Departures Review: Airport Meet Triggers Love Lost and Found
Old wounds resurface in the darkly comic drama Departures, which tracks one man's emotional spiral following a painful breakup. The film presents a stylised, emotionally candid exploration of identity and intimacy as memory and desire blur in a haze of hookups and hangovers.
Post-Breakup Spiral Explored
Do you believe in life after love? This eternal quandary, famously posed in Cher's dance anthem, forms the central question probed by Neil Ely and Lloyd Eyre-Morgan's funny yet touching drama. Eyre-Morgan not only co-writes and co-directs but also stars as Benji, a thirtysomething lonely heart yearning for genuine connection who finds himself repeatedly let down by a string of disappointing boyfriends.
Following his recent breakup with Jake, played by David Tag as a hunky personal trainer with a closeted double life, Benji descends into a whirlwind of drinking, drugs and casual hookups. These cheap highs serve as temporary numbing agents for his profound emotional pain. A weekend getaway to Amsterdam, the very city where he and Jake conducted their clandestine relationship, further opens old wounds and intensifies his emotional turmoil.
Balancing Heavy Themes with Dark Comedy
Though grappling with substantial issues including body image struggles, family rejection and toxic masculinity, Departures consistently avoids veering into maudlin sentimentality. Instead, the film favours dark comedy and maintains a poppy visual style throughout its narrative journey.
Through dynamic elliptical editing techniques, Benji's self-destructive spiral and his cherished memories with Jake blur into a nonlinear narrative structure. This artistic approach effectively echoes the mind-shattering, disorienting effects of a broken heart, creating a visual representation of emotional fragmentation.
Strong Performances Anchor Emotional Core
Eyre-Morgan demonstrates strong chemistry with co-star David Tag, providing essential ballast for the lead role. Much of the film's emotional weight is carried by Benji's internal monologue, delivered with self-deprecating humour and raw, unflinching honesty that resonates with authenticity.
At the same time, the film's reliance on voiceover as a primary storytelling device occasionally causes narrative momentum to falter, particularly during key emotional scenes. Rather than allowing the visuals to communicate emotional complexity independently, the voiceover frequently steps in to verbalise characters' feelings explicitly.
Narrative Strengths and Minor Shortcomings
The need to provide multiple character backstories through extensive flashback sequences sometimes veers into over-exposition territory. Despite these occasional narrative stumbles, Departures remains a highly thoughtful and nuanced exploration of contemporary love and identity.
The film serves as an excellent showcase for northern talents within the British film industry, highlighting regional voices and perspectives often underrepresented in mainstream cinema. Departures offers audiences a compelling examination of how we navigate emotional wreckage and search for connection in the aftermath of heartbreak.
Departures arrives in UK and Irish cinemas from 17 April, presenting audiences with a distinctive blend of dark humour and emotional authenticity.
