A Moment in the Reeds

Given the fact that it has overall a high score here, the reviews are often very bad. Like so much in life this makes no sense. The two young lead actors are good, and the sexuality that develops between them is convincing in its realism, and its poetic beauty. A young Finn comes ' home ' to Finland to spend his holiday with his father and in the summer house they partly live in there is a young Syrian refugee helping with refurbishments. At first I found this contrived but then all films are to a certain extent, but my reaction changed when the sexual and emotional tension develops through a long evening discussion about difference and identity. This long development led quite naturally into a passion that reminded me of ' Les Amants ' and had the same quality of surprising revelation in sex so rarely seen on the screen. To those who read this remember sexuality and desire are both equal, heterosexually and homosexually. This film transcends the often ghetto feeling of gay lives as depicted in the cinema, even among the best films and I watched it with the sort of reverence due to a film that is made up mostly of silence and the nature of a beautiful Northern country. But the copy I had was full of subtitles that were not that faithful ( a lot of the film is spoken in English between the lovers and the father ) as the young Syrian speaks English along with both the son and the lover. I am late in reviewing this and I have no reason why as I have seen it twice, and I repeat it is a slow ( in the best way ) experience filled with melancholy, the transitory nature of people who cannot truly unite for a future together and above all a poetry of place and sound only seen in the greatest of cinematic experiences. A film to be seen much more than once for all viewers , hetero, bi and homosexual.

Great to see intelligent scripts and good production and direction in GLBTQI Cinema. A Moment In The Reeds, while obviously a Gay Love Story I think could an should be seen by any audience of any sexual orientation.

It's a 2017 Prize Winner from Finland , partly in subtitles but mostly In English. The three actors are Janne Puustinen as Leevi the Art Student returning home from Paris to assist his moody disapproving father renovate the family and his childhood cottage in Finnish Midsummer.

Boodi Kabbani is Tareq a handsome Syrian refugee who's been employed by Leevi's Dad Jouko as a labourer, even though in his own country he's a qualified architect and it's eventually obvious to Jouko not only that Tareq is highly skilled but also that Levi and Tareq have more in common than carpentry.

There's much more to this film than the attraction of the young men , anyone worried about the male sex scenes note the ratings . Sex and Nudity :moderate Violence and Gore :None Profanity : None Alcohol and Drugs /Smoking :mild Frightening/Inttnce scenes : none

It's contemporary setting shows the difference and difficulty of refugees trying to start a new life in a very foreign and suspicious culture and the deep rift that many Gay men experience with a parent or parents that just won't accept their children for who the are. It's interesting to me that with a some good exceptions European GLBTQ1 films are of a much higher quality and able to reflect stories that while obviously are aimed at The Queer film audiences also can resonate with any open minded progressive audience

A Moment in the Reeds is a well written, well directed and well acted story, full of sparking tensions, alluring contrasts and painful realities. The story of an intense connection, forged in an uncomfortable, imperfect setting, is deeply affecting and compelling. As the characters navigate their blossoming relationship, they are forced to confront deep-rooted issues in their lives, the differences and similarities of their personal situations, and a reality that the bubble of bliss they occupy is as transient as it is passionate. This is no PG feature - the sex scenes sizzle; the leads have chemistry that could set asbestos on fire. This is a film not afraid to dive in and own its convictions. Well worth a watch.

(post review-reading rant) Too many IMDBers are projecting their politics, hangups and ideals onto this film. Watch the furking film, people, instead of reinterpreting it through an Instagram filter. Sometimes I think too many people live in their sanitised PC white-bread InstaGrindr bubble and don't actually realise that different people engage with life and the world around them in different ways, and derive meaning and pleasure quite validly whilst operating within this "different" frame. The queer community is becoming a pasteurised, limp-dicked anaemic clone of its superior antecedent. If you want an idealised fantasy tailored to your over-sanitised sensibilities, go hire a celibate, gender ambivalent, emotional support quasi-romantic de-triggered missionary-sex-bot (/post review reading rant). Have a nice day.

I liked this movie, I liked its way in telling the story. Yes, its tempo is slow but the story streams perfectly. Dialogues and acting are very successful. There is no exaggeration or "unnecessary emphasis". Both players, Boodi Kabbani as 'Tareq' and Janne Puustinen as 'Leevi' did well-done job. I slightly disturbed in some scenes (not in scenes with sexual content) when the camera moved too much. For example,, the camera was moving (like shaking) during the scene where two guys were swimming in the pond. I don't know whether it was necessary. Camera moves are usually preferred for horror scenes or for increasing the tension.

I liked the movie but I have some general critics on movies which place "gay issues" at the focus. Why do generally gay movies have to be shut in an isolated places? Far from people, creating a lonely planet have started to be a cliche. 'A Moment in the Reeds' repeats this cliche too, like 'on God's Own Country'. (Likewise directors may create another getto instead they wanted to demolish the walls??) There is also often a hidden sadness in the background and it causes a slow motion streaming. The balance between "drama" and "comedy" are missed on purpose. (That's why I liked more the movie 'Theo and Hugo' due to its tempo.) Gay style-movies also like giving too much priority to dialogues. In the sound structure, the audience listens to dialogues more than the other sounds. These dialogues are also mostly between two main characters. Soundtracks, sounds of city, or other people's dialogues are usually less. This makes movie less believable and less real!! Despite of my general critics, 'A Moment in the Reeds' was directed quite successfully and deserves to be watched!

The truth is that this movie is part of a trend in gay European cinema of handsome refugees falling in love or lust with a local they've been hired to work with or for. This movie came out the same year as God's Own Country, which is raised by magnificent acting, editing and a story that went beyond the basics. Unfortunately, while this is not an awful movie, it pales in comparison. The actors do their job but the lead up to their first kiss is clumsy and everything after it is just badly paced and boring and you lose interest in the story, the characters. Instead of telling the story of gay refugees in Europe, it kind of fetishizes it in a weird way. It's not unwatchable but not as good as it should have been .