Review: ‘All of Us Strangers’ finally opens in DC for haunting, supernatural tale of love, grief
It premiered to acclaim at the Telluride Film Festival in August before being released in select U.S. cities Dec. 22.
This Thursday, the British indie gem “All of Us Strangers” finally opens in our area, including the Landmark E Street Cinema in Northwest D.C., the Alamo Drafthouse in Northeast D.C. and the Angelika Film Center & Cafe at Mosaic in Fairfax, Virginia.
Not only is it your chance to see one of the Best Actor nominees at the Golden Globes this Sunday, it’s an opportunity to experience melancholic catharsis if you’ve grieved lost loved ones only to find yourself.
Based on the 1987 fantasy novel “Strangers” by Taichi Yamada, the film follows London screenwriter Adam, who embarks on a romantic relationship with a lonely man in his building named Harry, whom he refused the night before. While talking a walk around town the next day, Adam discovers that the ghosts of his late parents appear to be living in his childhood home just as they were on the day they died in a car crash 30 years before.
This unique tale of “When Harry Met Adam” wouldn’t work without the chemistry of its two Irish lead actors. Andrew Scott juggles his present frustration of writer’s block with the past trauma of emotional block, earning Golden Globe and Gotham Award nominations in the process, while Paul Mescal portrays lonesome anguish similar to his Oscar-nominated performance in last year’s brilliant indie masterpiece “Aftersun” (2023).
As for the ghostly parents, Jamie Bell (“Billy Elliott”) and Claire Foy (“The Crown”) have the tough task of lingering between planes, both sharing intimate moments with their on-screen son. First, the mother holds him like a child in bed after a nightmare, then the father shares a touching apology for not coming into the room when he heard him crying. It’s here that the title reveals itself: that gay people are too often made to feel like “strangers.”
As a writer, Andrew Haigh weaves these themes into the slow disclosure of his script’s supernatural plot, mysteriously revealing the parents, gradually building their relationship, then bidding them a heartbreaking goodbye. The final twist will make you want to go back and watch it again, finding that the breadcrumb clues were there the entire time, earning every bit of its Critics Choice Awards nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Behind the camera, Haigh is also nominated for Best Director at next month’s Independent Spirit Awards, nearly a decade after directing Charlotte Rampling to an Oscar nomination for “45 Years” (2015). Haigh’s directorial acclaim this year is understandable as he delivers powerful visual symbolism, from ominous apartment floor numbers to elevator reflections that create the effect of an infinity mirror, perfect for a film that transcends time.
I can’t say enough good things about the filmmaking craft on display here. Honestly, the only thing keeping “All of Us Strangers” from being a perfect movie is the fact that it’s a remake of the Japanese film “The Discarnates” (1988). Dock a few originality points if you must, but this version is still easily one of the best films of the year.