Fewershadesofgrey
Many questions are up for discussion after the end of new dating movie
An indie rom-com being released just in time for Valentine’s Day, Permission is notable for what it does. And ultimately for what it doesn’t.
Rebecca Hall and Dan Stevens star as Anna and Will, a New York couple on the cusp of 30 looking to settle down. He’s renovating a Brooklyn love nest. One assumes a brood will follow.
But over a birthday dinner with Anna’s brother Hale (David Joseph Craig) and partner Reece (Morgan Spector) we learn Anna and Will lost their virginity to one another, and have never had sex with anyone else. Wouldn’t they like to try that before they commit forever?
It sounds like a daft idea, given that they’re very much in love. But it won’t go away. Their first attempt involves visiting a bar together. Anna winds up going home with a brooding musician, played by Montreal actor François Arnaud. Later, Will hooks up with an older woman (Gina Gershon), who buys a table from the furniture shop he runs with Reece.
Writer-director Brian Crano has a lot of fun with notions of fidelity and commitment and works in an interesting subplot in which Reece and Hale argue over whether they should start a family of their own.
But he shies away from the bigger questions in Anna and Will’s relationship. Why haven’t they settled down earlier than this? Ten years is a long time to spend unmarried without children. And is the sex really as bad as we’re given to believe in the one time we see them at it? Ultimately, there may be more to discuss
about the movie after you see it. Possible topics include: What level of commitment is needed for two British actors to keep their U.S. accents in synch? Is it a coincidence that Craig and Crano are a couple, as are Hall and Spector? And did that fact influence the somewhat tame sex scenes?
To make sure you have someone to bounce these ideas off after the screening, I’d recommend seeing Permission with your significant other — or with someone else if you’re both OK with that.