Femme

Femme is a brilliantly tense and gripping thriller that will truly have you on the edge of your seat.

It follows drag performer Jules who seeks a unique sort of revenge on the perpetrator of a homophobic attach against him. It's a thoroughly unique and engaging and superbly constructed plot that keeps pace and momentum throughout. It really feels like anything could happen at any moment which gives the film such a great energy.

The greatest thing about this film though is the two lead performances from Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and George McKay. They are both exquisite and bring such intriguing complexity to each of their characters. The dynamic between them is so hard to capture but they both do it so well. The performance from McKay is particularly strong as he cultivates this anything could happen tone through his erratic portrayal of the character.

Aside from the brilliant performances and plot, the tone and style of the film are great and make for a rich and engaging film.

Femme is a powerful, punchy, and unique piece of cinema that will have you hooked from start to finish.

Adapted from an award winning short film of the same name, this follows the path of Jules (Nathan Stewart Jarrett), who after an horrific homophobic attack is drawn into the world of Preston (George Mackay) one of his assailants for revenge, or maybe not. Preston and his circle inhabit a different lifestyle of criminality and underlying violence which imbues this film with almost unbearable tension and we fear for Jules all the time. We are surprised by the availability of every kind of gay porn to access or contribute to, which could also be used as a weapon to destroy someone's life. The dialogue is authentic and compelling throughout and holds our interest until the scary climax. All the actors are excellent especially the two main guys.

In a nutshutt, Femme is a story about the protagonist's power being stolen and their realization that the only way to get it back is to TAKE IT BACK. And the plan to do so is a story told in the narrative that is enticing, tension building and slow burn perfection.

Following an attack, Jules goes from a confident extrovert to a scared introvert. Months go by and all Jules can do is play street fighter on the couch (albeit well). Jules begrudgingly leaves their flat to go to a bath house. In doing so, a chance encounter with the attacker presents itself. Jules is curious.

Enter Preston... This is a guy who has bad tattoos and a bad attitude. But that doesn't stop Jules from being curious and that curiosity leads to a creative plan of revenge. Does Jules get their power back? You will need to watch this one to find out.

George Mackay and Nathan Stewart both execute phenomenal performances. If you're a fan on Nathan Stewart in this movie, see also the series Soulmates (Black Mirror style genre). I haven't come across George Mackay before, but equally impressed.

A revenge drama is a tricky business. You don't want it to be a too much of exploitation trash, but you don't want it to be too safe either. 'Femme' falls closer to 'playing it too safe' team.

I found the biggest issue was that the key moments didn't ring true. The assault scene, for example, is the basis of the rest of the ensuing drama. I wouldn't have expected it to be the level of 'Irreversible'... but it definitely relied too much on camera works and editing than the rawness of the violence, thus making Jules' resulting trauma less gripping to the audience.

The following key moments of shift also failed to be convincing. How Jules re-encounters Preston, how that chance encounter leads to hook up, how that again leads to a proper steak date... all seem to just happen for the convenience of the plot. Also Preston's changes as a character, namely how he develops deeper feeling towards Jules and admits his submissive side... all come along without much development (after literally one scene after another of him using Jules like a sex toy, that is).

Together with Jules' frankly flimsy plan of 'revenge' (why would he bring Preston back to his place and let his friends meet him if he truly was serious about his revenge?), the overall result is that it made it hard to take the whole thing rather seriously. A revenge drama that keeps you at the edge of the seat, 'Femme' is not.

One of the weaknesses was also Stewart-Jarrett playing Jules. His switch between feminine-masculine persona was impressive, but his display of tension/fear/emotional struggle was pretty mono-toned. Say, his fear before the assault should have a different colour to his fear when he later faces Preston's thug friends, for example. But to my eyes, it all felt pretty generic 'fear'.

Mackay's display of explosive temper and the contrasting soft/weak side is great, but even his great acting cannot quite make up (already mentioned) lack of convincing development.

I want to see more risk taking and raw approach when the film maker took up such a controversial subject to start with.

I sat watching this after a heavy meal in the evening and had been afraid I might have dropped off. Not a chance. The writing and direction, let alone the two main characters, kept the tension high all the time. An hour and forty minutes seemed to speed by.

I'd been worried that I might not get into the film as the world of drag and effeminacy is not mine. However the brilliance of the acting swept all such doubts aside as Jules and Preston developed their affair.

This isn't a simple revenge film. There's more to it than that and the film starts to delve into real feelings that the two lovers develop for each other.

The ending is bleak but leaves enough scope for hope. I recommend this film.