An incredible piece of cinema

Rating: 10/10 (25 March 2006)

I must have seen this film 10 times. It is bitter and beautiful and absolutely haunting. Incredible performances from all four leads, stunning cinematography, wonderfully evocative score... I really didn't expect it to be as amazing as it was. It's in my top ten films of all time.
One of the best things about this film is its subtlety. On rewatching so many little bits connect up, lines heartbreakingly echo previous lines, the camera lingers on a window or a toy horse to draw our minds back to an earlier scene. It is rich in symbolism.
To those who think this is a gay love story? Do not underestimate it. It is far bigger than that. It's a story of regret, of the prisons our own psyches put us in and a fascinating study of love stunted in its growth, trapped in a decaying idyll.