THE STORY – Sam is heading back home for a family reunion and bumps into an old friend.
THE CAST – Elliot Page, Hillary Baack, Peter Outerbridge & Wendy Crewson
THE TEAM – Dominic Savage (Director/Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 100 Minutes
BAFTA award-winning writer and director Dominic Savage has cornered the market of making the ordinary extraordinary. Best known for the acclaimed anthology series “I Am…,” a close-knit exploration of women’s day-to-day realities, Savage holds a discerning eye to stories that provoke powerful emotion. His collaborations with actors are improvisational; they start with a blank canvas and paint detailed worlds through authentic experiences, from which Savage develops a framework. This creative approach stands out by having each story come from a place of individuality, wherein the performers’ contributions get ample space to thrive. Savage’s latest production, “Close To You,” a heart-wrenching feature film about lost and found love, comes closest to exemplifying his knack for deeply original storytelling.
The Canadian-based film follows Sam (played brilliantly by Elliot Page), a trans man who moved away from his family’s small town of Cobourg and lives a happier life in Toronto. With his father’s birthday coming up, Sam revisits his family for the first time in almost four years. On the train there, he unexpectedly reunites with an old-school love named Katherine (Hillary Baack). Katherine’s presence rekindles the melancholy of a missed opportunity and conveys the beauty of Sam feeling seen for who he truly is. Both hopeful and heartbreaking in equal measure, the story thoughtfully explores the inner workings of Sam’s existence through some painful shared history.
Some time is also spent on Sam’s mostly well-intentioned but ignorant family, whose attempts to say the right thing unearth a series of strained conversations about how they see him in the world. His mother, Miriam (Wendy Crewson), misgenders him and still sees him as “her little girl,” while his father, Jim (Peter Outerbridge), had always been concerned that societally he would never launch. Narrative tension builds until Sam reaches a threshold of what his family expects him to put up with.
Co-written by Savage and Page, the film is a reflective character study that focuses on moments of stillness to create a lived-in experience. A single expression on Sam’s face alone indicates where the viewer is in the story. For instance, when he recognizes Katherine on the train, the camera pauses on him for quite some time before revealing who is eliciting his emotional reaction. Savage’s understated, trustful direction gives the actors room to find moments of spontaneity. The story mainly exists in the things left unsaid between people, with the occasional outpouring of emotion when provoked. As a result, some viewers might find the film too slow-moving. However, every little detail builds towards something special in the long run. The subdued nature of this film only strengthens the power of Sam’s story and how far he has come to reach inner peace.
The shining star of “Close To You” is Elliot Page, who, in his first film role since sharing his gender transition in 2020, delivers a soul-stirring performance as Sam. From starring, co-writing, and producing the film, his voice feels profoundly embraced throughout. Page’s sharp wit and perceptive talent guide the story in compelling narrative directions. He picks up on the multiple nuances of Sam’s relationships and makes the most fleeting moments indelibly poignant. Page is given the creative space to simply be as he is. It’s also incredibly heartening to see Page back on screen and in a role shaped by authenticity in a genuinely collaborative environment. “Close To You” marks the actor’s first film role in six years, following 2017’s “Flatliners.”
In addition to a terrific Page performance, “Close To You” finds emotional resonance from unearthing long-buried feelings between characters. During an aching one-on-one scene between Sam and his sister, Sam says, “It’s hard to come back to a place where you just didn’t feel seen, and you’re just really trying to be seen.” Everyone in Sam’s family expresses concern over him living with a roommate in Toronto, failing to understand how good and passionate he feels in the city. He is living his life, most importantly, on his terms. When he was the most unwell, nobody worried. As Sam navigates the micro-aggressions of his supposedly progressive family and an increasingly hostile experience of transphobia, his hometown visit becomes a reminder as to why he left in the first place.
The film balances family dynamics with a romantic sub-plot between Sam and Katherine. The two’s chance encounter on the train makes an intriguing first impression. Sam expresses a powerful yearning, which leads the viewer to anticipate Katherine’s reaction. To great delight, she returns his charmed expression. They clearly have a history, and the writers smartly hold onto that knowledge for as long as possible to maintain a sense of mystery and longing around this past relationship. Part of what makes the story engaging is awaiting what lies beneath every knowing, wistful look Sam and Katherine gently share.
The writing of Katherine’s character could have been more fleshed out. However, Hillary Baack (who appeared previously in the Oscar-winning “Sound of Metal”) delivers such lingering work that one can forgive the narrative shortcomings. She exudes a comforting, loving energy that personifies the silver lining of Cobourg for Sam. By visiting his family, he confronts chapters of life he had left behind, and Katherine is on several pages. The chemistry between Page and Baack plays on what seems to be improvisational grounds. The dialogue and overall interactions they share have an impulsive go-with-the-flow energy. Their scenes also capture the uncertainty around meeting someone with whom you could have found love. In this case, Sam and Katherine “didn’t have as many references at the time” to navigate their feelings, which adds a subtly impactful revelation to the story.
While the story doesn’t explore Sam’s character further beyond tense family scenarios and a potential rekindled love, Page’s performance brings enough compelling insight and screen presence to bridge gaps. The film works at its best when focused on little moments of major reflection. Moments such as Sam confiding, “I’m just really glad we got this time together,” to Katherine speak to the underlying power of shared history. Through the knowledge of past experiences, Sam gravitates to a person who makes him feel seen in a place where he struggled to feel that way. The filmmaking prioritizes his journey every step of the way, which in turn gives Page an incredibly in-depth role to play. With his accomplished performance at the center, “Close To You” reverberates at thought-provoking levels.
