All of Us Strangers is a haunting drama about reflection. After casting a spell on audiences at film festivals, including Telluride and BFI London, Andrew Haigh’s adaptation of Taichi Yamada’s 1987 novel, Strangers, comes to theaters on December 22nd from Searchlight Pictures. Blurring the lines between reality and fantasy, what emerges is something raw and heartbreaking yet therapeutic.
(Searchlight Pictures)
London-based screenwriter Adam (Andrew Scott, Spectre) lives a solitary life in a new apartment building in London. One of his few neighbors, Harry (Paul Mescal, Aftersun), sparks a connection with Adam that gets him to open up about his childhood, leading Adam on a pilgrimage back to his childhood home. What he didn’t expect to find was the ghosts of his father (Jamie Bell, Billy Elliot) and mother (Claire Foy, The Crown) waiting for him, frozen in time and waiting to learn about his life.
Artistically crafted, writer/director Andrew Haigh (Looking) weaves together elements that are sure to spark conversations like the best movies do. Is Adam haunted or hallucinating? Is any of this real? It’s the kind of question that stays in the back of your mind after the credits roll. There’s a psychological aspect to All of Us Strangers that filmmakers typically reserve for thrillers, but this one delivers that creep factor without any jump scares or horrifying visuals.
The film artfully uses light to tell the story. Reflective surfaces are often used, creating a visual feast of refraction. The apartment elevator, for example, has mirrors on all sides, creating an endless echo of its occupants in scenes set there. And in a romantic night out at a dance club, Adam and Harry kiss amidst disco lights that burst through the tight spaces between them. Visual poetry. It’s a cinematographic masterpiece that’s sure to be studied by a future generation of film school students.
(Chris Harris/Searchlight Pictures)
Haigh also leans on a great soundtrack of 80s-infused music to help tell the story. Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s “The Power of Love” becomes symbolic of the relationship that develops between Adam and Harry, quoted in the dialogue in addition to playing over the end credits. And the Pet Shop Boys’ cover of “Always On My Mind” takes on narrative significance in the context of Adam’s relationship with his parents, who passed away suddenly when he was twelve.
What sets All of Us Strangers apart from other films about the living communicating with the dead is the fact that its lead character is gay. Unique aspects of growing up queer give Adam a lot of unfinished business when it comes to his relationship with his parents. Having never had the chance to come out of the closet to them, one of the film’s stand-out moments happens when tries to tell the ghost of his mother. While the film has stellar performances, Andrew Scott and Claire Foy deliver an unforgettable moment for queer people that resonates in a similar way to Jennifer Garner’s unforgettable monologue in Love, Simon.
All of Us Strangers is raw, vulnerable, and poignant. At its essence, it’s a film about a man with arrested development unpacking and examining his past traumas so that he can move forward. It keeps you guessing, even after the credits begin to roll, and is the type of film that audiences will debate about for years to come.
I give All of Us Strangers 5 out of 5 orange sunsets.
All of Us Strangers comes to theaters on December 22nd.