Every minute counts for Colin Firth and Stanley Tucci.
I saw “Supernova” in a small theater with two other people in the audience. Since it was basically empty, that meant they could complain about the film’s meaning. They were asking “What is the point of this?” or what a secret message was going to say. And I believe they were old folks. As far as I’m concerned, it’s usually the young people who would annoy them in various ways, and I’ve seen this kind of nuisance before.
But that’s beside the point.
“Supernova,” starring Colin Firth and Stanley Tucci, is a small British drama about spending as much time as you can with your loved one before life has a way of moving forward. I was lucky to spend as much time as I could with one of my two grandfathers, just before he passed away last summer. The movie reminds us that all we have is now, and we must cherish that moment. That is what I believe “Supernova” is trying to convey.
Firth and Tucci play a gay couple, Sam and Tusker, who both take an old RV on holiday through the England countryside. Tusker, who is also a famed American writer, has been diagnosed with early onset dementia, and Sam, an English pianist, wants to spend every moment he can with him. There are times when they both make audio recordings about his dementia is treating him. There are times when Sam criticizes Tusker for not taking his pills, but he responds: “I don’t them to remind me I’m ill.” There are also times when he separates from Sam, due to his condition, and constantly apologizes for scaring him like that. And there are also times, when he contemplates suicide, which threatens their relationship. But through the highs and lows, Sam is willing to support his partner, no matter the cost.
Here’s why I can’t give “Supernova” a 4-star rating. We get to a birthday party at Sam’s sister’s (Pippa Haywood) house, which ends up lagging and losing my interests. And it’s not just that, but also a few small sections. But then, the movie picks up when see the two lovers worrying about their futures, given Tusker’s condition. Firth and Tucci both give excellent performances on the notion of love and worries. Seeing them as a gay couple written with sentimentality reminded me of how sensitive John Lithgow and Alfred Molina both were in “Love is Strange.” But this movie isn’t about this particular interests.
It’s about them being there for one another, and, as I’ve mentioned, spending as much time as they can before it’s too late. Writer/director Harry Macqueen (in his first feature since “Hinterland”) guides the two leads with sincerity and passion, and he allows them to be themselves and put all their best efforts in creating these two melancholy characters. As a matter of fact, this is a melancholy movie-one that you reminds you of what you have in the moment, and entertains you along the way.
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