Russel, after hanging out with his straight mates at a drunken party, goes to a gay club, where he ends up taking a dude named Glen home. Instead of the expected one-night stand, they make a meaningful connection, one that becomes something special.
Glen is out. Russel isn’t quite fully out of the closet. He’s out to his close friends, but that appears to be about it.
One scene in particular sticks out to me, where Russel and Glen are exchanging numbers in case they want to meet up again. Instead of hugging or kissing each other goodbye, they end up shaking hands, with Glen saying, “You have a lovely home.” Then he joins the woman and guy entering the lift. It was a small scene, but made me realize that Glen might’ve been careful for Russel’s sake.
Weekend is definitely an indie film, but one of my favorites. After watching it for the first time, I downloaded the song that plays at the very end: it’s actually about an ice cream shop, which I just learned as I searched for this song. But, still, in my head, it sounds like the name of a gay club to me. (I originally thought it was about going to a club, because of the film. But I was wrong, haha. Silly me.)
One of my favorite lines from the song is “you’ll get your heart’s desire/I will meet you under the lights.” It’s intimate and romantic. It captures the film’s romantic and sexual tension perfectly. I love the melody, too. The soft piano is captivating. I think I actually listened to this song several times before I decided to buy it, because I just kept wanting to hear it again.
Over the course of a weekend, Russel and Glen become quite close. They go to one of Russel’s mates parties, in which Russel looks longingly at Glen, looking “like you really want to kiss me right now,” but feeling like he can’t, especially with a group of strangers around.
This film is something of an exploration, as the quote on the movie poster suggests. It’s about sex, it’s about falling for someone, and it’s about finding intimatcy with another person. Weekend is gripping, told in present tense, honest, and raw. By the end–which I won’t spoil for you–I was feeling a little bummed out. Devestated is probably a better word. The dialouge is real, which is something that is hard to create realistically.
By the film’s end, you feel something. And that’s the symbol of a good film: you’ve grown to like the characters, they’ve grown on you. Russel and Glen certainly have grown on me, because I miss them from time to time. I can only hope that they will meet up again sometime; they have each other’s phone numbers. I highly enjoyed watching their relationship go from a one-night encounter into something that has potential for something more, something long lasting, I think.
If you like thoughtful gay films, this one is for you. I recommend giving it a watch, because it’s far too good to pass up.
The Nerdy Nook 