A gritty, authentic-looking story about a man who picks up another in a nightclub in Nottingham after a night on the beer and of the fairly intense 48 hours they subsequently spend together. It doesn't conform to any "typical" descriptions of a gay film; it is dark, emotionally charged and honest about dealing with the range of issues - mental and social - faced by Tom Cullen and a superb Chris New as they get to know each other; warts-and-all. It is a film about realising potential. Do we think that they actually fall in love by the end? Well - that's the question... Irritatingly, on occasion the audio mix makes it very difficult to hear what's being said - a nuisance given dialogue is actually key to much of this film.

When we think of LGBT cinema, we usually think of men in drag, or stories of the community collectively overcoming hardship. Andrew Haigh's "Weekend" is a different one. While it does focus on the characters' sexual orientation, it's more about the subtlety in the characters' lives and how they seek fulfillment. The movie makes sure to create complex, relatable characters, so that we can always feel for them. It's not the greatest movie ever made, but one that prompts the viewer to think deeply about the characters, empathizing with them.

I recommend it.

Saw this is at Provincetown film Festival. This takes place in Britain. After a night with straight friends closeted Russell (Tom Cullen) goes to a gay bar and meets Glen (Chris New). They go home and have sex. Despite the sex being nothing special they start talking and become attracted to each other. Unfortunately Glen is relocating to the US that Monday. This leads to more sex and discussions on life, love and relationships.

I did love this film but it has problems. The British accents were so thick I had trouble understanding some of the dialogue (Cullen's isn't bad but News' was virtually incomprehensible). Still I was able to follow it more or less and found it interesting. The dialogue (what I could figure out of it) was sharp and insightful and the acting was excellent. Also the sex scenes were fairly explicit (there's a fair amount of nudity) and hot but nothing hardcore. Well-done gay drama. Worth catching.