Direction: Goran Stolevski
Country: Australia
Directed by Goran Stolevski - who stunned us last year with You Won’t Be Alone - Of an Age tells the love story of two young men who meet up in uncommon circumstances. When Kol Denic (Elias Anton), a Serbian living in Australia, receives a call from his best friend and ballroom dance partner, Ebony (Hattie Hook), saying she woke up in a distant beach after a night party with no recollection of what happened, he resorts to her brother, Adam (Thom Green), to drive him there. On their way to the coastal side, the two share music, film, and book interests, but also a physical attraction that ends up in a 24-hour romance.
Of an Age is as elusive as the remarks about Borges and Kafka during the protagonists’ awkward conversation. It’s also visually bland to the point of making us wonder what happened to the director since the release of his abovementioned debut feature, whose images truly haunt. The eclectic soundtrack, in opposition, sounds great, including Cesária Évora, Cardigans, and French singer Barbara.
After a lukewarm yet tolerable first part, the second - depicting the reunion of the two men a decade later - fails to succeed. It loses not only the subtle naivety but also soul, and never bothers to recover it. The predominant wistfulness in Stolevski’s film is curdled underneath, resulting in a stunted effort with plenty of lachrymose regrets and a few other problems. What started off promising ended melancholically pointless.
