agathorsmith
The underlying premise is unique, a 22 year old is having a love affair with his sister's husband, but throughout the film their is confusion in the message, unnecessary clichés, and bad acting from all but Suzanne Collins (Jane, the wife). The dynamic between Jules and David is the first thing the audience is introduced to, the film starts two years into their affair but doesn't offer an interesting backstory or any real explanation about why they are in love.Then it cuts to the least fun looking gay bar, where David meets a new guy and they take drugs, have sex then (after a strange 5 minute montage) are in love. Then the film drags on until the predictable dramatic ending, which could have been made a lot more dramatic. I was hoping for a 'Dr.Foster' type event but the payoff just wasn't there. Also, suddenly the husband goes from thinking he is straight to being gay. There was no aspect of the husbands struggle with his sexuality, or any mention of bisexuality. It would have been a great opportunity to mention that, it is something that is frequently ignored in LGBT+ cinema. I did think that the way the truth was forced out was new, with David finding out that the affair has caused him to get HIV. Personally, it felt way too much like a feature length soap opera and had no real character development. I found myself occasionally skipping forward 2 or 3 minutes just to get to the end of it. A very dramatic story, but the script was written in the least dramatic way possible.
shenerdk
Came across this film through social media and was interested to see soap actors in a feature film. To be honest I didn't have much expectation as a lot of the reviews had said this was typical soap plot lines but in my opinion the film tackles real issues and the cast delivered the story exceptionally well. Laura Ainsworth who plays Stacey was hilarious, she played the character so well. Suzanne Collins who I loved in Brookside was also brilliant. This film is set in Liverpool and was good to see a non London setting. Would Defo recommend this for soap fans! Incredible to think that this was made for less than £20k. Will be hoping to see more from the director!
Irishchatter
I have to say, the acting and the storyline was absolutely spot on! Jonny Labey was such a great little actor especially his dance moves and his personality makes you honestly turn your frown upside down. I really thought he looked like Joe McElderry and Daniel Brocklebank looked so much of Duncan Bannatyne. They all should definitely meet up and see their reflections! The storyline really made sense of stepping into the shoes of love and cheating joined in together. It was really tearjerking when the characters Jules and David admitted to Jane that they were having a affair behind your back. Man, it honestly looked so real that I forgot this was a drama film! You would definitely feel something in your eyes during that scene! What was even more sadder, Jane and David had both gotten HIV from Jules all along. This really gives you a good think of HIV awareness because everyone deserves to be safe and it's important that they look after their health, like we all do! I definitely would want this to get a lot of nominations especially a BAFTA award! Go watch it! :)
Tom Dooley
**May contain plot spoilers** The term 'soft lad' is a term of affection in Liverpool meaning nice and harmless, and here this references David who is an aspiring dancer who is in love with an older man and that man is married to someone very close to him.The relationship though is stalling as it seems to be base on need and desire and so David has to make some changes – the problem is things have already been set in motion that are going to dictate how everyone behaves and will have lasting and damaging repercussions for all involved.This is a rather good film, Daniel Brocklebank is as ever very reliable in his role of the duplicitous husband, but show stealer for me is Suzanne Collins who is a joy to watch. Once again another example of a very well made and acted British Independent film.
AD
