Another Country
In a shabby apartment in Moscow, an American journalist questions a retired spy about his betrayal of his native England and his subsequent defection to the USSR. The answers take them back to 1932, where in the closed atmosphere of a British boy's school, young Guy Bennett (Rupert Everett) realizes that his attraction to his classmates is more than a passing phase.
Member Reviews
The Cost of Homophobia - swissguy
I once wrote a research paper for university on gay teen suicide and ended by writing that our prejudices hurt ourselves. I wrote this because the systemic hatred that fosters homophobia results in parents upholding a system that, in some cases, results in their children's suicides. Thus some parents of gay teens who commit suicide are complicit in their own children's deaths. There is a similar theme running through any damage that may be caused by information that may have been handed over to WikiLeaks by Private Bradley Manning. Don't Ask Don't Tell and a climate of homophobia that permeates many Western countries may have resulted in Private Manning feeling unfairly treated and disadvantaged and this may have resulted in his attaining and handing over information. Thus a country's prejudice coming back to haunt it. The same theme is played out in this film wherein we see the brutal discrimination meted out to anyone in a British school who is caught engaging in homosexual acts. This movie is loosely based on a true story, that took place in the 1930's, of young men who were in a British school. One of them had an affair with a fellow student and got caught and suffered the consequences. He and a friend of his, who was enamoured of Communism, became spies for the Communists and then defected to Russia never to set foot in Britain again. This movie is well acted, the cinematography is beautiful and the young men are gorgeous (filmed in 1986 and starring Rupert Everett and Colin Firth). The message is a lesson to us all. Our hatreds come back to haunt us both individually and collectively.Another Country - PowaPete
The members of the cast all turn in credible performances, and the tight knit elitism of the institution itself comes across more convincingly than in American scene like Scent of a Woman. I am even ready to say that Another Country may have appeared bold and challenging at a cultural moment when Boy George was the only gay man in public. It's rough, though, to say what is more dispiriting—a picture with no ideas or one with an idea that it cannot bear to say, a range of ideals to which it will not actually admit. In this story, actors are straitjacketed.Another Country - ricepudding
Despite all of the damage done (including loss of life) by the infamous British super-spies Guy Burgess, Donald McLean, Kim Philby, and Antony Blunt, there remains a close following of their activities, and, one cannot help feeling a certain admiration for their methodology and cleverness with respect to the spy-trade.
Another Country does not really reveal anything about spying by any of the four. It is an account of an imagined Guy Burgess during his time at Eaton, one of Britain's Public Schools (ie. fee paying ). With respect to the authenticity of Burgess’ time at school unless one is ‘in the know’, or was a pupil or master at one of the elite schools, it is not possible to fully understand the life that Burgess lead there.
That Burgess developed his homosexual needs at Eaton is evident in the movie. What is not made clear is that he never expressed an abiding interest in Politics (Communism) until his final year at Cambridge University, whereas the movie suggests that he was politically inclined at Eaton. By this time, the good-looking young man had secured his homosexuality. So insatiable was his appetite for men that his reputation became a sort of “homme fatal” to those he knew.
In the late 1920’s the terrible punishment delivered to both young and older students at
public schools was still practiced. It drove some of the younger pupils almost mad. Homosexuality was considered a “punishable offence”, although no doubt many liasons took place without discovery. The practice of “fagging” is well illustrated (young boys serving older pupils) and the Prefects exercised a sort of dictatorial power over the young minds.
This is a well made movie despite inaccuracies. The acting by all of the young players is first class, and even though you may not relate well to this “piece of England” it is worth seeing.
Member Reviews
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The Cost of Homophobia - swissguy
I once wrote a research paper for university on gay teen suicide and ended by writing that our prejudices hurt ourselves. I wrote this because the systemic hatred that fosters homophobia results in parents upholding a system that, in some cases, results in ...Another Country - PowaPete
The members of the cast all turn in credible performances, and the tight knit elitism of the institution itself comes across more convincingly than in American scene like Scent of a Woman. I am even ready to say that Another Country may have appeared bold ...Another Country - ricepudding
Despite all of the damage done (including loss of life) by the infamous British super-spies Guy Burgess, Donald McLean, Kim Philby, and Antony Blunt, there remains a close following of their activities, and, one cannot help feeling a certain admiration for ...