James (I) (2008) User Reviews

Well-made and moving

[preppy-3 · 8/10 · 17 November 2012]

James (Niall Wright) is a young boy growing up in Ireland. He has no friends and is very quiet and introverted. His parents are always arguing and he feels isolated. He starts to realize he's gay and has feelings for his English teacher Mr. Sutherland (Matt Jennings). This all comes to a negative (if realistic) conclusion.

Great gay short. Wright is an incredible actor. He doesn't have much dialogue but you can see the pain and confusion in his face clearly in coming to grips with his sexual orientation. Anybody--gay OR straight--would be able to identify with this kid. The supporting actors are all good too. The accents are great and the cinematography is beautiful. Very well-done and moving.

A positive surprise

[Horst_In_Translation · 6/10 · 30 July 2016]

This is "James", a 17.5-minute live action from 2008, so it will soon have its 10th anniversary. It is a British production and the writer and director is Connor Clements. Yes it is another of these gay-themed short films and if you have seen some of these, you will know that this genre is packed with works that offer very little, frequently even nothing except completely unrealistic story-lines. This one here is the exception that confirms the rule. i kinda enjoyed the watch. I think all the actors in here were convincing and that includes the parents, the teacher and also the child actor who plays the main character, a boy confused about his own feelings. This is a good piece of writing too. The reaction of the teacher when the boy asks him about it is extremely realistic and accurate and I was happy to see it. These films go way too frequently for happy endings that lack realism completely and don't make any sense at all. But this is not what life is. Life is the way it is depicted in this brief film. I recommend the watch, thumbs up.

Riding in cars with strangers.

[adamjohns-42575 · 6/10 · 19 June 2021]

It's a shame that Niall Wright didn't have the support of a decent cast to rival his own acting abilities.

Poor little James and his sad little face. Bless his cotton socks, I just wanted to mother him, take him under my wing and tell him that it would all be alright.

I think that it's a shame that even now there needs to be more support for kids like James so they don't end up experiencing things in such a hard and potentially dangerous way. It has similarities to one of the story arcs in Clapham Junction (2007).

The head of the class of Subtle Acting!!!!

[kellienrip · 9/10 · 29 June 2010]

A short that every gay man should see. A short that every man raising a son who thinks he might be gay should see. Hell, everyone should see this short. The lead character James shows with very few spoken words but with a face full of anguish, doubt, fear and most important, knowing. He is incredible in his mastery of letting his emotions show on his face in much the same way Haley Joel Osment was in the Sixth Sense or A.I. The story rings incredibly true until he faces his fears with his favorite teacher. This is when it soars. Unfortunately, like anything soaring, it has to come to earth and the final scene when James decides to do what he has to to explore his sexuality was the low point and probably the most unbelievable moment. Overall, this is one of the best shorts about coming out I have every seen , Bravo

Has darker, brave elements but is a bit stiff in the delivery and I'm not sure about the extremity of its message (SPOILERS)

[bob the moo · 6 May 2014]

James is the story of a young boy in a Norn Irish school; he is very much an outsider with no friends and no connection to anyone. He struggles with not knowing his place, he is drawn towards a place where homosexual activity occurs but yet flees when the potential arises, while at home he feels more of a burden than anything else. Searching for someone to turn to, James looks to his school staff for support.

This short film is a difficult one for me, not because of the subject matter but in terms of how it is handled. On one hand it is very strongly done and very responsibly balanced. James as a character is very drawn, very much struggling and it feels very real thanks to a subtle performance from Wright in the title role. At the same time the drama does not hold back from going to some darker places – it is certainly not an uplifting film to watch and in that it is at least honest of the reality. I'm sure it is the same in many small communities but homosexuality is really not something that is commonly talked about in NI; I spent 18 years of my life there in larger towns and there was really no presence – perhaps it is different now, but then for sure it was not even discussed never mind actively seen.

So on one hand I like that the film had the guts to play to the reality – that even the teacher would feel uncomfortable being involved. The problem is though that the film plays it too much to the extremes and it does in a way that is a bit stiff. Outside of Wright and Rolstonare the performances are a bit awkward and stiff – in particular Jennings' teacher, which is a shame. On top of this, things are very black and white, so when James does not get support, his other option is a paedophilic relationship with a much, much older man – and we are not even left in doubt about this, this is the clear conclusion of the film. I felt very uncomfortable with this contrast and, although this is perhaps the reality, I felt like it was overdoing it to so clearly say "not helping means children are getting in the hands of paedophiles" and I do feel that the issues would have been better with a less extreme alternative as this would have left the child issue out of it and kept it about James as a person.

It is still a worthy film because of the subject it looks at and the honest and rather brave line it takes, but I would have liked more finesse and subtlety in the construction and delivery, because I think it does take it too far too obviously.