Falling Into Place

The exhilarating rush of flirtation runs through the beginning of Alyin Tezel’s romantic drama but it’s the slowburn of connection that becomes the focus as they/won’t they tale unfolds. Initially the wintry melancholy of Skye matches the mood of Kira (who is also played by Tezel). She’s supposed to be on the island as part of a loved-up getaway but after splitting up with her boyfriend Aidan (Rory Fleck Byrne) it has become a journey into solitude.

But when she encounters Ian (Chris Fulton, who after this and In Camera is also a name to look out for) in the local pub, the sparks of attraction are immediately evident. The kinetic camerawork from Julian Krubasik has a heady immediacy that carries us with them as they horse about in the deserted late night streets of the town.

As might be expected from an actress-turned-director, the performances are important to Tezel but she also shows an aptitude for visual storytelling and deserves praise for capturing the contrast between cold winter days in Scotland and the warmth of evenings down the pub that tend to accompany them. Those who enjoyed the likes of John Carney’s Once are likely to find themselves falling for the similar mood generated by Tezel’s carefully calibrated mix of romance and longing.

When it turns out that Chris isn’t the singleton Kira first thought, the pair go their separate ways back to London. The city is less wintry than Skye but no less emotionally cold. Kira is struggling to get a foothold as a theatrical designer and unwilling to fully give up on her ex. Ian, meanwhile, returns to his girlfriend Emily (Alexandra Dowling) where his frustrations about his lack of success in the music business bubble up toxically between them. There’s guilt, too, on his part regarding his family back home.

The two lead actors get an opportunity to stretch themselves as their characters are revealed to be more multi-faceted than might first appear, but the subsidiary cast pales by comparison, meaning that the portion of the film where Kira and Ian aren’t on screen together sags a bit. That the pair are pre-destined to cross paths again is, of course, never really in doubt and Tezel crafts a satisfying conclusion that while perhaps relying on a rather neat set of circumstances to bring it about, is emotionally on the money.