Themes: Unrequited Love, Stalkers, Fish Out of Water
Main Cast: John Hurt, Jason Priestley, Fiona Loewi
Release Year: 1997
Country: CA/UK
Run Time: 93 minutes
Plot
Can a stodgy intellectual who regards the 20th century as a waste of time find happiness with an American teen idol who doesn't really know him? That's the question posed in this gentle satiric comedy. Giles De'ath (John Hurt), who takes great pains to remind people that his surname is pronounced "Day-ath," is a well-regarded British author whose wife passed away a decade ago. Since then, Giles has retreated into a world of his own; he is thoroughly disinterested in contemporary culture and lives in the 20th century only to the degree that it is absolutely necessary. However, one night Giles accidentally locks himself out of his apartment just as a rainstorm has begun to open up the sky. Soaked to the skin, he takes refuge in a nearby movie theater, since he's heard that the works of E.M. Forster have lately become popular screen fodder. However, once inside the multiplex, Giles discovers to his disgust that he's accidentally bought a ticket for a low-brow teen flick called Hot Pants College II. Just as he's about to register his repugnance with the management, actor Ronnie Bostock (Jason Priestley) appears on screen, and immediately Giles is entranced. In Ronnie, Giles discovers an unexpected sort of beauty that he's never considered before, and he's eager to learn more about the young actor. However, Giles soon discerns that reading up on his new obsession means buying teen-oriented fanzines (whose covers proclaim him "Snoggable!"), where he learns that Ronnie's own cultural signposts include Axl Rose and Stephen King, whose names could just as well be Sanskrit to Giles. He also discovers that to view the rest of Ronnie's screen work, he must visit a video rental store, which means he must first purchase a VCR, and that he'll also require a (gulp!) television in order for the VCR to work. Eventually, Giles finds out that Ronnie lives in a small town on Long Island, and decides to fly there, hatching a scheme to meet Ronnie by first making the acquaintance of Audrey (Fionna Loewi), Ronnie's fashion model girlfriend. Based on the acclaimed short novel by Gilbert Adair, Love and Death on Long Island was adapted for the screen and directed by Richard Kwietniowski. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Review
An observant, richly funny look at unlikely obsession (which takes its cue wittily from Visconti's Death in Venice), this engaging debut film by Richard Kwietniowski manages to be a slightly satiric dissection of class structure as well as a tale of unrequited love, a truly difficult balance that this film makes winning and real. John Hurt excels in a tricky lead role, mostly due not only to his mordant wit as an actor, but to his warm realization of the events the film depicts. The movie's look at contrasting sensibilities shines through, and never cheapens the central relationship of the two leads, giving it a gravity that a less nuanced film would have missed entirely. Jason Priestley is also a key to the film's success, delightfully sending up his television heartthrob background and, more importantly, creating an object of affection that is believable and endearing. Many critics have pointed out that the story bears some resemblance to the Oscar-winning Gods and Monsters that would follow a year later, and though there are similarities, this picture is truly original in its own right and deserves a larger audience than its scant release would have indicated. ~ Jason Clark, All Movie Guide
Emanuel Jannasch - Art Director, Fleur Whitlock - Art Director, Brian Donovan - Associate Producer, Jon Comerford - Casting, Kate Day - Casting, Andrea Galer - Costume Designer, Max Keene - First Assistant Director, Richard Kwietniowski - Director, Susan Shipton - Editor, Richard Grassby-Lewis - Composer (Music Score), The Insects - Composer (Music Score), David McHenry - Production Designer, Oliver Curtis - Cinematographer, Steve Clark-Hall - Producer, Christopher Zimmer - Producer, Jim Rillie - Sound/Sound Designer, Neil Kingsbury - Sound/Sound Designer, Richard Kwietniowski - Screenwriter, Gilbert Adair - Book Author
The storyline of obsession somewhat resembles that of Death in Venice. Given Adair's self-consciousness as a writer, all such resemblances are likely to be intentional.
Giles De'Ath (John Hurt) is a British writer who doesn't use or understand anything modern. One day, he forgets his keys and locks himself out of his flat and it begins to rain, so he goes to see an E.M. Forster movie. Instead, he accidentally sees the teen flickHotpants College II starring Ronnie Bostock (Jason Priestley), where he becomes infatuated with Ronnie's beauty. He goes to his movies in the cinema, buys teen magazines and cuts out pictures of him, and buys a VCR and TV in order to play rented video tapes of his movies. He lets his housekeeper come into his office less and less, so that he can do these things undisturbed.
As he becomes more and more infatuated, it becomes more obvious to those around him that Giles is becoming disturbed. His friend and agent suggests that he take a holiday.
De'Ath sets out to meet Ronnie in Long Island. He flies to Long Island and takes a train to the town Ronnie is from, then takes a cab and asks to be taken to a "guest house". The cabbie takes him to a motel along the side of the highway, where Giles registers for a couple of weeks. Giles then begins his daily search for Ronnie, which basically consists of Giles wandering up and down streets. A nearby restaurant owner tells Giles where the "fancy" town area is, and Giles wanders around there in hopes of finding Ronnie. He finds Ronnie's dog, because of its unusual name, but the dog won't let him follow it. He then finds Ronnie's car with Ronnie's girlfriend in it, and he follows her to the supermarket. Giles rams his shopping cart "accidentally" into the girlfriend and makes up a story about his god-daughter, Abigail, being in love with Ronnie. The girlfriend , Audrey (Fiona Loewi), is seemingly glad to have found a fan-base for Ronnie in England, and spends the day talking to Giles. She then tells him that she and Ronnie will invite him over at another time, where they can talk about Ronnie's career.
Ronnie and Audrey take a few days to call Giles, during which Giles holds the phone by him and doesn't move. They eventually do call, and Giles becomes a regular visitor to the Ronnie and Audrey's house. Ronnie is flattered by Giles, and Giles is able to stay longer in his presence by claiming that he will write a new script for Ronnie, one that better suits his acting abilities. Audrey becomes more upset about their relationship, especially when Ronnie begins defending Giles. She tells Giles that she is taking Ronnie to see her parents and that they won't be back for a week, after Giles has left. Giles is very upset, and in a last-ditch effort, he confronts Ronnie and tells him how he feels about him. He says that many artists have had younger male lovers, and that Ronnie should split up with Audrey because it is obvious to him (Giles) that it won't last. Ronnie rejects Giles but seems genuinely concerned for him. Giles goes back to England, and from the cinema watches Ronnie's next film: another Hotpants College movie.
