Dir.
Don Boyd, UK, 2004, 75 mins
Cast:
Andrew Thomas, Jeremy Trafford, Hanif Kureishi
Andrew and Jeremy Get Married is a sweet and simple documentary which gently probes the lives of two mature gay men without in any way offending or pushing boundaries. The eponymous subject matter, Jeremy and Andrew, are respectively a Chelsea based writer of esoteric literature and an ex-bus driver from Croydon. Thus they provide director Don Body with accessible, almost diametrically opposite protagonists - largely because of these very different backgrounds.
Both characters have immensely interesting and absorbing stories of their lives to share with the camera: Jeremy talks of how he once saw psychiatrists in order to try to 'cure' himself of his homosexuality, while Andrew tells of how he was afraid to come out and used to bully gay men, all the time with the knowledge that this was what he was. Valuable insights are offered into an older generation's experience of being gay in a culture both before and after it became established as an ethnic identity in itself (a movement still very much in the process). Jeremy in particular is glad that cultural attitudes have relaxed and is resentful of the idea that it was more exciting when same sex relationships were clandestine and carried legal penalties. His mature and polygamous relationship with Andrew is highly intriguing as they are portrayed as a loving, firmly settled couple - yet with a clued-up outlook with regard to human sexual behaviour.
If there is a problem with this documentary it is that the footage of the actual story of the title - Andrew and Jeremy's marriage - is not nearly so compelling as their respective tales, which are given to the camera alone in the form of soliloquies. The richness of their relationship is difficult to convey, and the closest Boyd comes to directly involving us in it is a briefly captured scene in which Andrew refuses to go ball room dancing - however it soon becomes clear that this is no way indicative of any rift between him and his spouse, merely a question of different preferences. Meanwhile Jeremy seems upset that some members of his family have refused to take part in the film and attend his wedding - but owing to this fact and perhaps to a natural reluctance to talk about them, no real obstacles are presented to the marriage, which unfortunately means not much drama takes place either. The other aspect the film is lacking in is a political awareness - not much attempt is made to delve into the issue of gay marriage itself, the pros and cons and the legal side - the focus is kept on the personal development between Andrew and Jeremy, rather than its implications within a wider context.
None the less, Andrew and Jeremy Get Married is a sweetly crafted and heart-warming film - if missing a little tension and revelation. Well worth a viewing for those who are tired of the manipulative, in-your-face tactics employed by so many contemporary reality TV shows and docu-dramas these days.
Will Davis
Andrew and Jeremy Get Married is released on region 0 DVD on 14th November by Tartan Video
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