Conor Bryce revisits the powerful drama of All of Us Strangers.
Roger Ebert once wrote that there are some movies that transcend good and bad — that penetrate straight to the heart. All of Us Strangers is such a movie. It’s a devastating exploration of human connection. Like the song at its core — one of the best record drops in recent memory — it’s a testament to the power of love and the indelible mark it leaves on our souls.
Set against the backdrop of a bleak and distant London, All of Us Strangers follows Adam (Andrew Scott) as he grapples with the echoes of his past, including a stuttering relationship with his parents. A chance encounter with mysterious mess Harry (Paul Mescal) spirals into a surreal journey that climaxes in a challenge to Adam’s — and our — understanding of what it means to say goodbye.
The concept of home — not just as a physical space but as an emotional landscape — looms large. Adam’s home is a sanctuary where he can plant himself in the past, choosing to watch old reruns of Top of the Pops over reconnecting in a meaningful way with his parents. They are a familiar trope of ’80s Britain — salt of the earth but unwilling to fully accept their son’s differences. They aren’t angry about his gay identity, but as part of an AIDS-ravaged era they cannot help but either keep the difficult questions at arm’s length, or ask all the wrong questions in stunted conversation. When a context-flipping twist is revealed, it makes this fractured relationship more devastating. You will likely see it coming — but it’ll still shake you.
From the outset, All of Us Strangers envelops us in an atmosphere that feels both familiar and unsettling. Director Andrew Haigh, loosely adapting Taichi Yamada’s novel and making it something that feels intensely personal, invites us to step into a world brimming with unprocessed and unspoken grief and yearning. The film unfolds like a dream — fragments of Adam’s memories intermingle with his present, each scene crafted with nuance but primed to wring emotion and empathy. As Adam navigates this existence, you share the paradox of wanting to be alone clashing with a longing for connection. When he meets Harry, you want their love to last forever. We know, of course, that nothing does.
The chemistry between the leading men cannot be praised enough. Scott — destroying us with those big, dark eyes of his — is hitting career-best form. Mescal, thankfully Scott’s equal in what could have been a forgettable role, builds on his breakout in Normal People with another masterclass in likeable vulnerability. When Scott’s shy and introspective Adam is drawn to with Mescal’s enigmatic, effortlessly charming Harry, it makes for charged viewing. From their first encounter, there’s undeniable voltage. As their poignant courtship progresses — full of the subtle touches, comfortable silences, seamlessly flowing conversation — what’s created is an intimate dynamic that feels both authentic and delicate, a balance of flirtation and introspection. They feel more like an old couple than new lovers — twin flames finding each other in an inferno of loneliness.
While the film’s emotional core is undeniably powerful, there are moments where its pacing feels uneven. Certain scenes linger a bit too long; others feel clipped or edited for time. Yet perhaps this is deliberate — a commentary on the complexities of the human condition. At times we’re forced to sit with our feelings; at others, to keep them unfulfilled — echoing Adam’s long, comfortable moments of solace in Harry’s arms, contrasted with the uncomfortable, unpredictable visits to his parents’ house.
All of Us Strangers will resonate on multiple levels, inviting a confrontation with your own experiences of love and loss. Haigh deftly explores memory as a living, breathing thing — not merely recollection, but a force that has the potential to shape or destroy. It’s his masterpiece — a must-see that will leave you with an overwhelming sense of catharsis by the end, along with a bittersweet acknowledgement of the beauty and fragility of life. If, like Adam, you’re in any way haunted by love and loss, it will penetrate straight to the heart.
All of Us Strangers is available to stream online now.
