Following the structure of his best-selling 2009 novel, screenwriter David Nicholls’ fresh take on the age-old story of friends-who-should-be-lovers tells its story based on one day – 15 July or St Swithin’s Day – over a 20 year period.
From an unconsummated one-night stand on Graduation Day at Edinburgh University in 1988 through to shocker of an end in 2011, Dexter and Emma remain friends through thick or thin.
Public schoolboy Dexter, arrogant, lazy and spoilt is the polar opposite to the intelligent, sensitive wannabe writer Emma. As she settles, post studies one year after their failed tryst, into a decrepit London bedsit and waitressing at the local taco-tacky Mexican, Dexter jets off to India.
The tale takes us through the next 20 years, witnessing the two on 15 July of each year. Sometimes together (or at least on the phone), a number of times not, their lives pass by, as Dexter becomes an MTV-style television presenter whilst Emma trains as a teacher.
The occasional holiday early in their friendship, long-distance phone-calls, many arguments, the two seemingly need each other as Dexter’s life spirals ever downward and out of control – drug and alcohol abuse, the death of his mother through cancer (a beautifully restrained performance by Patricia Clarkson), a stalled career and a failed marriage.
Emma has her own failures and disappointments in her personal life – her love for Dexter remains undimmed, making it impossible for live-in lover Ian to compete. But as Dexter’s success fades, so Emma’s light shines as she finds success as a writer.
The ending is somewhat telegraphed, but remains a punch to the stomach nevertheless.
The leads are wholly convincing and have a believable chemistry on screen – particularly Jim Sturgess who cuts a dash, Hugh Grant-style, as an annoying but endearing fop who, through a half-closed eye or wry smile, can achieve exactly what he wants.
Anne Hathaway’s British accent is somewhat wayward, a mid-Atlantic hotchpotch, but both age well over the 20 years, with Hathaway a mix of the dowdy and glamorous.
The film’s biggest flaw is its structure – the one day per year viewing of the two lives results in a distancing of events and emotions. Too much happens off screen. And whilst the premise may be that it’s the accumulation of these events that is important, the result is a fractured distancing.
Which is a pity as it is an intelligent film with wit, style and strong performances.
Personal rating: 3 stars
One Day
- Directed by Lone Scherfig (An Education, Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself)
- Written by David Nicholls (When Did You Last See Your Father, Starter For 10)
- Produced by Nina Jacobson (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules)
- Starring Anne Hathaway (Alice in Wonderland, The Devil Wears Prada), Jim Sturgess (21, Across the Universe), Patricia Clarkson (Good Night, and Good Luck, Pieces of April)
Keith Lawrence - Published writer of articles in magazines, newspapers and websites, predominantly on culture, alongside ghostwriter/editor/copywriter.
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