Scarborough

I will try not to spoil the movie. Don't read this unless you've watched! A deliberately slow paced, but not plodding, film. Definitely not for action fans. The story follows 2 couples over one weekend. Each couple has stolen away to a resort town during the off season. The similarities: both are illicit student-teacher relationships, both students are approximately 16 years old, and both teachers are approximately 36 years old, the age difference in each relationship is 18-20 years. Also, both teachers are being unfaithful to another partner. The difference: one couple is male teacher/female student, while the other is female teacher/male student. The scenes switch from one couple to the other, initially each with identical conversations, to set the stage that the relationships are running nearly parallel to one another. Slowly, as the differences in sexual dynamics dictate, the course of the two relationships differs, but only slightly. Both weekends end with the couples returning home on separate trains, each apparently having broken up. The movie deliberately obfuscates time periods, focusing mostly on the two people in the relationship. Because the movie alternates from one couple to the other, one is more likely (as I did until the last minute of the movie) to assume they are spending their weekend together at the same time. Small details dribble out towards the end of the movie, but not many. The final cell phone call at the end of the movie confirms that "Beth" & "Liz" are, in fact, the same person, 20 years apart. "Beth" got what she wanted -- her Aiden, only to live a lonely, isolated life that wasn't what she expected, finally having an affair of her own. This how she knew better than to run off with Daz, because she'd run off before & knew Daz would probably end up as unhappy as she did. I was wondering as the movie reached the end, "what the hell was the point of this, again?" A good reason to watch a movie through to the end.

For the first twenty minutes or so Scarborough (as in the film) shows two forbidden sexual relationships at an old Victorian hotel in Scarborough, U.K. The forbidden relationships are between teachers and pupils. Illegal, depraved you would think but the film has a plot twist towards the end that adds a degree of interest. To people who have stayed in Scarborough the cinematography and locations add a degree of interest. Small independent film shot in an Academy Ratio it appears.

Boring *yawn* interesting story line but the actors were annoying acting like children -making you really see the age difference between both couples. Really slow paced and just not a good watch. Save your time and watch a better romance/ drama...

...maybe because I am an 45 age old teacher and the situation seems to be not real eccentriic, maybe because the intersection of the two love stories is decent, maybe because the revelation is little predactible. Or for not bad acting. A hotel, two couples , beautiful cinematography, moral dilemmas and not awful end. Enough for a reasonable film who, without be memorable, has the virtue to be more than good.

Evocative & real, this was a surprisingly touching little film. The four leads were all good, but it was the female teacher / male pupil pairing that worked best for me. I really felt the teacher's struggle with the situation, life frustration & the specific challenge she faces - and the pupil's simplistic, optimistic and earnest outlook on life. Surprising & touching. Well worth a viewing...