Ralph Compton (Nicolas Hoult) witnesses the disintegration of his parents’ marriage through adultery and alcohol set during the last gasp of the British Empire in Swaziland in 1969. When his father (Gabriel Byrne) remarries an American (Oscar-nominee Emily Watson), Ralph finds she is the only one who can truly understand his inner turmoil.
Free use image by Gerd Altmann on Pixabay
Ornery Owl's Mini Review
Five out of Five Stars
This coming of age film set in 1969 contains a different kind of peril than yesterday's offering. Both of Ralph's parents are unstable in their own way. Ralph sees his mother cheating on his father with one of his father's friends. When his mother leaves his father for the friend, his father falls into a bottle.
While Ralph is away at boarding school, his father marries an American flight attendant. This is no evil stepmother story. Ruby is a wonderful character. She's in Ralph's corner, and she stands up to the snobs. She befriends Gwen, whose husband Ralph's mother left his father for.
Gwen and Ruby are better mothers to Ralph than his own mother. Her attempt to re-enter his life and reconcile with his father is self-serving and disastrous.
I enjoyed this story and give it an enthusiastic recommendation.
You can see if your library has this film available on Kanopy.
https://www.kanopy.com/en/highplains/video/4825398
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