Passages
Cert: 18 | ★★★★✩

After a rare misfire with American-French Frankie in 2019, acclaimed gay Jewish filmmaker Ira Sachs is back with Passages, a mesmerising romantic drama set in Paris. In it, the Love is Strange and Little Men director follows the story of a long-time gay male couple, one of whom has an affair with a woman.

Acclaimed German actor Franz Rogowski is Tomas, a film-maker living in Paris with his husband Martin, an English printer exquisitely depicted by Ben Whishaw.

One evening at a party, Tomas meets Agathe (Blue is the Warmest Colour’s Adèle Exarchopoulos) and the two begin a torrid affair. As the encounter blossoms into a full-on relationship, heartbroken Martin decides to end the marriage and makes plans to sell the countryside home he owns with Tomas.

Now cohabiting with Agathe, Tomas begs Martin to have an open mind about their relationship and insists he still loves him.

But Martin begins a new relationship with handsome novelist Ahmad (Erwan Kepoa Falé), which makes Tomas jealous.

Caught between the novelty of being with Agathe and his deep love for the man he married, Tomas is thrown into further turmoil when a new development with Agathe threatens to derail both relationships.

Passages starring Adele Exarchopoulos ben whishaw and Franz Rogowski Credit SBS Productions (7)

Ben Whishaw and Franz Rogowski (Photo: SBS Productions)

This is a beautiful commentary on modern love in this gorgeously layered tale of a man driven by his lust for love and admiration: Tomas is often presented as a man who wants it all, and isn’t afraid of asking for it. And without consideration for others’ feelings.

“You should be happy for me,” he tells an incredulous Martin, as he divulges his relationship with Agathe, a revelation that leads Martin to question his own judgment and prejudices.

While there is often a sense that the film is more sympathetic towards Martin, and even his love rival, there remains something rather hypnotic about Tomas and his ability to make it all about himself, and Sachs captures the ambiguity with wisdom.

Both Whishaw and Rogowski are note-perfect here, but for me it is once again Exarchopoulos who eclipses everyone around her with her mesmerising performance. She is truly in a class of her own.