Boys Like You | complex lives and life-changing decisions

Boys Like You, directed by Paul Holbrook, is a short film starring Lindsay Bennett-Thompson and Liam Francis Collins, this engaging drama provides a brief look into the lives of two complex individuals and the life-changing decisions they make. Set to be released later this year, I had the chance to watch this gripping film and share my thoughts.

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Layers of complexity

Creating a sense of mystery from the beginning, we’re immediately intrigued by the female character (June) we are first introduced to. This is soon followed by the introduction of an intimidating male character (Chris), who adds another layer of complexity to the film’s already mysterious atmosphere.

It becomes almost impossible to look away as we see an interaction between the two unfold. With constant power shifts, the character’s unexpected behaviour, and unusual character dynamics, the audience becomes glued to the screen as we search for the answers and reasons behind these.

Towards the end of the film, everything starts to become clearer, however, this brief moment of understanding is shattered by the abrupt ending. The final scene is so unpredictable and shocking that after the initial surprise wears off, we are immediately forced into thinking of more questions just as we thought all had become clear.

Complex, damaged, and broken

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The two main characters, June and Chris, are both complex, damaged, and broken, they’re overall quite similar people. June is often seen to be nervous, deep in thought, and tense, whereas Chris is confident, confrontational, and comfortable in his environment. Despite the obvious surface-level differences, as the film’s events unfold it becomes clearer that these characters may be more closely linked than we originally thought.

Details and clues

A variety of themes are explored in this film, spanning from mental health, family, life in Britain, and working-class people, the audience is given constant ideas and issues to think about. One thing this film does extremely well is provide the audience with the reasons and justifications for events and actions, whilst simultaneously providing us with more things to question and interrogate. At the end of the film, we are provided with a story that makes sense in itself, but we can’t help but want more. There is a want for these new questions to be answered, but it isn’t frustrating as if the film didn’t make sense, instead, we spend time thinking about the film and going back over it trying to find details and clues to find the missing pieces of the rest of the story.

Perfect pacing

Looking more technically at the film, the camera work, music and audio choices, and pacing are almost perfect in this film. The use of close-ups and tight angles accompanied by dramatic music and intricate audio all create engaging yet off-putting atmospheres in almost every scene. As the tension builds, so does the music, as the threat gets closer, so do the camera angles. The events in the scene are reflected in the technical choices, this only draws the audience in more. If you’re not already intrigued by the plot, you will be by the details. We can’t help but feel like we’re right there with the characters.

Originality and individuality

Most of the dialogue is condensed into a short section of the film, in this brief moment we learn so much about the characters, their personalities, and their lives. Stars of the film Lindsay Bennett-Thompson and Liam Francis Collins provide incredible performances, their talent and skill massively adds to the originality and individuality of the film. The lack of dialogue showcases their skills as they provide the audience with a variety of emotions and information from just a subtle look or simple body language. Showing and not telling information can be incredibly difficult to achieve in a short film due to various restrictions, but Boys Like You does it perfectly.

Detailed complicated

With a run time of just under 17 minutes, Boys Like You tells the story of two immensely detailed and complicated characters. It takes the audience through a cycle of emotions from intrigue, to fear, to sympathy, and eventually shock. Overall, it’s an incredibly effective short film. It does so much with so little, and it does exceptionally well.