Dating Amber (2020)

 

This overlooked, light hearted film set in 1995 is about two closeted Irish teenagers, Eddie and Amber. Tired of the homophobic jibes they have to endure, they conjure up a plan to pretend to be a straight couple. While initially this eases the pressures on them and also means they are meeting familial expectations it leads to other more complex problems. David Freyne’s delightful film turns what could be a serious topic into something altogether more comedic with some pin sharp observations and two characters whom the viewer soon gets to like. In a way it’s a romcom without the `rom` as the duo’s pretence leads to each of them discovering more about themselves.

 

Handsome Devil

For a film whose theme is about being yourself and not hiding things, the title is somewhat misleading but this is a subtle coming of age drama that travels familiar roads but has a refreshing tendency to veer off when you least expect it to. What you think is going to happen doesn’t and by the end you may well find yourself getting excited over the result of a rugby match and, you know, that’s not something that normally happens. Writer / director John Butler gleefully plays with tropes that anyone whose watched any American high school film will recognise but imbues each with something more.