Weekend

There are moments in life when you suddenly connect with someone and it changes your whole world. But even today it's rare to see that in a film about two men.

Andrew Haigh's Weekend is a refreshingly realistic story of mixed fortunes, love and unfulfilled expectations. When out-but-shy Russell bumps into the more outgoing Glen in a tacky nightclub in Nottingham, what was a one-night-stand becomes a weekend they'll never forget. Forget saccharine platitudes; this is the real world, where good and bad things happen and life is what you make it. Haigh's generally unselfconscious approach is tarnished slightly by a more ordinary need to make both leads trendy and attractive, but this is far surpassed by a script which gives them depth and allows us under their skin. By letting us share their all-too-human doubts, feelings and reflections as gay men, Haigh has made easily one of the finest gay-themed films of the last few years. [Scotty McKellar]