Handsome Devil (2016) Review

Ned Roche did not want to go back to the boarding school he attended due to being bullied and targeted because he was not fully into rugby which is the main focus of the school. He is gay and content with that, when Conor Masters arrives as his new roommate it was going to be a nightmare with him being on the rugby team right?

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Handsome Devil was a true joy of a film and I am certainly going to call it a hidden gem as I had not even heard of it before watching it. Which I actually thought was such a shame because it really does have many different messages which are both important and overall very nice. Despite some horrible comments and moments towards Ned, but that will all work its way out with the help of new English teacher Dan Sherry who will teach the boys a lot more than just the school lessons when he urges them all to be true to themselves and not steal someone else’s voice.

Ned falls victim to that rather quickly when his methods of essay writing and stealing lyrics from songs that the old English teacher had not heard before was about to come to an end when Sherry takes over. A younger teacher who knew the music was never going to end well for poor Ned, but it also pushes him on not only within education but personally as well. Giving the rest of the class a life lesson as well, that you need to be true to yourself and have your own opinions and therefore a voice.

Conor is a rather mysterious boy and it is never fully explored until nearer the end of the film as to why he left his old school, plenty of fights and the aggression he shows. A top rugby player which delights the truly horrific coach and headmaster, who fully focus on the games rather than actually using sport to help educate. The treatment Ned is put through is really bad, but when Conor becomes his roommate it actually helps him out a lot more than he would ever have thought.

The film really does focus on how difficult it can be to accept that you are gay, especially in the macho environment of this all boys boarding school with the focus on rugby. In a very good way though it challenges the stereotypes and pushes the boundaries to question why it even matters and that your sexuality does not impact your ability to play sports. Especially when you then throw in that Mr Sherry hides himself as well, which considering the claim for the boys to be true to themselves makes you wonder if he will do the same.

The performances are very good and Fionn O’Shea is a joy to watch in the leading role of Ned, we are told the story through him and it really was such a great way to do the whole film and something that I was very happy with, likeable. A small role for Ardal O’Hanlon was great given the Irish based nature of the film to see him in it was a lovely little surprise. Andrew Scott was very good support as well, probably the biggest name within the film as well. Nicholas Galitzine was good opposite O’Shea and they worked very well with each other.