Handsome Devil

I loved the movie. The only reason it's not a 10/10 is that it's way too similar to the Dead Poets Society. Same English teacher with his unorthodox pedagogy, same sports vs. arts dilemmas, except this time the characters are openly gay and that adds a dimension.

It's equally moving, with the same twist of pupils taking sides, which is the climax of the movie. The acting is great too. I wouldn't be surprised if 5-10 years down the road we see some of these same faces playing in the top gear movies, running for the top prizes. Certainly worth watching - it's not just a coming out of age and a coming out of closet movie, but also a touching young folks' drama set up in a realistic environment. Great piece!

When you spend your life trying to be someone you are not, who is going to be you?! Ned, a fiercely independent teen at a rugby obsessed boarding school, struggles with the answer to this question. Isolated and bullied just because he is different, Ned figures that keeping his head down is the best option to endure the school year. Yet how quickly things can change. A dynamic teacher and omnipotent rugby star, each grappling with their own demons, transfer to the school. Meeting them is the worst and the best thing to happen to Ned. He discovers that what is more important than being cool, is what is beautiful. Yet beauty has its price.

In Handsome Devil, new twists are added to the familiar tale of a teen attempting to stand up in the face of bullying, and reconcile athletics with learning. The added perspectives include a faculty member and a star athlete who face harassment and threats as harsh as those faced by the main character. While the film is predictable in places and the scenes and acting not as exquisite as they might be, I enjoyed the rich dialogue and the new angles on the characters. I really liked the director's previous film, the Stag, for its humor and unique approach to a familiar theme (in this case, a wedding and bachelor's party). Seen at the Miami International Film Festival.

This film tells the story of two pupils in a boarding school, who forms an unlikely friendship.

"Handsome Devil" is a very beautiful film. It gives people hope, empowers people to believe in themselves, and gives a strong message that things do get better. I am deeply touched by the story.

'HANDSOME DEVIL': Four and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

An Irish coming-of-age drama film, about an outcast and an athlete that are forced to share the same bedroom at their boarding school. They of course bond in the process. The movie was written and directed by John Butler. It stars Fionn O'Shea, Nicholas Galitzine, Andrew Scott, Moe Dunford and Michael McElhatton. Being an outcast myself, all of my life, I enjoyed the film quite a bit.

Ned (O'Shea) is a gay outcast that's forced to attend a new boarding school. Conor (Galitzine) was a star rugby athlete, at his old school (who got into too many fights there), and he's now forced to attend the same school. The two are also forced to share the same bedroom together, and they both immediately hate the idea. Over time they bond though, and they even form a two member band together. This doesn't go over well with some of the authorities though, at the rugby obsessed school, and their new friendship is tested.

This is a movie I hadn't heard anything about before seeing it. Then my friend asked me if I wanted to review it, for his website Film-Arcade.net. So after reading about it on IMDb, I said yeah. He sent me the screener, and I was very pleasantly surprised by it. It's a really touching coming-of-age tale, about being an outcast and not fitting in. This film is more specifically about being gay, but it could be about anyone that doesn't fit in (to the social norm) and it would still have the same message. I've been bullied my whole life, for being different (and more specifically for looking different). So many people have socially rejected me for this that it's really caused some serious emotional (and mental) issues. So this movie really spoke to me. I loved it!

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I love this movie so much and I always come back to it when I'm feeling down. It has an excellent soundtrack and portrays a great story.