emuir-1 Review of God's Own Country

God's Own Country (2017)

A superb drama which did not need unecessary graphic sex and bodily functions

[5/10 · 5 September 2022]

I watched the film yesterday because it was set on a farm in 'north Yorkshire', and because the critics were raving about it. It turned out that it was set in the West Riding area between Keithly and Bradford - my childhood home turf. The performances of Ian Hart as a cloth capped sour-tempered 'Dad' and Gemma Jones as the long suffering grandma were absolutely perfect, but the film was ruined for me because of the very graphic gay sex leaving nothing to the imagination. What really annoyed me was that they did not have to show ANYTHING graphic to get the message across - the drama was enough. It could all have been done with a mere suggestion, like when a couple go into a bedroom and the scene fades out on a closing door. So we had a gay couple - holding hands and eye contact was all we needed. The dramatic story was extremely good, a lonely young man, who had been forced to leave school early, trapped into hard labor on a small family farm which he really wasn't interested in but his grumpy old father was incapacitated by a stroke and someone had to take care of things. His school friends had gone on to university leaving him behind, but he had no education to do anything else and was managing the farm alone. He spent his nights in the pub getting very drunk, and picking up strange men, until he hired a young and capable Romanian to help with the lambing season. As a physiological drama, rather like 'the Servant' as the more assured hired help began to show him how to care for the lambs and other livestock and became the dominant partner, it was very excellent drama, and I particularly liked hearing the Bradford area colloquialisms which I have not heard for decades, but we don't need to see someone vomiting into the toilet, urinating, or having gay sex in a toilet or rolling around naked in a field with another man. If I had been the editor, it would have been a very different film. I don't know what they are trying to do these days. It certainly isn't entertaining. I loved the way Ian Hart played the father, with never a word of praise or thanks for his son, just sour negative comments, until a grudging thank you at the end. When the son had sold off a bull (or cow) at the local auction, he gave his dad £700, but instead of a thank you the father told him off because the dry stone wall need repairing. It was one complaint after another, putting the lad down. I have known many like him. The scenery was beautiful though. I gave the film 5 stars due to the superb acting and the way the bleakness of the location and Johnny's life were conveyed, but I thought the drama could have stood alone without being so graphic.