Aaron's Thoughts
It is the slowest of slow burns & the pacing is going to be an issue for most, but I found the whole thing achingly beautiful. It so perfectly encapsulates the struggles of a lost soul & the many paths towards living their life authentically.
Both Julius and Muriel want the same thing but go about it in completely different way. Julius decides to live his life on the fringes of society so that he can be his true self, yet in doing so he can never plant roots and have meaningful stability or safety. Meanwhile, Muriel so clearly prioritizes stability and safety that she uses a conventional relationship to get her those things, even though she is doing nothing but hurting herself and her husband in the process.
The film shines in the brief moments where Julius and Muriel get to communicate their feelings on the path the other has chosen. In most instances, this happens without a sing word being spoken. It is almost as if they are two sides of the same coin. Each admires things about the other, yet they also remain completely terrified of living life the way the other has chosen to.
Still not fully sold on Jacob Elordi as an actor, but I could not be more convinced that Daisy Edgar-Jones will be on the big screen for a long long time!
