Moon Film Review: God's Own Country


As some of you may know, Your Cultural Correspondent (Film) was born in that mythical and mystical place which so many have the misfortune to not be born in: Yorkshire.

With that first prize in the lottery of life as context, come with Your Cultural Correspondent (Film) to the cinema in that part of the country where they are currently doing missionary work. Next to them were sat two Euro boys and beyond them sat two gentlemen who clearly had never visited The North, let alone God's Own Country, given their (loud) response to some every day farming activities. Cue various phrases of Yorkshire dialect equivalent to FFS.

Your Cultural Correspondent (Film) has seen it written that 'God's Own Country' is a 'Brokeback Mountain' for the Yorkshire Dales. Having seen the latter film six times at the cinema and the former, sadly, only once to date, Your Cultural Correspondent (Film) can say that such a comparison does neither film justice. Unlike 'Brokeback Mountain' whose impact you used to feel when you left the cinema, 'God's Own Country' has a more immediate impact - and for Your Cultural Correspondent (Film) it wasn't the relationship between the leads, but between one of the leads and the two supporting characters that had the most impact. If you've had a knowing Northern Grandmother and a Yorkshireman as a Father how can you be other than deeply affected by what unfolds on screen?

Your Cultural Correspondent (Film) has also seen it written that 'God's Own Country' is the first post-Brexit film. Cue those Yorkshire FFS phrases again. That said, Your Cultural Correspondent did wonder elsewhere on social media what all the native gentlemen in 'God's Own Country' will do if the disgraceful leaked proposals come to pass and immigration from what will be left of The European Union is clamped down upon? But we mustn't get political.

If Your Cultural Correspondent (Film) had one criticism to make, it would be about parts of the script. At times it felt as if a Yorkshire phrasebook had been drafted in to ensure that them there Southerners thought it was right authentic Yorkshire-speak like.

But that is a tiny quibble: it is a sublime film that Your Cultural Correspondent (Film) will watch many times when it comes out on DVD, if not again at the cinema. The scenery is magnificent (of course), the music is beautiful, the acting is beyond top-notch (un applauso to tutti), and even though Your Cultural Correspondent (Film) thinks that you probably need to be from 'God's Own Country' to fully appreciate the film, no-one can be left in anything other than an elevated state when they see that first smile.

In addition to all that, the film has brought this song to Your Cultural Correspondent's attention. What a wonderful crooner the previously unknown to us Mr Patrick Wolf is and what a spine-tingling track he has written for Dame Shirley Bassey to cover.

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