The Film

★★★★★ | A devastating romantic drama for the ages

Longing is a difficult emotion to get in right in film. After all, it's something we struggle to process all on its own. It's an anchor in time that makes us yearn for something that doesn't exist anymore. Be that a memory or a person.

That enormity storms at the center of Andrew Haigh's heartbreaking drama. It's a film that understands the depths of the ocean that surrounds us in loss, loneliness, and pain. More importantly, it eloquently communicates how strong the light of a shared connection shines, and how it can guide is through rough weather.

Andrew Scott plays Adam, a lonely TV writer living in an nondescript apartment block somewhere in London. One night, he meets Harry, a handsome and unruly neighbor, in whom he shares – and dismisses – a connection. The next day, Adam visits his childhood home, where he encounters his parents, who died when he was twelve. He doesn't question the logic of it all, and instead embraces the second chance to speak with them in adulthood. He and Harry reunite, and Adam discovers the joy he felt he couldn't achieve before.

From there, Haigh's tender film unfolds like both a ghost and time travel story, yet it's not quite either one. Instead, the result feels a dreamlike exploration of everything we were, could be, and are, without ever stepping into the bounds of fantasy. There's a stark, grim realism looming in the background. Yet it isn't an exercise in miserabilism. It's hopeful and sad, a tender mercy that allows us to converse with ourselves in the process.

It's a magical gift of a film. A haunting beauty worth seeing for anyone who has ever loved or longed.

Technical Specs & Presentation

★★★ | No-frills release

Originally released direct to streaming on Disney Plus, All of us Strangers spent a long time in limbo without a proper physical print on the horizon. While the Nordic release is nowhere near as complete as the UK or American Criterion editions, it exists, and sometimes that's something we'll have to accept.

The Blu-Ray is barebones, but what is there is high quality. The important part thing is that we have one of the best films of the decade as a physical copy. For now, that's enough.

Video

★★★★ | Solid picture quality all around

The picture quality is solid, with the warm and vibrant tones of Haigh's story coming through beautifully. The image is ever so slightly soft, yet I felt it was the same in theaters. In that sense, the reproduction is accurate and rich.

This is also a dark film in more than just tone. Multiple scenes take place at night, where the only lightsources are lamps or distant windows, where the lives of others shine across the expanse of a bleak city. Here, the Blu-Ray consistently surprises with gorgeous inky blacks and solid levels throughout. It's not quite the depth of a 4K disc, but it's so close that I didn't mind.

Audio

★★★★★ | As good sound as this release needs

The DTS HD Master Audio is brilliant, with no major issues to make note of. Dialog is crisp and clean, and there's a warm richness to every different environment. You wouldn't think that a film like this needs it, but All of Us Strangers proves that belief incorrect. Every detail serves the big picture, and the way you can tell the rooms and timelines apart from just how it sounds is perfect.

Extras

★★ | The bare minimum

The Nordic Blu-Ray release arrives with only two featurettes, which are both fine, if not as revelatory and intimate as I'd wish. The Criterion edition, released in the US and UK, has more comprehensive extras for fans of the film.

The featurettes here look at the more concrete sides of crafting the story, and you can tell there's a deep rooted passion from everyone involved that went into making the film. It's just a shame that we don't get more of that in the shape of a commentary track or more in-depth documentary.

Overall

★★★★ | A fantastic release of an underrated film, well worth it for fans

All of Us Strangers is a gorgeous and near-perfect film that deserves as wide an audience as possible. The physical media release isn't as comprehensive as I'd wish, but I'm so glad that we have one nonetheless. This is the kind of film you want to share with everyone, and a solid Blu-Ray like this is perfect for those moments where you just want to thrust the movie into the hands of a friend. So that they, too, can one day share it forward.