You Can Live Forever

Damn, what a great film. From the undeniable chemistry between the two leads, fantastic score, amazing cinematography and a script that a lot of queer people can definitely relate it's no doubt that this movie deserves to go places and I can't wait to watch it again once it hits streaming.

I didn't know what the movie was about beforehand, thought it'd be a forgettable teen romcom. You might connect more deeply if you're Jehovah's Witness or lesbian audiences, but even if you aren't, you can find familiarities with pretty much any religious community, and a good love story is a good love story, regardless. It does have its fair share of cheesiness and cliches, like the classic meet-cute, locking eyes across a crowded room, albeit set in a church. But who doesn't appreciate a bit of cheesy romance? The story is quite compelling, and the characters share a genuine connection and chemistry.

The beauty and heartbreak in Marike's face, as she navigated love, pain, and unwavering faith, were truly moving. Jaime's struggle as a non-believer and a lesbian in a close-knit Jehovah's Witness community. This film was a quiet and compassionate portrayal, it's relatively short, yet it took its time to build the romantic interest. It might not be best selling point for Jehovah's Witness, but I loved how Marike held onto her faith, especially the line, "I can believe enough for the both of us," which captured her emotional dilemma of choosing between her so unwavering faith and her forbidden first love.

I love that there isn't a clear antagonist among the main characters. It's clear that their situation couldn't lead to a happy ending: if they had run away, Marike would have felt the loss of leaving her faith behind, and if they had stayed, their pretense would have taken an emotional toll, as you can't keep up a charade 'cause you can't be sneaky links with the love of your life forever lol. It was what it was, and I believe it was written and told in a believable and unpretentious manner, allowing you to empathize with the characters' choices and the challenges they faced in their environment.

While it may not be a mind-blowing masterpiece, could see why some might not like it, but it made me feel mushy inside and left a lasting impact for me. June Laporte and Anwen O'Driscoll portrayed their characters exceptionally well. Also loved the title's meaning. This movie felt like a little quiet hidden gem, perhaps better off unnoticed by the masses.

The film dragged a bit at the beginning, and the slow development also bothered me a bit. One can say that the long development built up good tension and not everything was revealed straight away. I found the story of the two women just as interesting and I think it's not covered enough in films. The spycy parts were well balanced and I liked the acting characters. Although some actors' characters came across as more real than others. In my opinion the film deserves 7/10 stars. Only seven because I was missing some poetry, but that's a matter of taste. All in all a good film that should get more attention.

The Canadian film You Can Live Forever was co-written and co-directed directed by Sarah Watts and Mark Slutsky.

Anwen O'Driscoll portrays Jaime, a teenager who is sent to live with her aunt after her father's death. Her aunt and uncle are Jehovah's Witnesses.

Jaime develops a romantic relationship with Marike (June Laporte). Marike is also part of the Jehovah's Witness community. It's not a community that accepts lesbian love, and the path forward isn't easy.

This is an extraordinary film. The acting is excellent and the plot is believable. The movie has a very strong IMDb rating of 7.5. I thought that it was even better than that, and rated it 9.

We saw this movie as part of Rochester's outstanding ImageOut LGBTQ film festival.

For me this is a great movie acting of both girls is amazing and the tension between them is amazing how they met how they develop feelings for each others is shown beautifully storyline is not we we expect it to be but overall the movie is great and worth watching🌟