You Are Not Alone (1978)

Expected more

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Speaking with an English point of view, this film is very challenging, as it addresses a subject that we English, as a whole, are not very comfortable addressing: the enthusiastic sexuality of minors. This however, is a Danish film, and, typically of the Danish, it addresses sexuality in an open, broadminded, accepting fashion. Set in a Varnatt (a year-round secondary-aged boarding school for boys), the story is of the boys finding out who they are, and campaigning for the right to be who they are, and of the love between two boys, one of whom is the headmaster's son. The film is delicately, and caringly made, and the cinematography is lush and sedate, perfectly demonstrating Lasse Nielsen's love of natural beauty.

Du er ikke alene has been too much advertised as a young gay film, but, in fact, we can see a warm and often funny depiction of life in a boarding school in the 1970ies, complemented with suitable music, realistic scenes and events (contrary to that the puritans think, for most people "adult" life begins before obtaining voting right), and pleasant, knowing approach. Child actors are credible and often in bold scenes, and Ove Sprogøe was one of the finest Danish actors anyway...Although all this is ahead of my time, I am younger than those boys were in 1978, it is like a trip to history not long time ago, but seeming so far, prevailed by thick hairstyle, angular cars, and specific clothing which I have always found ugly :) Nevertheless, I am sure that open-minded people would appreciate the strengths of the film in question at present as well.

I finally got a chance to watch a movie last week...it had been over a month! This movie tells the story of two young boys that fall in love, one a post-pubescent student at a boarding school, the other the pre-pubescent son of the school's headmaster.First, the movie is beautiful. The interaction between the two main characters is touching, and handled with tender care. The two young men (who are the actual ages they are portraying) are excellent and convincing in their roles...as are the other young actors who make up the rest of the students at the school. The interactions between all the characters in the movie are incredibly realistic...not sugar coated, or worse, over dramatized.There are issues, however, with this movie that make it less than excellent. For one, the script is terribly fragmented. For a while, you forget that there is supposed to be a relationship developing between the two main characters. The main storyline gets lost amongst a jumble of other side stories going on inside and outside of the schools walls. While these side stories don't dull down the movie (on the contrary, they are often humorous and charming), they strip any semblance of order and purpose from the narrative.The other issue is that all the other characters are either completely oblivious to the affection that Bo and Kim share (which is nearly impossible), or they don't care (which seems equally odd). While I've nothing against a story that is simple, innocent, and charming...you'd think that these two boys would suffer some of the hardships that come along with being young and gay. :giveup Overall, I applaud the movie for approaching it's subject material so openly, in a way that would NEVER be seen in an American film. The characters are engaging and a joy to watch. Too bad the story wasn't more cohesive. Still, worthy of a 7/10.

A film that can't be viewed from a cinematographic point. Just because it's not in technique where this film achieves something. As in any film, what gives it a strong value is the story it tells.Due Er Ikke Alene is a wonderful escape to a time lost forever. A film about life. About misery. About love and happiness. About senslessness and about achievement. About systems and counter-systems. About people who can be under extraordinarycircumstances, and be as extraordinary as they come. About challenges and victories. About sex and about understanding.About imagination, creation and clashes. About authority and reason.Maybe not all these things are seen at first. They are the background. The solid background that gives credibility to the characters and power to the story. A dreamer like Aske, puts the educational system in the limelight and leads the rest to discover why young people can think and do. Why there are reasons in life more important than just "living my life". Why the others are seldom regarded as the very motivation to do anything, and, when they become part of our lives, our view of our own can change entirely.A naïve and deeply enchanting Bo, who only will do good. The one who makes this story so moving and so deep. His emotions, his beliefs, his feelings are rooted in a wonderful soul that cares about his friends. Someone always available to give a hand. With firm convictions and reassuring when anyone needs him. The peacemaker.A beautiful and amazing Kim. His honesty, his absolute confidence in love and his smile make of him Bo's natural friend. What really makes this character glow is his smile. He is happy with life, even when he finds the normal bumps that lead others to despair or level things out with anger. He enjoys the small things. The ones that count. From a bit of fresh air to a bottle of wine (which, he discovers, should not be abused). Most interesting is Ole's role. His character turns the balance of the whole story into something worth studying for any teacher, school system, etc. Ole is alone. And he needs the care provided by his peers. And, eventually, even with his bully ways, he mends his life and comes to terms with the world.The seventies were times of amazing richness, and this is shown openly here. Maybe one of the issues that make your eyes shine is the open difference between what led to some modern educational ideas and how they clashed with the old ones. This was Denmark, and it was the seventies. The final act is freakin' awesome. Watch this film. You won't be disappointed. Watch it thinking about the story, and this time (oh, it's me saying this... I can't believe it), just this time, forget about cinematography.