blog 6 : everybody's talking about jamie

 Everybody's Talking About Jamie (2021)

Director : Jonathan Butterell 

When watching Everybody's Talking About Jamie in cinemas on its opening weekend, I was in tears by the second song. A film crafted so beautifully, with the perfect amount of comedy, emotion, and happiness. 

Based on a true story, Everybody's Talking About Jamie follows 16 year old Jamie New who dreams of being a drag queen. But as he is met with discrimination from his bullying, and neglection from his father, he must overcome these challenges in order to pursue his dream alongside help from his supportive mother and friends. With catchy songs and amazing performances, Everybody's Talking About Jamie is an absolute joy to watch. 

One of the standouts for me was the level of performance from newcomer Max Harwood, who plays Jamie New. He completely embodies everything about Jamie, from his snappy one liners to his incredible singing voice, I would struggle to think of anyone who would have played Jamie as authentically as Max did. Everything about his performance felt so real, and I am immensely excited to see him in future projects, because this is certainly incredibly strong debut. Similarly, the importance of having a gay actor playing a gay character is something that should not go unrecognised. In an industry where LGBTQ identities are so often underrepresented or misrepresented, allowing these stories to be told, especially by those in the community, is crucial to ensuring those people and stories are not forgotten. 

Produced by Sheffield-based Warp Films and shot on location in Sheffield, many scenes will be recognisable with those familiar to the area. Director Jonathan Butterell called Jamie 'a complete celebration of Sheffield', and it certainly feels like it. The visuals of Jamie's house, filmed in Parson Cross, provide a contrast of the outside world to Jamie's world. From the front, it looks like a regular terraced house, the same as the others on the street. But as we transfer to the back garden, there is an explosion of vibrant colours everywhere in celebration of Jamie's birthday. This can reflect how even though so many things around Jamie are bland, or non colourful, that's not how he sees things himself. The use of colour throughout Jamie's scenes, especially during songs, feeds into his aspiration of becoming a drag queen and the world he could be immersed in.

However, Everybody's Talking About Jamie's educational aspect is something that also, whilst making me tear up, made me immensely happy. The film doesn't ignore the history of drag, or what the LGBTQ+ community has had to face. During the song 'This Was Me', we are shown a series of flashbacks from tapes of Hugo Battersby's (Richard E Grant) experiences of being a drag queen during the 80s. For example, the film shows the impact that Section 28 had on the  LGBTQ during its time. For those unfamiliar with Section 28, it was a law passed by the Conservative government, and was in place from 1988-2003. It stopped schools and councils from 'promoting the teaching of the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended relationship'. In the event of homophobia in schools, Section 28 meant that teachers could not step in to help those being harmed, putting LGBTQ people throughout the United Kingdom at increased risk of harm and discrimination based on their sexuality. At the time, Prime Minister Theresa May said "Children who need to be taught to respect traditional moral values are being taught that they have an inalienable right to be gay. All those children are being cheated of a sound start in life". The law was also partially born out of the homophobia that was evident throughout the AIDs crisis, which Jamie also covers. Through the story of Loco Channelle, Hugo's drag persona, we see the detrimental effect of the AIDs crisis and Section 28 on the LGBTQ community. Hugo states how his loving and supportive drag family was destroyed after the AIDs epidemic claimed the lives of so many, including icon and legend Freddie Mercury. Showing these stories, especially to those who may be unfamiliar on such events, is incredibly important considering how evident the impact of Section 28 is in society.

With amazing performances from supporting characters, Everybody's Talking About Jamie shows the importance of friendship and family in achieving our dreams. Jamie's mum (Sarah Lancashire) will do anything to keep Jamie happy and support his dream, whilst his best friend Pritti (Lauren Patel) supports him the entire way, uplifting and encouraging him throughout. Where so many LGBTQ films so often have a sad ending, the finale of Jamie is practically perfect. Jamie attends his prom in a gorgeous dress and heels, and the very final scene is so heartwarming I basically cried my eyes out. With nearly 3,000 extras on location for filming, Jamie and friends/family, including his mum and best friend Pritti, dominate Deerlands Avenue in a celebration of differences. The song which accompanies the scene, 'Out Of The Darkness (A Place Where We Belong', also could not be more perfect, as it conveys how Jamie has been able to step into himself and begin his dream of being a drag queen. 

As my Dad perfectly put it, Everybody's Talking About Jamie is a welcome burst of colour in an otherwise black and white world. It's funny, heartwarming, educational, and all around enjoyable with unforgettable performances, especially from Max Harwood. If you haven't seen it, I very highly recommend watching it! It is currently available to watch on Amazon Prime:) If you have got this far, thank you for reading! As always, I hope you have enjoyed and feel free to leave any other thoughts about the film in the comments:)

LGBTQ films : 

Pariah (2011)

Director : Dee Rees 

God's Own Country (2017)

Director : Francis Lee

Matthias & Maxime (2019)

Director : Xavier Dolan

But I'm A Cheerleader (1999)

Director : Jamie Babbit 

Water Lilies (2007)

Director : Céline Sciamma