s breathtaking performance, Near you weakens in some respects. Many of the conversations were reportedly improvised, which leaves a lot of room for dead spots and redundancy. That’s not necessarily wrong in life, but it definitely drags the scenes down in terms of pacing and engagement.

And then there is the other common thread of the film – Sam’s reunion with Katherine, the woman he loved in his youth. Despite the charm of both actors, There is no believable romantic chemistry between them. That’s partly because Katherine is little more than a sketch – a character who reminds you that she’s actually a character because she seems to have been thrown into the film purely for the sake of the plot. Of course, Baack does her best with the sparse material.

Often, Near you attempts to merge two separate films into one narrative. Sam floats back and forth between his family and Katherine, but it never feels like the threads are part of the same tapestry. The family drama storyline is the stronger of the two, the more fully fleshed out and nuanced, but the film insists on using Sam and Katherine’s relationship as bookends. It’s impressive that Sam always felt safe and close to Katherine, even before the physical transition, but I can’t help but wonder if a family member might have been better placed to accompany this emotional journey.

Near you begins and ends with Sam at a window. While Page’s beautifully nuanced and searing performance will stay with me, The film as a whole feels like I saw it through a window myself – one with frosted panes that no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get a clearer, closer look at the story unfolding on my screen.

Near you opens in select theaters nationwide on August 16, followed by a UK and Canadian release on August 23.

2.5

Close to You is a drama film directed by Dominic Savage and premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2023. Four years after his gender reassignment surgery, Sam returns to visit his father in Canada for his birthday and is afraid of how well he will be received there. However, a chance encounter with an old friend from high school forces Sam to confront his past.

Per

• Elliot Page delivers an outstanding, nuanced performance
• Sam’s relationship with his supportive father is beautifully highlighted

Disadvantages

• The film relies too heavily on Sam’s relationship with Katherine
• Close to You tries to merge two films into one, but it never manages to fully connect