Harry Styles the weak link in the disappointing Policeman
My Policeman (13+, 114 mins) Directed by Michael Grandage Reviewed by James Croot ★★★
She recommended books to him. He taught her to swim. Making the most of the Sussex coast summer, Tom Burgess (Harry Styles) and Marion Taylor (Emma Corrin) bonded quickly. She had taken an instant shine to her friend Sylvie’s handsome brother, but never thought the trainee policeman would be interested in a teaching student like herself.
Their shared love of art leads the pair into the orbit of Brighton museum curator Patrick Hazlewood (David Dawson), who regularly joins them for nights at the opera and days in the country.
But something about Patrick’s attentiveness towards Tom and comments like ‘‘all love stories are tragic, aren’t they?’’ unnerves Marion.
Despite her misgivings, Marion is more than happy to accept Tom’s eventual marriage proposal, even if shocked by the arrival of Patrick on their honeymoon to cook them a meal.
However, when she spies them making the most of a stolen moment together, it leaves her devastated. Marion though will not give up her marriage without a fight.
Based on Bethan Roberts’ beloved 2012 novel, My Policeman criss-crosses between those events in the late-1950s and a time when all three are reunited more than 40 years later, as the trio hash out their recriminations and remorse – and reconcile, before the chance is lost forever.
Unfortunately, the fractured narrative detracts from the flow of the story and highlights some of the disparities between the younger and older versions of the characters.
For while Corrin (The Crown’s first Princess Diana) and Gina McKee (Bodyguard) are terrific in their portrayal of a woman desperately trying to hold onto the man she loves and later atone for what her actions resulted in, and Rupert Everett’s (My Best Friend’s Wedding) broken, but not bitter Patrick is an effective contrast to the bubbly, but mercurial Dawson (Ripper Street), it’s hard to reconcile Linus Roache’s (Homeland) version of Tom Burgess with pop-star Styles’ younger take.
Sure we know his character is leading a double life and attempting to gaslight his wife into thinking there’s nothing more than friendship between him and Patrick, but Styles does stoic silence just a little too well for this story’s own good.
Roache’s turn is far more nuanced and heartbreaking, his character visibly struggling to bottle up all the resentment and regrets he has from past events. You can see the strain and toll flicker across Roache’s face, Styles, in comparison, is far more of a blank canvas.
We’re told that in preparing for the role, the former boy-band member memorised the entire script and was able to recite every character’s line in a given scene.
After viewing the result, I can only think that maybe he should have spent his time more focused on establishing the motivation, meaning and inner-world behind just Tom’s words.
Director Michael Grandage and screenwriter Ron Nyswaner’s (The Painted Veil, Philadelphia) love triangle period drama feels airless, like it’s trying to be a thriller akin to The Talented Mr Ripley or a heartrending, doomed romance a la The Remains of the Day or On Chesil Beach. Despite the best efforts of the most of the cast I felt very little for the characters here.
My Policeman is now streaming on Prime Video.