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.

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.

The Truth: I read a review asserting the storyline was implausible but rented it anyway. I've seen quite a few uninspiring LGBTQ+ films and series but You Can Live Forever was far from implausible and uninspiring as I instantly connected to the characters of Jaime and Marike. I too lived a similar story decades ago while in Catholic school and was very much like Jaime -- glasses, Walkman, Converse and all. Bigoted religious institutions, confusion, self-hatred. . . Can tear apart the deepest of connections; nonetheless, I'm now cognizant that everything that transpired was for my betterment -- meant to serve me not hurt me. I walked away from that life and will never go back; I learned it's never too late for a new start.

Anwen O'Driscoll and June Laporte's performances were captivatingly vulnerable and authentic; I was completely bewitched and felt like a butterfly on the wall. From the breathtaking film score by CFCF; cake and basement scenes with Hasani Freeman; to the card, car, and bedroom scenes, I was transfixed -- spellbound.

I remember when my writing teacher advised me to write for me and not the reader; she wanted me to disarm -- to take off my mask -- to let go and tell my truth unfiltered -- unveiled. This unveiling was most evident in June Laporte's extra-ordinary performance; it is clear, especially for us sensitive folks, that they surrendered and delivered all of themselves to this role and it was mesmerizing and at times profoundly heart-wrenching. In my opinion, June Laporte is not only a co-lead but the driving force propelling this understated, beautiful, and unforgettable film to iconic LGBTQ+ film status. June Laporte reminds me of Julie Christie in Dr. Zhivago and Jane Seymour in Somewhere in Time. So well done YCLF! Thank you for telling this too often untold story. You are deserving of every praise and accolade. PS: I bought the film.

This movie is the saddest one I have seen in a while.

The actors have played their roles perfectly.

The emotional tension between the main actors is intense.

The way the girls develop feelings for each other over time is just fabulous.

The movie is 1 hour 36 minutes duration.

In my opinion, it is worth watching.

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.