By Alex Cole.
North Sea Texas is a fragile and gentle affair. Its protagonist, its setting, and even Gino, the film’s most colourful character are withheld, distant and understated. It tells the story of Pim, an introverted young man with a neglectful accordion playing mother Yvette and no father to speak of who lives his life in quiet moments of reflection and obsession over objects and memories. Attaching himself to a neighbouring family to find the affection he longs for he soon begins to explore his sexuality and eventually falls in love with the more outgoing and confident Gino. What makes this film unique is that this particular example of gay cinema does not focus on society’s rejection of two male lovers, but the battle between a boy who knows himself and his own sexuality and another who strives for social norms. Forced to contend with the misguided affected of Gino’s sister Sabrina, and unrequited love we see Pim’s life go from bad to worse, building up to an ending that can only be described as bittersweet..
Where most films of this type would make the most of Pim’s situation and focus on the almost constant tragedy in his life; North Sea Texas is overbearingly understated. It was refreshing to not see any direct violence or outward prejudice of any kind, but to see a battle with personal prejudice and doubt. Whilst this creates a beautiful atmosphere, this film is undoubtedly a fantastic piece of directorship and a film worth seeing. Yet as the film progressed I yearned for more from these characters as I’d begun to get caught up in their lives. Not more drama, not more shouting and not more calls of hatred, not even more dialogue of which the film has surprisingly little. No, it is character development which this film lacks. Although we see what the characters go through the film never truly took us beyond surface casino online of who these characters are. I did not feel a great resonance with Pim, nor Gino, not even Sabrina whose affection for Pim is never returned, only to discover he is her brother’s lover. Bavo Defurne is known for his short films and at times North Sea Texas feels more like a series of short films cut together rather than a feature film. The characters are no more developed that one would see in a fifteen minute short. We see their emotion clearly on the face and we understand the events, but we do not know the person. In this, I felt let down.
A stunning performance from Jelle Florizoone no doubt stands out what is an understated film. His face more than made up for Pim’s lack of dialogue. His emotion cannot be missed; his face conveys everything the viewer needs. Yet, mystery the director creates through his well-chosen camera angles, and brilliant soundtrack is oddly what both detracts from the film but also makes this such a brilliant personal performance. For one character the mystery was perfect, but transferring this to the whole cast was too much.
North Sea Texas is a great film, but for me it just fell short of brilliant. I am left excited to see further work from Bavo Defurne. This first taste of feature film wasn’t perfect but he is a name that will be on the critics’ lips in the future I am sure.
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