CIFF 2022 | ‘My Sailor, My Love’ review: Brid Brennan shines in romantic drama done right
Watch out, Richard Curtis — Klaus Härö and his English-language debut film are coming for your throne.
James Cosmo and Brid Brennan in “My Sailor, My Love.” Photo courtesy of Making Movies OY.
Unlike most other genre films, the domain of romance is a space in which some clichés are welcome, and even encouraged. Everybody loves a good meet-cute, a fiery enemies-to-lovers arc; everyone cheers when one lover finally wins the other over and they walk off into the sunset. Some things never change. Call it being a stick in the mud, or call it a relief — my money is on the latter, seeing as such an environment allowed “My Sailor, My Love” to come into being.
We open with Howard Grimes (“Game of Thrones” alumni James Cosmo), a misanthropic retired sailor getting a housekeeper foisted upon him by his chronically stressed daughter Grace (Catherine Walker). This cheery widow, Annie (seasoned Northern Irish actor Brid Brennan), eventually wins curmudgeonly Howard over with her incessant chatter and delicious cooking, and the two of them fall into a bashful romance that sets their sleepy Irish coastal town abuzz.
Meanwhile, Grace is falling into the doldrums of both clinical depression and long-brewing marital issues. She takes her troubles out on Howard and Annie’s burgeoning relationship, all while plotting to put Howard in a retirement home against his wishes. “I expect you, as my employee, to keep this information confidential. Including from my father,” she tells Annie curtly, as her glee at causing her father’s new beau some discomfort is barely hidden on her face. But Howard has his own secrets, too — secrets that see Annie being made a pawn in a game of emotional brinkmanship between father and daughter.
Despite being, or perhaps because she is the “villain” of the story — as far as there can be “villains” in romantic dramas — Grace is by far the most well-written character in the film, and Catherine Walker fittingly embodies her through a brilliant, multi-layered performance. While the resolution of her story doesn’t quite find solid footing, the complex threads that screenwriters Jimmy Karlsson and Kirsi Wikman have woven into her narrative remain the most compelling subplot in the film.
On the other hand, one is at times left wanting more from Howard and Annie. While their relationship is an unusually tender portrait of finding love in one’s twilight years, the characters themselves don’t have much else going for them. In particular, Annie’s relationship with her daughter and grandchildren remain frustratingly unfleshed out despite her warmth and radiance (and Brid Brennan’s irresistibly charming performance) being the beating heart of the film. Viewers who grow attached to Howard and Annie might find themselves lamenting their half-baked development, even after leaving the cinema.
As one of the less somber entries in Klaus Härö’s filmography, and a stellar English-language debut to boot, “My Sailor, My Love” is both a novelty and a fresh start. Where will Härö go next? I, for one, hope he chooses to end Richard Curtis’s long reign as king of the romantic drama. After all, “My Sailor, My Love” is hard proof of his worthiness as a challenger.
“My Sailor, My Love” receives its U.S. premiere at the 58th Chicago International Film Festival on October 22, 2022. Check back then for a full review.
