Charming and brutal

Better Late Then Never

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

Could someone explain why Jim does not want to be with Yvvonne?

Well what the Critics watched is beyond me..this Drama really hit home leaving lasting effects, I felt quite sad at the end..and that last song 'in the room' which you can't download anywherd, is the annoying part as it's fantastic.. The actors were perfect and great story line..and j agree with the other review I would imagine an affair to be like this. Not stopped thinking about it and watched it 3 times now..that should give you a clue how good it is..I just wish you could get that last song gutted

When I read last year that Andrew Scott and Cillian Murphy would be making a film together I got very excited, as they are both absolute favourites of mine. When I then read some online reviews after the film came out in Ireland, criticising it as boring, hugely disappointing and dull I almost didn't watch it, and how sad that would have been. I'm not entirely sure which film these critics saw, but I found it anything but boring and disappointing. Quite the contrary... I watched it about 5 days ago and it is still stuck in my head and I keep of finding myself thinking back to it. Yes, it is slow paced in places, it doesn't have crazy twists and turns every 15 minutes and if you compare it to other relationship & affair dramas it's nowhere near as shocking, but thats exactly what made it so much more interesting to me. It's so realistic! It feels exactly what I'd imagine it would feel like to have an affair, and the the way the story unfolds is extremely close to life and makes you feel exhilarated but completely uncomfortable at the same time. Yes, you can tell that the director has only directed theatre productions, which gives the film a certain spareness, but once again this makes it more unique to me. It's not overloaded with side stories and mind blowing cinematography, it gets to the point of human feelings & needs. The constant questioning of what is right and wrong, of what makes you happy and how far you're allowed to go for it, of who you are and who you want to be and the issues you might have with yourself that lead to having an affair are so well played out, so is the struggle with love vs. lust and what it all really means! At the end I felt like I really knew these people, and I deeply felt for them. It's such a small but perfect cast and such a tender and yet uncomfortable story. I personally can only very highly recommend it and will definitely watch it again.

Treats well the topic of middle-class malaise and ennui, the film deftly shifts the audience's sympathy multiple times throughout. Writer/director Mark O'Rowe misses a great opportunity for a really powerful dénouement, however, letting the narrative drag on for 10 minutes too long. Still though, it's well acted, and extremely realistic, attaining an almost documentarian objectivity at times. Well worth checking out. 7/10