Pride came to the Phoenix this Autumn and attracted audiences from all around Leicester. With a cast including the likes of Bill Nighy, Ben Schnetzer, Andrew Scott, and Dominic West, the film was entertaining from start to finish. The script is based off a true story and the plot is simple: a group of London-based gays and lesbians lend their help to support Welsh coal miners on strike, knowing too well what it feels like to face injustice. From the bio alone I knew I was about to see some wonderful friction between the coal miners and GLSM (Gays and Lesbians Support the Miners) – and I wasn’t disappointed.
The film takes place from 1984-1985, a period full of fear and restlessness for the gay community as AIDS became a fatal terror. Pride did not skirt over the tension of the time, carefully interlacing solemn moments with cheerful ones. Like all great movies, it includes love and hate, acceptance and rejection, friendship between unlikely characters, and a kickass dance scene.
Pride is not one to be missed, delivering raw emotion and hearty laughs. I left the theatre in chills and thought about what I had seen long after I had arrived home. Sometimes there is nothing more refreshing than dynamic characters paired with a great cast. If you’re looking for a film that doesn’t revolve around romance and glamorized angst, that has scenes that will stick with you, vulnerable characters that grow in front of your eyes, pick up the DVD on December 23rd and you will not be disappointed.
Kat Stubing
@KatStubing
header image credit: redcarpetcrash.com
