Highly Overrated But Still Good

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

I cannot understand the critics that, here, have written that Elliot was "wooden" and understated.The whole point of his reticence was to give his mother and Clement the latitude to explore their feelings and emotions whilst his feelings were almost unrecognised.The frustrations he felt were almost palpable, and the desire to love and be loved was almost heartbreaking, as witness in the final scene when in frustration he wrestles and violently kisses Clement.A beautiful and outstanding piece of cinema.

Have you ever watched a film and ended up frustrated to see that nothing in the characters' lives significantly changes by the climax?I'll cut to the chase, short and sweet: Departure is depressing, but not in a moving, atmospheric sort of way. It's not an accomplishment. It's sad in the same abstract way as a low-resolution image of a ham sandwich in a dim room or a bowl of cereal without enough milk.It's a complete failure of executing a simple idea, feeling simultaneously anxiety-inducing and bland; following the dialogue is a nightmare, almost hilariously so, and I am still uncertain whether awkward, nonsensical conversations are intended as surrealism or simply bad writers doing what they do best. It's almost as if the characters simply cannot hear each other speak and go off on spontaneous tangents about nothing.I found none of the characters engaging or even deserving of sympathy, and the relationship between the two main boys is forced and anticlimactic, never quite reaching any sort of pivotal point.Stoic, unimpressive acting, depressing atmosphere, and zero progression after nearly two hours of material. I'd rather slap myself than watch this again.

Excellent film. Beautiful backdrop of rural Languedoc in autumn, natural peaceful and unspoiled whilst the lives of the characters portrayed are anything but. I do not agree at all with those reviewers here who give the movie a panning. I thought it was very sensitively handled and there was a lot of authenticity and insight into young Elliott's first gay fumblings. Yes, some bits of dialogue and screenplay were a bit clunky and wooden, especially when the father arrived towards the end of the film. But I really enjoyed the interaction and exploration between the two young men: lonely young gay English lad bored with his mother on holiday bumps into sexy athletic moody young Frenchman , OK you could say it is 'cliched', but so much of our lives are unoriginal, but no less exciting when it happens to us for the first time at that age. I saw a lot of myself in Elliott.One of the most enjoyable gay movies I have seen in a long time. And the fact there was very little sex in it was not a problem at all. It improved the narrative. Less is more in this case. Well done Andrew Steggall.

I hated this movie; it was terrible! The only redeeming feature is the setting: the South of France in autumn which is captured magnificently by great camera work. The performances by some of the supporting cast namely Phenix Brossard as Clemente and Finbar Lynch as Philip, Elliot's father, are wooden. While the opportunity to provide an insight into the exploration of sexuality by Elliott (Alex Lawther) isn't totally lost, it's often clichéd. The representation of women in the film is pitiful. This is a bleak, miserable and depressing story so be prepared. And the off-hand disclosure at the end when Philip and Beatrice (Juliet Stevenson) are arguing is trite.