• ALL
  • NEWS
    • GAY MOVIE/ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
    • GAY FILM TRAILERS
    • GENERAL MOVIE NEWS & TRAILERS
  • GAY SHORTS & SERIES
  • REVIEWS
    • GAY FILM REVIEWS
    • CINEMA REVIEWS
    • DVD & BLU-RAY REVIEWS
  • BGPS BLOG
  • COMPS
  • ABOUT
    • Contact Us
    • Join The Team
    • Terms & Conditions
    • Gays On Film – A Short History

Big Gay Picture Show

Taking a look at the world of film through gay eyes - news, reviews, trailers, gay film, queer cinema and more

Taking a look at the world of film through gay eyes - news, reviews, trailers, gay film, queer cinema & more

You’ll Never Be Alone (DVD Review) – A man’s life spins out of control after his gay son is attacked

April 9, 2017 By Tim Isaac Leave a Comment

Starring: Andrew Bargsted, Antonia Zegers, Benjamin Westfall, Jaime Leiva, Sergio Hernández
Director: Alex Anwandter
Running Time: 81 mins
Certificate: 15
Release Date: April 10th 2017 (UK)

Based on a true story, Pablo (Andrew Bargstead) is a gay teenager just finding his way in the world. He loves drag and sex, but doesn’t seem to have many other goals. His father, Juan (Sergio Hernández), can’t understand why his son is like this. He’s always believed that you must work hard and apply yourself, and – along with the country as a whole – you will eventually succeed and make something of yourself.

After years of planning and trying, Juan is also hoping to invest in the company he’s been employed by for the past 25 years, and become a partner in the business. He will finally be independent.

Then Pablo is horrifically beaten in a homophobic attack and may not survive. Juan gets caught in the bureaucracy of the healthcare system, which means that despite having insurance, he’s now expected to pay extortionate sums for his son’s care. With the police indifferent about bringing the attackers to justice and Juan’s career dreams in jeopardy, everything he has always believed is brought into question.

You’ll Never Be Alone is kind of like a Chilean Death Of A Salesman, with Juan as a man who’s fully signed up to the dream of both what his life could be, and how his country is there to support him. However, he never expected to have a gay son, and after the attack everything he’s believed is true starts to come unstuck.

It’s a film with quite a few interesting ideas and some of it is very well done. The attack is lengthy, brutal and as difficult to watch as it should be. Likewise, there are moments when it’s dealing with the bureaucracy of Chilean society and Juan’s optimism being gradually broken, where it’s exceedingly good. The problem though is the difficulty it has pulling these things together. You’ll Never Be Alone feels a little disjointed, which disrupts the pacing and sometimes makes it feel like you’re jumping between slightly different films both tonally and thematically.

For example, the beginning the movie is largely about Pablo and his life of clubs, drag, sex (there are a couple of pretty hot sex scenes) and his friends. However, after the attack, we pretty much never see him again. The film presumably does this so we care about him and when he is beaten it has more power, but because it’s spent relatively little time introducing us to Juan, it feels like an abrupt shift when it suddenly becomes his story. This sort of thing happens several times, as if the director has spent a lot of time thinking about what is important about the various sections of the movie, but not what will hold them all together.

It doesn’t completely ruin the film, as there’s enough here to keep you watching, but it does make it a rather uneven experience.

Overall Verdict: There is anger and emotion in this look at the fallout of homophobia and how people are sold an idea of life that may not be achievable, but it’s sometimes a little too uneven for its own good.

Reviewer: Tim Isaac

OVERALL RATING:

Wanna share?:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr
  • Click to share on Flipboard (Opens in new window) Flipboard
  • More
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Pocket
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window) WhatsApp

Related

Filed Under: GAY FILM REVIEWS, Top Posts

Leave a Reply (if comment does not appear immediately, it may have been held for moderation)Cancel reply

Search this site:

We're Needy, Be Our Friend

RSSTwitterFacebookStumbleUponMySpace

E-maily Stuff

Get the latest in our daily e-mail

Most Recent Posts

Young Hunter Trailer – First teen gay love takes a dark turn into blackmail

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie Trailer – The hit gay, drag West End musical is coming to the screen

Iris Prize Festival LGBT+ International Short Films 2020 – Part 3 (Short Film Reviews)

Iris Prize Festival LGBT+ International Short Films 2020 – Part 2 (Short Film Reviews)

Iris Prize Festival LGBT+ International Short Films 2020 – Part 1 (Short Film Reviews)

The Scottish Queer International Film Festival 2020 Has Opened, & It’s Online Across The UK

The Iris Prize LGBT Short Film Festival Returns Next Week, & It’s Online & Free!

An Apology From Big Gay Picture Show

Win The Miseducation of Cameron Post DVD & Book!

Seventeen Trailer – The vagaries of teen romance erupt in the lesbian-themed film

My Best Friend Trailer – Gay romance flickers between two teen boys

New Sauvage Trailer – The gay prostitute movie that divided Cannes is coming soon

We're Needy, Be Our Friend

RSSTwitterFacebook

E-maily Stuff

Get all the latest from BGPS in our daily e-mail

Blogroll

  • Blinkbox – Gay & Lesbian
  • DoorQ
  • Movie Muser
  • Peccadillo Pictures
  • Peccapics Blog
  • TLA Gay (UK)
  • TLA Releasing (UK)
  • TQS Magazine

Copyright © 2025 Muser Media · Powered by WordPress & Genesis Framework · Log in

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're OK with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Read More Accept Reject
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT